I am at Banapple right now, waiting for Jia’s class to finish. Yup, you read that right – Jia’s class. It is her first day of trial class today and although this is just for three days, I find myself tearing up thinking how my baby has grown.
I have been preparing her since last week, making the thought of going to school exciting for her. I think it worked because she was really excited to go to school. I told her there are toys in this school which she can play with and she will have classmates to share the toys with. I repeatedly told her to talk to her teacher when she has a concern.
This morning while having lunch, I told her that I will bathe her. She said she didn’t want to take a bath. Told her jokingly that if she didnt take a bath, her classmates would pinch their noses and would say, “That girl smells.” We both laughed out loud.
After taking a bath, she said, “Mom! The other kids would say, ‘Hmmmm that kid smells good!’” Hahaha!
She knows the trial class is just for three days. While dressing up she told me, “Mom, after day 3, the kids will ask, ‘Huh? Where is Jia?’” Hahaha! Anga anak ko feeling na hahanapin siya ng classmates nya pag nawala siya!
She brought baon to school. I asked her what she wanted for snacks and she said she wanted two bananas so I made sure we had bananas. 
She also brought crackers (Jia loves sky flakes!) and her favorite milk (Hacienda Macalauan). She was so happy while we were preparing her baon.
On the way to school, she kept on asking if we were there already. It became a game and she was laughing. At one point, I asked her to sit on my lap and we just hugged. Ang laki na ng anak ko.
When we got to school, Ms. Toni, the directress, welcomed her. I could sense that Jia suddenly felt unsure. Her body language changed and I knew she was a bit worried. But she conquered her fear and after allowing me to take her picture (she refused to have her picture taken before we left home), she went inside the room with Ms. Toni. While she was standing in the doorway, I suddenly felt worried. I could see she was intimidated; she put a finger in her mouth. I asked Ms. Toni if i could go with her. I knew it was against the rules but this being Jia’s first day, I think it’s understandable. Ms . Toni looked unsure but asked me if Jia would be okay alone. So to be sure, I asked jia if she wanted me to go inside with her. You know what she said? “No… no.” My baby sure is a big girl already.
Bittersweet.
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I survived Jia’s first day of school. I am so very proud of my little girl. Her teacher, Ms. Justine, said that she was very cooperative and was very interested in counting. She listened attentively during the presentations and even wanted to do the presentations by herself. She was very much ready for school.
According to her teacher, Jia looked for me around 3:30pm. She was saying “Mommy, Mommy” and her teacher said that I was just outside. Buti na lang I was already outside the gate. In fact, when I got back to the school from Banapple, Jia was already looking out the door. Perfect timing. I would hate to make Jia feel abandoned. I promised her that I would be outside and knowing her, if I lose her trust, she would not want to go back to school anymore.
When I asked Jia, she said she had a wonderful time. She told me that the other kids were not listening. And of course, Jia being a stickler for rules, said this with a disapproving tone in her voice. LOL!
I think Montessori’s different classroom setup worked for Jia. She was not forced to make friends immediately, nor did she feel left out because the other kids were doing things on their own.
She was the last one to go out of the classroom because her teacher talked to her. She ran when she saw me. I hugged her so tight. I don’t care if she’s already a big girl, she is still my baby.
*Yes, I know my baby has a mohawk hairstyle! Haha!
*You can see the rubber part of the soles for traction.
