"Amy finds actual school work easy. Listening, following directions, especially those regarding play rules, she seems to regard at times as things that should be challenged. Or her way. She also speaks out frequently without raising her hand to give directions such as: 'We haven't done date & time yet!'"
"Amy is listening better, but quietly tests whether she can continue doing something after she is told not to, if she will really 'have to do' something."
"We still have to watch her and remind her to get work done. She pokes along... we continually remind her to get work done and stop talking... sometimes her work doesn't get done on time because she putters and talks..."
These are various excerpts from my Kindergarten & 1st Grade report cards. My mom mentioned that we could take these statements, replace "Amy" with "Sean," and BAM! You got my kid!
She's right. He's me -- but the boy variety.
Thankfully Sean had a much better week this past week! Granted it was a 4-day week (there was no school Friday for teacher in-service), but he did really well all four of those days. My hope is that he was just getting used to the new environment and good days will be the norm from here on out.
But he's my son. And he has a lot of my traits. I can't say I'd be completely caught off-guard if the teacher tells me at some point that he blurts out answers to questions that were asked to a classmate, or that he mumbles under his breath to get the last word, or he chucks a pencil across the room when he can't seem to figure out how to spell Mississippi correctly after about 12 attempts at it.
I still blame my mom. At some point when I was a child -- perhaps at her 15th parent-teacher conference, listening to my teacher go on about my determination to rule the world -- I know she wished upon a star that I would someday have a strong-willed, sassy, and spirited little kid like me.
And I did.
And I wouldn't change him for the world (except for the part about going to the Principal's office -- I hope he doesn't have to do that again, haha!)
