What we learnt at school today

This morning I waved off two children who have suddenly grown to the size of adults since leaving primary school in July.  They strode out of the house, brimming with confidence, bus passes in hand, and back packs full of stationary that was on the list, but I imagine they will never use…

They didn’t look back, they simply walked down the street, gathering more new year sevens in their little group as they knocked on doors between home and the bus stop.

I wasn’t allowed to follow, but I did stare until they turned a corner out their street and into the next chapter of their lives.

All day I worried about how they were settling in, but had an underlying comforting feeling that they would be fine.

Finally at 3.30 my phone buzzed in my hand..

Hey Mum, on way home.

I couldn’t wait to hear how they got on…

As soon as the pair came into my eyeline, I pounced on them with multiple questions,

How was it?

Did you make friends?

What are the teachers like?

What did you learn today?

It took a while, and bribery in the form of a fast food tea, but eventually I got an insight into their day.

This is apparently what you learn on your first day in secondary school….

The bus is the main place for education, school is merely a place to kill time between the main lesson, which is learnt on the bus.  PE is first, getting a spot on the bus involves wrestling when on the bus, sprinting to get the bus and gymnastics to hold on if you fail at wrestling your butt onto a seat.

History is next: the older kids happily regale the younger with tales of the bus from previous years.  The battle of the apple throwing is replayed time and time again until the year sevens feel like they lived the action.

English follows quickly on.  Today’s lesson was all about new words, with homework being to ask me what they meant.

The homework was easy – each word they needed to decipher basically referred to either a male or female sexual organ – I expect them to get an A* in tomorrows bus test.

Last up was Maths, with the bus counting how many more trips back and forth until October half term and no more 6.30am alarm calls.

 

And the middle bit of the day?  The bit where they were actually in school?  All they learnt was the food still sucks and blazers are scratchy, but when they darted into their primary playground to help collect their little sister they blossomed with pride at their adult status and big kid clothing.

Without words I could see they loved it, the rush to bed at 7.30 confirmed they adored it, and I am pretty certain  that tomorrow I will see them up and dressed again by 6.30 without a prompt – clarifying that so far secondary school is simply stupendous!