Niwa Starts school!!

I am pretty late with this entry!  A whole term in fact!  Flip oh well at least I am doing it now.  My one and only Baby,  my last baby started school on Monday the 29th of July.  It was so hard for me,  I think I was grieving for about 6 weeks after he started school.  Then I got busy with Arama's surgery etc so I kind of got distracted thank goodness.  Oh well so here are some photos of him on his first day at school.    

Us all at home on the first day of term 3    2013 which is Niwa's first day of school.  We were staying at Mums house at this time as we were also having our house renovated at the time.  What a crazy term.  Lots happened term 3    2013,  hopefully term 4 is a little less busy!

The photos below are of Niwa on 'The Mat'  at school.   It was all very foreign for him and he was pretty scared to begin with.  I stayed with him til about 11am.  Prior to that I had tried to go and he hung onto me for dear life and just didn't want me to go. I was so sad for him,  then I told him to be brave and I would go and get Terina to come and sit with him to have morning Tea,  and he allowed me to do that.  I spent the rest of the day in Zombie land hoping he was alright.  I arrived to collect him at 3 and he was just fine.  He braved it out but was pretty stuffed by the time we got home.

Niwa sussing things out on the mat with the other kids,  Not too sure what the deal is???

Then the class went for a little bit of fitness and he loved this part as Niwa is the type of kid who loves running around outside so fitness time was his favourite.

Below are photos of Niwa eating his Morning Tea and Terina and her friend Georgia came to comfort him and eat their lunch with him.  This really boosted him even though I had to convince Terina,  I don't think eating your lunch in the juniors is very cool!

My Yummy, Unsure, Delicious, Baby Boy eating his lunch.  He is a big boy now!  BOO HOO!

Niwa loves to do his homework.  The photos below are of him doing his Reading when he arrived home.  This is him about day 3.  Keith was outside doing the gardens and Niwa didn't even make it inside with his reading book this day,  he was so keen to share his reading skills with his Daddy as soon as he got out of the car!  So cute! 

So at the end of his first term of school,  he is totally happy and settled!  The first day was the only day we had any problems with him wanting me to stay.  He knows the routines and systems in the class and is even great at home in the mornings following his little 'to do list' etc.  I am so proud of him.  I can tell he loves to learn too,  he can already read and write about 20 words and I am so excited.  I hate to say this but I think it a lot so I am going to....... I don't think he is Dyslexic!  A little treat for me!  (Fingers Crossed).  It is so lovely as a mother to know your child is settled and happy at school because they spend a lot of their hours there each day.  What a blessing!

TERINA THE ARTIST!

Last year Terina's teacher put all her art into a big envelope at the end of the year and gave it to her to bring home.  For someone who has a passion and love for art (especially kids art), this was the coolest Christmas pressie eva.  I displayed them on our pinboard in our 'home school' kitchen.  But now 7 months later I am wanting to turn our kitchen back into a kitchen and not a classroom,  So I have taken them down and stored them but wanted to keep a journal of some of my favourites and thought what better way than on my blog. 

So here are some of my favourites.  I hope you enjoy.  

What a cool teacher she had!  I think it takes a pretty skilled teacher to bring art out like this in kids!  I feel so blessed that Terina had such a cool start to school 

with such an amazing lady!  

ARAMA THE SCIENTIST

Arama is a ‘Science Freak’ and always has been.  Once a week at school they get to choose fun options on what they call ‘Day T’.  Anything from sports, to music to science, to knex etc etc.  He has chosen a Dissection class.  The other week they dissected a pigs eye.  These photos are of him dissecting a sheep’s heart.   I just wanted to post these photos because I thought they might be a sign of things to come.  He is so so good at science and retains what he learns so well.  He especially loves Astronomy and this dissection class has been a first for him.  One good thing about his school is all the opportunities like this  he gets that I could never provide as a home school mum.  (As for the ‘3 R’s, well that’s another story and another blog entry)!  

ARAMA STARTS INTERMEDIATE

On Wed the 1st of Feb, Arama started school after 3 years of being home schooled.

As you can imagine, I was more anxious than him and I actually started a new teaching

job that same day so I wasn't able to go to school with him.  Keith had the week off

so he took him.  (Just as well,  I would have probably been an emotional wreck)!

Well I kinda was an emotional wreck without even being there  LOL!

My school is just down the path from his schools so after school he can just walk 

down to me.  Having home schooled him for 3 years,  we have developed a very 

close relationship in a way that is kinda hard to explain to someone who hasn't Home schooled

before.   Arama also has quite a few challenges in his life so sometimes I just want to

wrap him up in cotton wool and protect him from everything hard in his life.

I have come to the realisation however that I am limited in what I can offer him

and know that school can offer him many things that I can't although I also feel the same 

vice versa about the things you can offer at home that school can't.  So for now it is a 

big leap of faith for a very special young spirit.  So far so good!

The photos above are of us all the morning he left.  He looks pretty smart in his New Uniform!

The Front Gate

Arama has some special EX- Home schooled friends who go to Murrays Bay Intermediate too, 

 they live just across the road from his school.  He walked to school with them on his first day 

which was a real blessing as he didn't know anyone else.  They have continued to be a lovely supportive family in making Arama feel welcome at school.  Jane, the mother of this special family,  has just had her home schooled daughter return to school this week too so we have been able to support each other through our tough transition together.  Thank you Jane for your help and aroha xx

Arama is in Room 25  and his teacher is Sarah Herbert.

She is very experienced and passionate about learning.

Arama already thinks the world of her and doesn't stop 

raving about her.

This sign on her door kinda says it all.

"If you care about what you do and work hard at it, 

there isn't anything you can't do if you want to"

Jim Hensen

So Arama has been at school for 3 days now and it is getting easier by the day.

I think we have chosen the right school for him.  

It has been a very long week for him and us all and the travel in kinda crazy,

however is this is as good of a school as I think it is, then I will travel the distance 

for my precious little boy, who is growing up!   ARGHH I can't believe he just started intermediate!