My Last Kindergartner

Although it's not her last year at her school, Gemma has also had some sadness over the school closing. This was her first year of organized school and she loved everything about it. She loved getting out of the van and walking into school with her big brother and sister. She loved that they would walk her to her classroom. She loved learning, playing, and eating.

There are a few things she misses most of all, though.

1. Gemma is a pretty outgoing person in most situations, and very much an extrovert. She has made some amazing friends this year and has really felt the loss of that interaction. We have found some ways for her to talk to some of them, but not all.

2. One of Gemma's favorite things about school was going to related areas, especially art, dance, music and drama. While we've tried to incorporate some of that stuff into her life, it's just not the same. The related areas teachers at her school are amazing, and she misses them lots, especially her "BFF" drama teacher, who also taught her youth theatre class, so that's a double-whammy.

3. When we got Gemma's teacher assignment this year, I'll be honest, I was a little bummed. I knew the other five teachers either personally or by reputation and knew they were all amazing. This was the new teacher, the one who replaced Karyssa's kindergarten teacher, and I just didn't know anything about her. It was the same assistant from Karyssa's class, though. A wonderful neighbor of ours, so that helped a little. After just a few short weeks, my disappointment had disappeared completely. Gemma was exactly where she needed to be. Her teacher spent 20 years in China, as a missionary, teaching English. She spent the prior three years teaching Chinese immersion. Not only was Gemma learning Spanish in school, but some Chinese words too! And not only was her teacher an amazing teacher, but she was most definitely the one that Gemma was meant to have. Gemma loves her so much, and we are so fortunate that they have been able to have their morning Zoom class calls and weekly one-on-one reading time.

In an opposite way from her big siblings, we will now have no memories of her last day of her first year of school. Would she have cried? Grinned from ear-to-ear? Something in between? Would there have been that one friend she just didn't want to let go of?

What else would she have learned this year? Who else would she have become friends with? How would her first school play have gone? Would she have loved her first field day?

These are questions we'll never have answers to, but I do know that she's learning a lot, loving a lot, and laughing a lot at home, and I'll treasure these memories forever.