Endings and New Beginnings
a monthly message from Deb Green
Summer at PIC is a season of endings and new beginnings. This year we will see 78 preschoolers move onto Kindergarten. This is our largest group of rising kindergarteners ever!
This is a remarkable group of children who have spent their last two years as preschoolers in a world that has been dominated by COVID. They have consistently worn masks at school, and have rarely seen the facial features of the people who teach them and care for them each day. They have missed so much time at school because of COVID exposures. They have had birthday parties and playdates and so many other things canceled. They have learned and thrived through so many changes that we never imagined two years ago. Their resilience has been remarkable. And they have only been on this earth for five years!
I was so happy that most of our preschool classrooms were able to host an end-of-year outdoor celebration, either at PIC or somewhere nearby. We know that the ending of each child’s experience in our Early Learning Program is an important marker of time. Watching so many children, families and teachers share food, games and memories was such a lovely way to end the school year (watching the Chipmunk parents, teachers and children engage in a game of Tug-of-War was truly a moment to remember!).
Summer is also a time of new beginnings as we welcome new families to PIC and as children begin the move up process to the next age group. It is an important time for children and their teachers to learn about one another as they create a new classroom community.
I have already spoken with several families for whom this is their very first week at PIC. They are filled with emotions that range from sheer joy that they are off our wait list, to deep (and very normal) anxiety over their child’s first experience at PIC. Even a child’s move to a new classroom can cause much anxiety.
To those for whom this summer marks a PIC ending, I wish your family well as your child experiences their next adventures. For those for whom this summer marks a beginning at PIC (or another classroom), I send a very warm welcome!
July marks two years of children, families, teachers and administrators adapting to new realities of dealing with the pandemic. It has been far from easy. Yet, seeing how our children have grown and thrived, despite the challenges, continues to carry me through each day.
Wishing you much peace during these summer days!