Everyone's kids are excited to go back to school

[dealic]

All my coworkers are telling me how excited their kids are about the start of the school year. How they were bored at home, and couldn't wait to get back. My mom told me we were always excited about the start of the school year too.

I am hoping to homeschool my kids, someday when I have kids. DH and I have been talking about it a lot lately and we agree its best. But I began to feel almost guilty recently hearing how everyone else's kids can't wait to get back.

How do your kids feel at this time of year? Do they have the same excitement? Does it matter if you follow the school schedule and have summers off? Do you do something to make it special? Or is it just a non issue for your kids? Am I going to be depriving my kids of something they would want?

[MommaCrystal]

Well this our first official year. I wanted to make the start of our school special and exciting just as it is for all of my children's friends. We didn't start until after labor day but our district started last week. We chose to go to the beach as a family that day. That was pretty exciting.

Our first day we went out as a family for breakfast. Then we came home and did a light version of our school routine. After that we headed out to a museum. Oh, and we ate at McDonald's for lunch (HUGE treat there). My mother took the day off to join us in all our fun. That was yesterday. Today and tomorrow will be a bit more about establishing routines. Friday we're having a play day with friends.

We also went out as a family and purchased school supplies. They got to decorate their notebooks and such. We took lots of photos. We had a big countdown on the family calendar. We spent a lot of time talking about all the awesome things we'd learn and field trips we are planning.

My boys were plenty excited! So was Mommy! We'll do something like it every year just because it is fun and we can!

I blogged about it here if you want to read/see more.

[kittywitty]

I keep hearing this, too. I don't know. I know my brother in high school is certainly not pleased with going back and I don't remember warm and fuzzy feelings about going back when I was in school (except about buying supplies, I have a strange office supply fetish).

We pretty much do some "school" year round and the kids are always excited about starting back because usually we haven't done circle time in awhile and they *love* circle time!

[SagMom]

Originally Posted by dealic

How do your kids feel at this time of year? Do they have the same excitement? Does it matter if you follow the school schedule and have summers off? Do you do something to make it special? Or is it just a non issue for your kids? Am I going to be depriving my kids of something they would want?

It's a non-issue for my kids and always has been. They have all been happy to not go to school and they enjoy the life that they have. Usually, we don't know exactly when the first day of school is around here. Actually, this year I realized when the first day of school was ON the first day of school--as ds2 and I left for a four day trip.

Some years, we have gone to a "Not Back To School Picnic" with friends, but for my kids, it was all about a fun day at the park with friends, they didn't need any sort of substitute for back to school time.

I remember being excited about going back to school--I got to see my friends, I liked the new books and notebooks, etc. But the newness wore off in a few days and I began looking forward to the end of school.

I think that if your kids want to do something special when school starts, then it's easy enough to plan a party or park day or trip or other activity. Just wait and see what they need. The school schedule just might not even be on their radar.

[Britishmum]

As a kid, I hated going back to school, and every year thought how the 1st September was the worst day of my entire life. It was horrible.

As for my homeschooled kids, it is so totally a non-issue that I never even think about it. They have such a great life and enjoy every day of it, so why would they be missing out by not doing the same as some other kids?

Now, they did really, really look forward to yesterday, which was the first day of their drama class, which takes a break over the summer, plus the first of a new science class that they are taking. They all had a blast, and went to bed exhausted.

So you could say that homeschool kids get the same excitement as (some) kids get at going back to school. The difference for me is that if my kids don't particularly like a class or a teacher, we don't do it. There is no class that they dislike or dread going to. They love every single activity that they do, all year round. It's so cool seeing my kids all excited about learning, and being able to pick and choose the classes and teachers that they have. Right now they have three awesome science teachers, an awesome art teacher, two fabulous drama teachers, an incredible PE teacher, and so on....

We take field trips and classes so often, but the kids never get tired of it. For example, we do a monthly field trip to a science center. Kids in our district, if they are lucky, get to go once a year. Just last week we did the annual homeschool day at a fabulous museum in the city - again, kids at our local schools may get to go there once during grade school. When people make comments to me about my kids 'missing out, I struggle to imagine what is it exactly that homeschoolers could possibly be missing out on? (One parent did triumphantly tell me that we missed out on school photographs.....so maybe there is one thing, although we do have a local parent who now organises homeschool photos for parents who are interested - can't wait to tell this mom that next time she comments on my poor children!)

We have no stress in August about 'what teacher my kid will get this year', and it is all totally in our hands. I see my friends stress about their kids' new teachers, homework loads, etc etc, and can't imagine living that life. With all the fabulous experiences that my kids get, I always feel that schooled kids miss out, not mine. What they occasionally get as an 'extra', my kids get on a weekly basis.

[newcastlemama]

Originally Posted by dealic

All my coworkers are telling me how excited their kids are about the start of the school year. How they were bored at home, and couldn't wait to get back.

Maybe their homes are boring?

I don't really do anything special and I don't feel like they are missing out. (But my son does not want to go to school either). The fall is a great time because we go back into a rountine of library, park days wth friends, soccer ect after all the summer traveling and chaos. We do go stock up on supplies that are on sale and my kids think that is fun.

My kids have a pretty great life year round...Like when other kids are at school we do family daytrips, go to grandmas, and other fun stuff. My ds knows that he gets to do things during the school year that most kids don't. So even though I think kids can look forwrd to going to school I don't think that means our kids are missing out.

[dealic]

Originally Posted by newcastlemama

Maybe their homes are boring?

Honestly, that was my thought

2 months of aimless playing without structure would bore anyone. So if that's what summer "vacation" is, then I would be glad to be done it too

[emily31]

IME, it's mostly parents that love school--all my dd's friends say they hate school and didn't want to go back.

[elizawill]

in our house we actually have the same excitement...it's just in a different way. our co-op and most of our classes break for the summer, so starting back involves the start-up of these activities again. we also shop for supplies needed at our co-op & they get an outfit from my mom for the first day, so that hype is covered for my kids as well & and they love it. i don't feel homeschooling makes a child "miss out" on things...it's just a different experience - that's all.

[EviesMom]

DD is very excited about the start of our home school year. You sometimes hear homeschoolers talk about "box day" when you get all the new curriculum. We make a big deal of the new supplies and changing out one year's workbook and materials for another, looking through them, etc.

There are such good deals on things like crayons that it just makes sense to me money wise to buy new stuff now. (And unlike when I used to have to do shopping for a teacher's public school list, I can buy what's the best deal. I remember being annoyed that 24 count crayons were 50 cents but 16 count per the list were $2; and of course they really wanted the 16. That's probably why the 24 were on sale though. )

[dealic]

Thank you everyone for the replies. You are saying what I knew had to be true, but I don't have the experience to back it up so I wondered if I was wrong.

I know that a lot of *parents* I know are very excited for it. The commercials on TV with the theme song "It's the most wonderful time of the year" are a big hit. It always made me feel a bit sad for the kids whose parents are so glad to see them less. I was schooled and my mom never had that attitude. She believed public school was the best, but she didn't gloat that we were going back. So I don't think its inherent in all parents who use schools. But it makes me sad when I do see it.

[Cyllya]

I'm guessing that kids who are bored during summer vacation are the ones who grow up to be those adults who don't retire simply because they would be bored if they didn't have a job. I always want to tell those people to get a life. At least the retirees can use their old age an excuse.

I hated going back to school.

But I had my own computer with MS Word and Paint Shop Pro. So it was hard for me to be bored any time I had free time at home. (If I didn't have the computer, I probably would have used paper, but that might've gotten boring quicker. And/or my parents would have complained about me "wasting" paper.)

Originally Posted by dealic

Honestly, that was my thought

2 months of aimless playing without structure would bore anyone. So if that's what summer "vacation" is, then I would be glad to be done it too

I don't think "aimless playing without structure" is the problem. (Well, maybe the "aimless" part. What's "aimless playing" mean? Things like playing solitaire over and over?) I'm a structure-hater myself, and the lack of structure during summer vacation was one of the things I loved about it.

I know that a lot of *parents* I know are very excited for it. The commercials on TV with the theme song "It's the most wonderful time of the year" are a big hit. It always made me feel a bit sad for the kids whose parents are so glad to see them less. I was schooled and my mom never had that attitude. She believed public school was the best, but she didn't gloat that we were going back. So I don't think its inherent in all parents who use schools. But it makes me sad when I do see it.

Yeah, I feel so sorry for kids who have parents like that

[Savoir Faire]

We went through this last year. GIve it a month...the excitement will wear off!

Last year it was really hard for me. This year? I'm just happy we're not back to school as well. I guess I now realize what we have here is pretty good.

[LauraN]

My kids are excited to see their friends regularly again--our homeschool group starts up again next week after a summer break. But they've never complined about being bored with summer. I rememberbeing excited about the first day of school--the new clothes, new books, seeing my friends again. But none of that had anything to do with school itself, and amidst the excitement I also mourned the loss of freedom. My kids don't lose their freedom, but they still get the end of summer excitement. And they are excited about new clothes, books, etc whenever we happen to buy them. It's all good.
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[limette]

I remember everyone being excited for the first day of school (myself included. The excitement only lasted until the second day and then we remembered why we were so excited for summer vacation.

[paxye]

We unschool so there is no difference between summers and not except for the fact places are always so busy in the summer...

My kids were excited this year that other kids were back in school... we had the big annual not-going-back-to-school picnic that they love going to, the places that we enjoy going are going to be empty again... but seriously, even if we didn't have that, they wouldn't know what going back to school is, so they have nothing to miss out on to begin with...

[karemore]

We have back to school excitement!

Many of our activities start up again in september. Gymanstics, sunday school, co-op, library program, mom's group....we're excited to get back into a routine.

We also love having all our favorite places to ourselves again once the school kids go back. We avoid crowds, so there are some places we don't go all summer. DD loves back to school because we can go to Chuck E Cheese and other indoor play areas again, the mall, and the playgrounds that are used by summer camps programs.

[audreyhorne]

Originally Posted by dealic

Honestly, that was my thought

2 months of aimless playing without structure would bore anyone. So if that's what summer "vacation" is, then I would be glad to be done it too

i wholeheartedly disagree. i think for a lot of kids, "aimless playing without structure" is exactly what they need after the relentlessness of school.

my kids love "back to school" time because we can go to parks, beaches, museums, zoos, etc without crowds, and because they secretly (or not so secretly)delight in watching the neighborhood kids grumble and groan their way to school in the early morning while they sit on the porch in their jammies, sipping tea, reading and playing. it makes them feel better about anything they might be "missing out on".

[fruitfulmomma]

*I* like back to school time because of the reasons Audrey mentioned - less crowds at the places we want to go.

My kids couldn't care less, except my son who is always waiting for 3:00 to come around so he can go play with his friend.

I hated school. I can't imagine wanting to go back.

[Callimom]

My kids are excited about new programs etc starting up but they aren't really affected by the hoopla about back to school.

As a family we always do something fun on the day school goes back - mostly to celebrate that our parks, beaches, museums etc are empty again and we can reconnect as family. So this year we explored a town a couple of hours north of us, where we hit the beach, went to two small museums, hike the conservation areas around a huge waterfall, found a children's peace labrynth and a fish ladder - very cool.

My kids don't have a sense that they are missing out on anything- in fact they kind of feel sorry for their friends whose life seems far more confined than their own.