First Graders

I LOVED first grade.

 

Really. It was just the neatest year. But then, I was one of those goody-goody, teachers pet kind of little girls who loved everything about school. Well, maybe not Fourth Grade. Eeehhhhh (I shudder). Fourth Grade. The year of misery. I'm not exactly sure why. Maybe because my best friend, Kaysie, was not in my Fourth Grade class. Or maybe I was just going through a pretty pathetic awkward phase. And it was the year of the dreaded bean dip incident, a terrible and scarring experience that involved being pelted with bean dip at a slumber party by an out of control gang of 10 year old girls, a hideous event which haunts me to this day.

But First Grade. That was the year of...Mrs. Ramona Buckman, my First Grade teacher. She was fabulous. Young. Gorgeous. An amazing blonde bouffant flip hairdo (this was, after all, 1967!). Frosty pink lipstick. Full of fun ideas. And married to a VETERNARIAN! I mean, that was absolute perfection to a six year old girl - a husband who healed puppies! I reminded my best friend, Kaysie, of Mrs. Buckman the other day and she kind of gasped and said "Oh, she was just GLAMOROUS." And yes, Kaysie was in my First Grade class with me, so all was well. As was my friend Flavia, who I met on the first day of First Grade because we were seated next to each other in alphabetical order, and has remained my friend to this day. As was Tom Douglass, my first crush, who has actually been known to read this blog. In fact, our First Grade class was so great, that in our Senior year of high school, Mrs. Buckman organized a reunion and 15 of us showed up! Five people from that class are now my "friends" on Facebook!

Today is Jude's first full day of First Grade, and I have a feeling he's going to have a year much like mine. Because this is the year of...Miss Jackie Brown, Jude's First Grade teacher. She is fabulous. Young. Gorgeous. Amazing long blonde hair. Frosty pink lipstick. Full of fun ideas. And over the summer, she became engaged to be married. Absolute romantic perfection to a six year old! Apparently, on the first day of school, Miss B told the class all about how she became engaged - her fiance went down on one knee and asked "Will you marry me?" This seems to have made a huge impression on Jude. He keeps acting it out - dropping to his knees in front of me (or whichever girl is near him when he thinks of it) and in his most sincere and pleading tone asks "Will you engage me?" Which is just so damned cute that I hate to correct him.

This morning, when I dropped him off at school, I kept looking around at all the other kids in his First Grade class. Who from this group will be his lifelong friends? Who will be his first crush? Who will be the kids who hurl bean dip at him in Fourth Grade? Well, lets hope he avoids that one.

Have a great year First Grader!

Comments

[becky]

Oh, that is so adorable. What a little romantic you've got! I can just picture him getting down on one knee.

[Sarah at themommylogues]

I send my little first grader off tomorrow. We've just moved so it's a new school too. Kindergarten was one thing, but first grade seems to be a whole other animal. Kindergarten is cute & little & playful. First grade is SCHOOL.

[Steff]

and oh those first grade boys...such a different animal than lil girls. mine thinks he is king of the world. he keeps telling me how big he is and that he doesnt need me to tell him what to do...funny he still needs me to snuggle him every night and tuck him into bed, but that seems to go out of his mind when he wants me to let him go alone. "i am a big kid mom I can walk to class by myself."
steff

[Tater Mama]

Oh, I've missed reading blogs -- especially yours! I've returned to teaching this year after 3 years away, and these first four (yes, FOUR) weeks have kicked my you-know-what. It's a whole new ballgame working and having children. Duh.

Anyway, I taught 1st grade for 3 years, and it's such a great year! I am sure Jude's teacher will be absolutely wild about him. It's almost impossible not to love first graders.

This year I'm teaching 5th graders, and, sadly, I can't say the same. Haha!

I hope Jude's first day was wonderful!