School

The Third of Firsts – My First High School Dance

Jeanna GLeave a comment

My first high school dance wasn’t a formal, just a fall social event in the commons, aka our school’s cafeteria. Casual attire was worn; jeans and t-shirts. Not too many kids were in attendance. We were a very small school, but I’m sure a lot of kids rolled their eyes at the thought of a school dance and decided to skip it. I was involved with the Student Council, so I pretty much had to go, but I would have gone anyway. Not only do I like to do stuff, but I knew my crush was going to be there.

He and I both played on the school soccer teams. A lot of our teammates were at the dance, so we spent most of the evening hanging out with each other. No one really danced to the fast songs, but most of us buddied up to sway along to the slow ones. For the first slow dance, one of the soccer players asked me to dance. A different teammate asked me to dance to the next one. This went on throughout the evening, but I kept hoping my crush would step up. Finally, at the last song, he asked me to dance. He said he wanted to ask all night, but his teammates knew it, so they jumped in just to mess with him. I was happy to have the best for last.

A week later he brought me flowers for our one week anniversary. We danced together at every winter formal and prom over the next three years, and at his college fraternity formal after those, but none were as sweet as the first.

School Daze

Jeanna G2 Comments

My daughter’s school year was cancelled yesterday. That’s it, no more second grade. Friday the 13th of March was the last day she had recess, walked single file down the hall, and sat on the rug for morning meeting. We celebrate a snow day, but not the absence of school for five months.

We both cried at the announcement. She misses her friends terribly. She loves her teacher. She even likes the learning part. I cried for her. Second grade was one of my favorite years. I also loved my teacher, Mrs. Warner. I miss the simplicity of those times. When my daughter goes back to school, she’ll be a third grader, and along with that comes state testing. She’ll still have a fun year, I’m sure, but it’s like her life will be getting serious already.

I’m her teacher now. We have assignments for remote learning, but I think I’ll try to use this time to teach her what I loved so much about second grade. I’ll have to time travel a bit. I do remember we had an incubator to hatch baby chicks in our second grade classroom, but the power went out over the weekend, so we never made it to the hatching part. I don’t think I’ll try that lesson at home. I do remember we read a lot of Shel Silverstein. I’ll start there and see where it takes us.

What was your favorite lesson from elementary school? If you could repeat a school year, which one would it be, and why?

Good luck to all of the new homeschoolers out there!