Thanks EL Teachers at FHS

 My son has learned how to make mountains.  I had seen his Himalayas, white paper surrounding foam blocks, secured with tape and River's hand-written sign "HIMOLAYAZ". But tonight I saw the pictures of their formation.  A carefully laid lower ring topped by crossing larger blocks, a laptop is next to him, with a picture of this mountain range, and it is remarkable how well his design represents the image on the screen.

I only say this because I have been nit-picky and doubtful and plain worried about River's education.  It has been so hard for me to send my child into the world, to let him be exposed to the strangeness of human communities, without my protection.  I have pestered and questioned his teachers and the school at times.  I recognize this as a mis-projection of my worry.  The work these people do is outstanding.  They are entirely child centered.  They listen, and support, engage, and allow flexibility.  River has realized tremendous satisfaction in the Early Learners Program at Foothills School of Arts and Sciences.  And in my best moments, the experience has been so rich for me as well.  I have a community that I know closely, even if they do not all over-lap into other central areas of my life.  The teachers have helped me be a better more attentive parent by showing me how to guide and be guided by my child.  I have made close friends and experienced great intellectual stimulation.  

I am not sure why it is that I am so analytical about attaining perfection in my child's education.  I want an idyllic experience for him, want to shelter him, and if not shelter than simply watch him smoothly move through.  I can't imagine wanting him to have serious struggle, even though I realize its inevitablity, even though I see its worth.  In finally seeing him graduate from the ELs last week, in tact, invigorated and very inquisitive, maybe I finally exhaled, and in looking at the tremendous documentation of his teachers along with a beautiful pictorial history of his 2 years, I simply must say THANK YOU BEKAH, JULIE, CARRIE, AND MARGARET and the rest of FHS!  

"The sun reflects light from the moon and also the moon reflects light from the sun. The moon has craters too. They're big holes that meteors made over time." -River Hollis Woodruff, 5