Back to School Day

Today was back to School Day at B and A’s elementary school. It’s the day set aside to find out your teacher, check out the class lists, pick up school supplies and volunteer for PTO boards.

The 2^nd grade has an infamously poor teacher at our school. No one wants to be in that class. Usually, I try to take these rumblings with a grain of salt. One person’s love is another person’s hate. You may not always agree with the other moms, even if they are your good friends.

However, it was not a small rumbling. It was an all out battle cry and revolt against the authority (otherwise known as the principal). The peasants, I mean parents, were rising up.

Several threatened to pull their child out of the school and run for the nuns at the Catholic school in town. Others threatened to go over the principal’s head to the district level. I’m not making this up. I heard it directly from these mother’s mouths.

There were the parents that blame this teacher for their child’s self confidence or lack thereof. There were parents that blame this teacher for their child’s falling behind academically. Towards the end of last year, it was one saga or horror story after another.

Of course, I had worked myself up over the odds of someone in our family not getting this teacher. We have 2 students and there are 3 classrooms. Not looking so great.

T told me that I was to put aside all of this nonsense and get on with my summer. No use in worrying about something that was almost 3 months away. Thank God someone around here was rational. So, I did just that. But, as August approached, I began to fret again. Tossing it over in my mind. Do I make a stink if one of them gets her? Do I have the ability to make a stink? Confrontation is not one of my strong suits…

This morning, I was giving the troops my pep talk about the excitement of a new year. All of the teachers are so nice, you may or may not have so and so in your class, but that is ok as there are so many friends to be made. I found myself jittery with nerves. What did lie ahead? A blissful year with an organized, cooperative learning environment or complete chaos? Would it be as bad as everyone was making it out to be?

I did not even realize how nervous I was until we walked in and saw the lists. Both B and A did not get that teacher. They both have excellent teachers and their best buddies in their class. My whole body relaxed and I took a breath. Then, I laughed at myself. How ridiculous was it to get this would up about the unknown? I hate when I do that. And I swear, I’ll never learn. Maybe I need to go back to school. I wonder who my teacher would be?