I sat down the other day with my computer, planner, and calculator to determine what supplies we would need for the upcoming school year. I love being able to purchase the next set of books for my homeschoolers. I love giving them the books on the first day of school and seeing all the excitement. It was this was for me as a classroom teacher. Children love beginnings. Something happens along the way, however, and what starts out as excitement and an anxiousness to begin wains as the struggle to compete projects, pass tests and make it through the year takes over the heart and mind of a young learner.
I have this scenario on my mind a lot right now as I plan the next session of school. I also have been pondering a lot why they call it the 'new year.' It's not typically new, except for maybe that the teacher or class is different. The school is the same. The month you start is the same. The fact that you'll be sitting there the same amount of hours and on the same days doesn't change. So isn't it really just another sesson on a path of progressing through school? Does the big focus on 'new' turn it into something that eventually wears off and becomes boring and undesireable?
I want to change that condition, at least in my little school of influence. I want to start to teach about progression and the whole experience and spend less time on the short fireworks of the new year and first day of school mindset. I'll be developing this theme as I work through the summer to make plans for what we will now term (for us) Session 5. Come back and visit and leave a comment -- I'd like to hear your thoughts on this as well.
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