School Immersion

Well folks, today was the day. I picked up the novel of paperwork to enroll Hudson in kindergarten this fall. This is a major deal and was a big decision for 2 reasons.
1. His birthday is In August so he will be young.
2. We are choosing to enter him in to the lottery for the dual Immersion program.

1. Do I think he's "ready" for kindergarten? Sure, yes. Would he be fine if we held him back 1 more year? Sure, yes. Is there a $12,000 difference in sending him vs. holding him back? Abso-freakin-lutely. In addition, the sentiment, at least in our neighborhood is that most people are sending their kids if they are eligible. I mean, there is a cut off date for a reason right? (p.s. in California kids have to be 5 by November this year, next year it will be 5 by October and the year after, 5 by September.)
So, he's going.

2. The Dual Immersion Program is a program that our 2 elementary sister schools (public) offer. It's a lottery and if you get in, well, taken straight from the schools website "The Dual Language Immersion Program is a challenging and rigorous academic program in which Spanish is used as the primary language of instruction. We believe that through participation in this program, our students will become bilingual and bi-literate by the end of sixth grade and be better prepared to be contributing citizens in our global society."
Basically K-6th grade is in Spanish. It's a commitment. You can't really decide you don't like it when your kid is in 3rd grade because they will be far behind their other classmates who have been reading and writing in English for the past 3 years.
So, he's going.

When you have kids, you have to decide what works for your family. I am by no means trying to "sell" anyone on what we have decided, although I am curious as to your thoughts on the subject matter (not that I will change my stubborn mind.)
This is what we have chosen. By the way, it's competitive out here. Options make people crazier than usual.

Crazy Lady: "What school is your child going to?" "Oh, really? Do you think you'll like it? I heard their test scores suck?"

My response: "Really? Last time I checked it was fucking kindergarten." "How the fuck do I know if we will like it? It's kindergarten."

I mean, its not like we live in the slums. Should I be worried? My kid is most likely going to graduate with 600+ other kids his age. So whether he is small, fast, tall, smart, artsy, goth, a jock, a poet or somewhere in between, as his parents, we will happily take the blame and/or the credit for his up bringing, thank you very much.
Adios!




At pre-school today.




Green Rice Krispy treats for school tomorrow.