Kindergarten Blues

As August and a new school year quickly approach, I find myself gazing longingly at the school supply aisle. The pencils! The rulers! The planners with blank pages begging to be written in. It’s almost too much, and I almost always slip a few packs of glue sticks and washable markers into my cart.

This is the first year where my now five-year-old COULD officially attend school. As my friends post cutesy pictures of first-day-of-school outfits and long, worried Facebook posts about the “transition,” I find myself slightly jealous that my spirited daughter will not have this experience.

Although we are excited to “officially” begin the homeschool journey, and even more excited with the flexibility that this lifestyle offers, there is a small part of me that still lingers in the backpack aisle hoping upon hopes that we will all thrive and be okay.

It’s normal to doubt and to question. Taking responsibility for my children’s education is not to be taken lightly. However, as I have fielded questions about how rockets get into space and why The Jungle Book movie makes me sad even though it has a happy ending (Why are the parents always killed off!?), I know we will be okay.

My kids already know how to learn, so I will be collecting school supplies and proudly organizing them in our home. And maybe on the first day of school, I will post a picture of my proud daughter digging in the mud searching for those elusive worms, smiling at the camera with unadulterated happiness.

Jenn Osborne is a homeschooler, educator, and runner living, learning, and writing in Japan. You can follow her @jennwritesabout.