Friday night Julian and Micah had their end-of-the-year spectacle at school. I am always a sucker for closure, and this event did not disappoint.
The party started at 6:30, with a buffet that kept replenishing as more families arrived with their offerings. There were hot dogs, drinks, crepes, savoury tarts, and oodles of desserts. Enough to keep my boys asking for more and more tickets to fill up their excited tummies. As you might expect at a full-school event there were lots of crews of kids buddying around, but relatively calm for the number of people fitting into the small courtyard.
After an hour or so, the kids were organized into their classroom groups and calmed down enough to present. Micah’s teacher, Patricia, in addition to being a real star teacher, is also the director of chorale for the whole school. First up were the CP and CE1 classes. They had about 8 or 9 songs to present, and then one with the older groups included as well. It is beautiful to see so many little ones, singing so sweetly and taking it all very seriously. We have been to many concerts now, over the kids school careers, but this one was especially well put together.
After a joint song en rond the CE2 (Micah’s class) and the CM1 and CM2 (Julian’s class) presented their 8 or 9 songs. Micah was his true show-man self, in the front row next to his buddies, singing with his large round eyes as sincere as can be.
And Julian, after a dance presentation in which he actually was smiling and enjoying himself (hip-hop is not his usual genre), just dropped my jaw.
He was singing in the second row, and I am sure that not many other families paid much attention. But his body was so relaxed, his face was so uplifted, and he was just in his element.
Just in case you were wondering what Noah was up to during the show...
Singing in French was one of the first ways that my two older boys could REALLY enter into their school community. Music resonates so deeply for the both of them and memorization comes naturally. So they could quickly learn the lyrics, puzzle out their meanings together and practice at home so that, when their epreuve came around, they were both confidently prepared.
It also helps that Patricia picked really wonderful songs to practice, from fast-paced lists of foods to slower reflective pieces (prends le temps…). AND, above all else, all of the students want to work for her. She is a tall woman, with large features, and a large personality to accompany them. At the beginning of the year parent meeting, unlike the other two that I had attended where the teacher talked and the parents listened for the entire hour or more, Patricia had all of her material on the board, covered it in ten minutes flat and spent the rest of the time speaking to what the parents really wanted to discuss.
She took Micah’s class on a week-long trip into the mountains to explore old-fashioned times and to get in touch with nature. They hiked several times, witnessed first-hand their studies of marmots, went to an old-fashioned school-house and visited a goat farm, tasting the milk, cheeses in varying ages, etc. The kids have so bought into everything that she presents that it looks like a constant love-fest. And the amount of material they have covered… let’s just say that Micah has had a very good year.
When the show was over, Micah had been asked by the directrice to be the student to present flowers to Patricia. I had suspected that Micah and Patricia had a special understanding with each other, but this confirmed it. And after the show, when I thanked Patricia for all of her incredible work with the chorale and with Micah in general the two of us were both teary. She told me if she could teach Micah for ten years straight she would do that. (Sniff, sniff…)
The other moment that really made me tear up, and it doesn’t take much, was at the beginning of the show, when the directrice was introducing all of the grades to the audience. Because this is the only event during the year where parents are invited to the school, it also serves as the graduation party for the CM2. Hence their chance to dance as well as sing for the school. Lots of whistles and cheers and proud children and parents. But after the classroom introductions, the directrice also introduced the five Canadian children to the audience and talked about how integrated they were. And the hoots and hollers made me just well up again.
I am so proud of my children for the year that they have had here in France. Each one, in his own way, has come along so far in their personal development. Julian has applied his fine-tuned learning skills to learning French (and don’t I get corrected on a daily basis). But he has also become more secure in what he is and is not willing to do. He had a great quote for Ed about not needing to be the “cool” kid in the group. Micah struggled the most in the beginning, because he could not just jump in as the social being that he is. But, with his level of French and accent to boot, he is now enjoying the fruits of his hard work and going to birthday parties left and right, going on sleepovers, and really enjoying his newfound friends. And Noah has finally come out of his shell. His class is a challenging one, but he has finally sorted out for himself the kids who play nicely with him, and who he prefers to avoid. But the children with whom he now plays benefit from his imagination and his secret French (don’t let his parents know that he speaks) along with his coquin ways!
Noah’s end-of-the-year fete will be next Friday and his class is, along with singing in the chorale, presenting a yoga demonstration. Lots of chien-tete-en-bas, bebe heureux and gorille, with all the kids dressed in white. Can you say pizza stains are hard to wash out? I am looking forward to seeing Noah in his environs as well, and wiping away a few more of those mommy-tears.
After an hour or so, the kids were organized into their classroom groups and calmed down enough to present. Micah’s teacher, Patricia, in addition to being a real star teacher, is also the director of chorale for the whole school. First up were the CP and CE1 classes. They had about 8 or 9 songs to present, and then one with the older groups included as well. It is beautiful to see so many little ones, singing so sweetly and taking it all very seriously. We have been to many concerts now, over the kids school careers, but this one was especially well put together.
After a joint song en rond the CE2 (Micah’s class) and the CM1 and CM2 (Julian’s class) presented their 8 or 9 songs. Micah was his true show-man self, in the front row next to his buddies, singing with his large round eyes as sincere as can be. 
And Julian, after a dance presentation in which he actually was smiling and enjoying himself (hip-hop is not his usual genre), just dropped my jaw. 
He was singing in the second row, and I am sure that not many other families paid much attention. But his body was so relaxed, his face was so uplifted, and he was just in his element. 
Just in case you were wondering what Noah was up to during the show...
Singing in French was one of the first ways that my two older boys could REALLY enter into their school community. Music resonates so deeply for the both of them and memorization comes naturally. So they could quickly learn the lyrics, puzzle out their meanings together and practice at home so that, when their epreuve came around, they were both confidently prepared.
It also helps that Patricia picked really wonderful songs to practice, from fast-paced lists of foods to slower reflective pieces (prends le temps…). AND, above all else, all of the students want to work for her. She is a tall woman, with large features, and a large personality to accompany them. At the beginning of the year parent meeting, unlike the other two that I had attended where the teacher talked and the parents listened for the entire hour or more, Patricia had all of her material on the board, covered it in ten minutes flat and spent the rest of the time speaking to what the parents really wanted to discuss.
She took Micah’s class on a week-long trip into the mountains to explore old-fashioned times and to get in touch with nature. They hiked several times, witnessed first-hand their studies of marmots, went to an old-fashioned school-house and visited a goat farm, tasting the milk, cheeses in varying ages, etc. The kids have so bought into everything that she presents that it looks like a constant love-fest. And the amount of material they have covered… let’s just say that Micah has had a very good year.
When the show was over, Micah had been asked by the directrice to be the student to present flowers to Patricia. I had suspected that Micah and Patricia had a special understanding with each other, but this confirmed it. And after the show, when I thanked Patricia for all of her incredible work with the chorale and with Micah in general the two of us were both teary. She told me if she could teach Micah for ten years straight she would do that. (Sniff, sniff…)
The other moment that really made me tear up, and it doesn’t take much, was at the beginning of the show, when the directrice was introducing all of the grades to the audience. Because this is the only event during the year where parents are invited to the school, it also serves as the graduation party for the CM2. Hence their chance to dance as well as sing for the school. Lots of whistles and cheers and proud children and parents. But after the classroom introductions, the directrice also introduced the five Canadian children to the audience and talked about how integrated they were. And the hoots and hollers made me just well up again. 
I am so proud of my children for the year that they have had here in France. Each one, in his own way, has come along so far in their personal development. Julian has applied his fine-tuned learning skills to learning French (and don’t I get corrected on a daily basis). But he has also become more secure in what he is and is not willing to do. He had a great quote for Ed about not needing to be the “cool” kid in the group. Micah struggled the most in the beginning, because he could not just jump in as the social being that he is. But, with his level of French and accent to boot, he is now enjoying the fruits of his hard work and going to birthday parties left and right, going on sleepovers, and really enjoying his newfound friends. And Noah has finally come out of his shell. His class is a challenging one, but he has finally sorted out for himself the kids who play nicely with him, and who he prefers to avoid. But the children with whom he now plays benefit from his imagination and his secret French (don’t let his parents know that he speaks) along with his coquin ways!
Noah’s end-of-the-year fete will be next Friday and his class is, along with singing in the chorale, presenting a yoga demonstration. Lots of chien-tete-en-bas, bebe heureux and gorille, with all the kids dressed in white. Can you say pizza stains are hard to wash out? I am looking forward to seeing Noah in his environs as well, and wiping away a few more of those mommy-tears.
