Two weeks ago, I made the difficult decision of sending the kids back to school. The thing is that they were doing so well at home, Andrew and Matthew being so far ahead of their grade. It was a tough decision especially when were have already been home schooling after we arrived here in Ottawa.
I was torn, I felt that I couldn’t give them enough French, home schooling them. One hour of French tutoring wasn’t enough and it is more expensive here for french lessons. I figured a few months, I would be able to find other French resources. So I made the decision to put them into the regular school system. Unfortunately they were not accepted into the French immersion program at the public school system so they are now in the Catholic School board with middle immersion, meaning their French immersion doesn’t start till Grade 4. That means, Matthew and Natalie(kindergarten has French immersion) are in French immersion and Andrew has 75 minutes of French a day.
The school is right next to the church so it is all within walking distance. For the first week, I was anxious everyday about them going to school. They are all enjoying being back at school and meeting new friends. That was another reason for having them attend school. We are in an older neighbourhood and I have not seen too many kids around. We still have lots of friends with kids here but without a vehicle, it is not as convenient plus kids are all busy with different activities. So now they are making their own friends around the area.
So for the last 2 weeks I have been walking the kids to school 3 times a day, taking the boys in the morning, taking Natalie after lunch(half days) and then picking them up after school. I guess I am walking about an hour a day, getting my exercise. I have about 2 hours a day and timing has been great. They started school right after our possessions arrived so I have been able to organize the house and put things away. I have also been checking out the classified for furniture and other household items while the kids are at school and doing lots of baking….
One of the things that I have always wanted for myself was to learn French. So twice a week, I am going to be doing exchange of English lessons for French lessons with an Algerian student who is in Education. They speak French in Algeria and she needs to do a verbal and written exam in English so I am helping her with that. We had our first exchange yesterday and it worked out really well. We met at the library while Natalie is at school so I don’t have to worry about the kids.
So the kids going back to school has been great, even though I had my doubts. It is working out well for them and for me. Perhaps we might still re-evaluate schooling come fall as I find out about other resources available in the city.
Flexibility is the key ingredient to a wholesome life. As you say you can always re-evaluate in the near future.