23 February, 2006

Awards

The school my children attend is on a year-round schedule. For those not familiar with how year-round school works, instead of one large break for the summer, the class takes multiple breaks through out the year. I can not speak for all year-round schools, but my children’s school has an awards ceremony as 2 days before they prepare to take a break. Today was that day for us.

I should, at this point, give you a little background on Connor and school. Earlier this month, it was decided that Connor would be moved from his Kindergarten class to a First Grade class. This decision was based on a great deal of thought, prayer, and assessment of his abilities.

Now, on with the story… This morning, my wife reminded me that the awards ceremony was today. She also stated that this was the first time that neither of the boys would be receiving awards. I didn’t worry much about how my oldest, Aiden, would take it as he is pretty easy going. Unfortunately, I had suspicions that Connor’s would not be so great. One of the problems we have had in the past with Connor is that he feels that everything should be even or fair. He usually keeps track of who is called on in class, weighing the probability that he will be called, and getting upset if he is missed.

Figuring that we were headed for a meltdown, and being unable to attend myself, I discussed with my wife that she REALLY needed to be there. As I started to discuss this with her, she realized how volatile this situation was and agreed that she needed to go.

Well, unlike dinner a few nights before, we were very right in expecting an incident. As the awards ceremony rambled on, and Connor realized he was not being recognized, he began to cry a little. That led to more crying. Then, finally, it evolved into a full blow meltdown. His teacher, who had only had Connor in her class for 3 weeks, developed a “deer in the headlights” look. She then rushed Connor off to the side of the multipurpose room, where his mom was waiting. It took some time and a whole lot of work for my wife to calm him… but he eventually did regain his composure.

After work today, we took Connor and Aiden to John’s Incredible Pizza. They both have done VERY well in school and are at the top of their class. My wife and I explained to them that they will not always receive awards, as others need to be given a chance to shine.

In the end, it was a very emotional day, but such is the rollercoaster.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home