Supergirl Rocks it Again ('it', being, my world)

Today I had a parent-teacher conference with Supergirl's first grade teacher. It is that time of year, isn't it?

I have to admit, I had many a few reservations about this teacher. She was not very nice (last year) to a dear friend's dear child, she has been known to give some more-negative-than-positive reports in general, she was reported by my daughter last year (adjoining classrooms) as being 'yelly'. (verbatim)

I have been volunteering in the classroom weekly, helping with reading, writing, and...cooking! I have witnessed this teacher have a good sense of humor and be very warm this year, so that helped ease any fears I had from last year.

So, Supergirl's report card? Would you like to know?

Last year at this time, dh and I came home from the 1st kindergarten conference, elated that the teacher was 'very pleased' with our daughter, but soon dh got 'very pissed' at the report card as he realized that not one 'E' (for excellence) had been issued.

I assured him that Mrs. K just 'did not give out E's' in the first semester.

I wish he had been there this afternoon when I was told that Supergirl is, essentially, fabulous and perfect in every way.

Okay, was I paraphrasing there? Hardly at all, I promise you.

Check it:

Listens attentively? 3+ (out of 4, dude)
Reading, writing, math? 3 or 3+, and some E's (for EXCELLENT)

Social studies, science? 3's and E's

Visual an dperforming arts, PE? 3+ and E's

Work habits, study skills, homework, social development? S (Satisfactory; on schedule) and E's.

Things to work on? She tends to work v e r y... s l o w l y (or feel free to use the word methodically) on her tasks and projects. She loves to do the drawing part of her writing pages (they do a lot of books in their class) and will often lose herself in the allotted time on her detailed pictures, and only have time to write one sentence, when she was asked to write three.

So does she really listen? I had to ask the teacher.

Oh yes, she does. Does she really clean up that well at school? REALLY? REALLLLLLLLY????? (do you see my eyeballs uncomfortably projected from their sockets? she did too!)

Yes! She does! She also gets along with everybody and helps them too! - Said her teacher, who apparently adores her.

She did notice me trying to hide the tears, and she said, "Wouldn't you rather find out that your child is well behaved in public than find out that you thought she was well behaved but was actually not?"

Well, okay. I suppose it's true. That must somehow make up for all the BULLSHIT testing she puts me through at home, after she's been the perfect child at school all day.

So, I am so impressed with the reading progress that she has made since September (the silent e making the long vowel sound? ohyeah, that was me) (the awesome 'reading voice: a voice that wants to be listened to? that? was her teacher!) and the math leaps and bounds (oh did I mention that I got a wee bit chastised for not telling the teacher that, at the beginning of the year, Supergirl hated math! - my coping technique was to 'downplay it'...she did not like!) ....I couldn't really think of too many questions.

But when I realized that everything with my sassy little six year old was super-perfect, and I only had another ten minute in my time slot, I knew I had to use it wisely.

"HOW", I asked, "Do I get her to work neatly and yet more efficiently, as we both know that she is very slow and methodical in her work? Do I sacrifice quality for more quantity?"

And do you know what her teacher said?

She said:

"Supergirl is not daydreaming. She takes her time because she has an idea that she has come up with, and she needs to focus on that. When she goes to task, she looks around her, gathers her thoughts, takes a deep breath, and then looks down, working hard (if slowly) until she is done. She is not daydreaming. She is processing. She watches groups of children play at recess before she decides to join a group (and then is accepted, apparently). How can I take that away from her? She will learn how to compensate. But I am not going to take that process away from her."

I nearly wept. In the good way.

My daughter? She rocks.