Mrs. B

Sometimes I find myself getting a bit teary-eyed when I think of the lovely Mrs. B.  Mrs. B is Fia's kindergarten teacher.  She is amazing.  She is God with skin on.   She spoke at the beginning of the year to all the parents.  She was firm and confident, so very good at what she does, you could tell.  She told us that she looks at our little ones as her little ones and loves them like her own.

I have heard this before but Mrs. B has shown us this year to be truth.  She has shown us how much she loves Fia, how much she genuinely cares for her.  She took Fia by the hand at the beginning of the year, guiding her through, gently pushing her in the right direction.  Fia has grown, has become so much more independent and confident.  Just the other day I watched her run out of the car towards her friend - laughing and giggling and so happy.  I cried just a bit and sent a thank you up to God for Cecilia, for Mrs. B, for the school we are a part of now.

Mrs. B has been holding my hand too, I am not as apt to let go as Fia was.  I send e-mails to Mrs. B, I ask questions, I offer up help, we send in cookies or bread or garden stuff.  I needed some guidance, too, this year.  She answers all e-mails within 24 hours.  She never makes me feel like the crazy parent I am.  She tells me she LOVES to hear Fia stories and please share anytime (yeah, I know, she's amazing, right?)  I have broken all my rules that I set for myself when I was a teacher imagining myself as a parent.  Because it's different, it really is.  It's hard.

But Mrs. B makes it easier.

I hear a lot about schools and teachers and the state of our education system......A LOT.  I straddle both sides - knowing so many teachers, my husband being one of them and then knowing people who homeschool or choose the private school route.  And honestly, I don't want to go into all that.  Everyone has to make their own decision about what to do with their own child.  I can't even pretend to know what is right for everyone.  I know what is right for my child, for our family and that's what we are doing.  I assume that everyone else is doing what is right for their own child and their own family period.

The one thing I want to say is that whatever thoughts or opinions or views you have on education I urge you to keep in mind the people involved in education when you speak about the "system".  Mrs. B has three children of her own, teenagers.  I hear from Fia that she sings and she dances and she is very silly and weird, at times (this is a good thing in our household - weirdness is good, we embrace it.)  I have been in her class, seen the tables filled with energetic, loud,  enthusiastic children - I get tired.  I sent Fia to school knowing some sight words, her abcs, sounds, etc.  What do I get back?  A girl who can read, write sentences, color neatly, play with others, take turns, help others.  I have no idea how this was accomplished with so many kids and so little time.  We do a little homework but we are not responsible for all that she has accomplished this year.  It wasn't me that enabled Fia to get up on a stage and whisper and giggle with her friends.  It's wasn't me that taught her to read the Henry and Mudge (by the way - it's a puppy mudge book - not the level I book :) book this morning.   I am amazed that Mrs. B has the energy and stamina that she does.  She works all day with all these crazy kindergarten children - teaching them, reviving them, keeping them on task, disciplining them - and then she goes home to three of her own children and her own family - that is too exhausting for me to even contemplate.  I know it's her job but she does it so well - beyond any expectations and that is unexpected.

I am a little in awe of Mrs. B.

In 10 years or so Fia will be in high school and will have a number of fabulous teachers (I still remember TC, Ms. Ballard, Mr. Dollive, Mr. Ferraro........such classics :).  These teachers will shape and influence her.   They will be among her favorites (seriously, wish she could have TC or Bentley - these teachers did for me what Mrs. B is currently doing for Fia - giving her courage).  But for our family, for Joe, for me, I think that Mrs. B will go down in our history books.  The teacher that held our hands, that laughed away our worries, that encouraged us as parents.  Mrs. B is not only a teacher that loves her students but you can tell she loves her families.

Thank you so much Mrs. B!