5th Day of School

After a mid-week break, Ethan was happy to know that there's school on Thursday. It was a little tough to get him up by 7am in the morning because he turned in late the night before and the sky outside still looked dark (autumn is almost here... I wonder how we'll handle winter when the sun rises late!). Still, we made it to school on time, with the same usual morning rush. Today marks the 1st time he walked into his classroom with absolutely no tears. In fact, he boldly stepped in, and after a solid "bye", he continued on his own business in the classroom. Both his teacher and myself were truly impressed by his behaviour! And I'm really happy for Ethan for his quick adaptation.

When I picked him up for lunch, I saw a really peaceful scene - the teacher, sandwiched between Ethan and one other kid, was reading a book to them. As Ethan turned around and noticed my arrival, he once again jumped up and hurried towards me, looking very pleased and comforted.

We had ample time at home for lunch, so much so that he could move his bowels and I clean him up after that. But subsequently, he started acting up for school again. I suspect it could be afternoon fatigue fussiness as well. As I carried him back to school, he started dozing off! I tried my best to keep him awake so that I could prepare him for his nap in school - remove his jackets and belongings, take off his trousers and shoes. In his drowsy state, he started crying about school. The teacher's arrival by my side only added to his agony. But he knew I had to go. And as I got out of sight from him, I noticed he quickly quietened down and followed the teacher's lead readily. The teacher brought him to pee, then to his classroom to collect a yellow toy car, and finally to the adjacent room for the nap. (Incidentally, I guess Ethan has marked this particular toy as his sleep comfort object; I vaguely remember that he had taken the same toy for a previous day's nap.) I could tell that Ethan was making a clear effort to remain quiet as he made his way into the sleep room so as not to disturb his peers who were already in slumberland.

As I picked Ethan up after school, I had a chance to put Lionel in touch with the teacher via my phone and here's the feedback: Ethan is doing well, no more crying in class. It was a good idea to break his day in school by bringing him home for lunch. He still prefers to play alone and doesn't know how to share but that will come. Well, pray that Ethan will continue to settle down in school and learn to interact with others in a social setting. I suppose that will come also when he understands more of the French language, like me.