Kindergarten Graduation

Last Monday, Warren graduated from kindergarten at Montessori House. I have learned a lot from kindergarten, and so has he. Here are the things that I have learned:
It's okay if my child wears the same shirt 3 days in a row to school.
There are 2 kinds of smart: do-what-your-teacher-says-smart, and think-for-hours-on-end-about-life-and-what-your-teacher-says-smart. I am the first type. Warren is the second.
Warren loves bugs and science.
There is a boys and girls team at playground time, and Warren generally plays on the girls' team. So do most of the other boys.
The names of various cacti.
Warren is not to be rushed in the morning.
Recognizing that knowledge is more within each of us than without, and that a teacher is the instrumentality by which that knowledge is drawn out.
Warren loves to kiss me goodbye in the morning. Don't try skipping this for the sake of time--it will backfire and cost more time.
It is better to diffuse the conflict in the backseat than to solve the problem. Diffusing the conflict by distraction or changing the environment works better.
Realizing that learning is guided most by interest, and least by pressure or expectation.
The moment after a child gets in the car or gets home from school is not a good time to ask about school. Wait. Ask later.
Having a snack ready when Warren gets home from school=love.

Warren says he learned the following:
"I only remember one thing, and it's...I actually remember two things. I learned that raisins could float in vinegar and baking soda, and that you could turn a flower or celery red if you put it in food coloring water."
[Oh...and how to write in cursive and print, read, add 4 digit numbers, borrow in subtraction, carry in addition, count by 2's, 3's, 4's, 5's, 6's, 7's, 8's, 9's and 10's, have manners at the table, the names of the continents, what a compound word is, the life-cycle of a caterpillar, how to make good choices about how to use his time and several other social graces, life skills and physical representations of abstract concepts that will manifest themselves later...but hey, does any of that really compare to a dancing raisin?]

Each kindergartner was escorted in by an older student. This was Warren's escort. Many kids had their older sibling escorting them, and the thought of Warren escorting Abigail or Avery or Madeleine someday made me a little teary, but only for a second :) Congratulations Warren! I am so proud of all the work you enjoyed this year, of the thoughtful child you are and all the skills you learned because you had faith in yourself and your teachers' guidance. And thank you for being my teacher, too.