March 4, 2013
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News
We found out this weekend that our daughter was accepted into the specialty center middle school program where she applied. The letter came on Saturday, while we were at a (hellish) swim meet, so it was opened late on Saturday evening to much laughter and dancing around the kitchen. (She had the giddy laugh and the parents did the ridiculous dancing, of course.)
Now we find ourselves in the awkward position of not knowing how other kids who applied fared. We still aren’t clear on whether the current teacher knows or not. We suggested that our daughter tell her current and past teachers today and thank them for helping her get into this prestigious program. She’s shy, so we weren’t sure she would do it — but then her teacher told the students this morning not to discuss it.
I understand that the kids who got in shouldn’t gloat. (And our daughter surely wouldn’t – she didn’t even want to accept phone congratulations from family members!) But how about letting them feel a little pride in themselves? Or even just find out if they will have a friend in tow when they head way out of Bubble territory next year on this new adventure? It really bugs me sometimes that our culture promotes all matter of bragging about anything related to sports, but when it comes to academics – it all has to be hush hush.
I’ve only told a few people in real life, for fear of hurting feelings or sounding braggy…..but can I just say here how proud the Mr. and I are of our girl? We know she will have a fantastic experience in this program – both academically and socially. We hear there is significantly less drama and mean girl crap at this school, where so many of the best students gather. That is no small thing in the middle school years!
This program will give her a much broader curriculum, access to foreign languages earlier, and incredible freedom of creativity and expression. I am so excited for her I could burst. I barely slept on Saturday night after reading the acceptance letter! Her current teacher told me (before we got the letter) that she thought our girl would be the ideal student for this program and she should definitely go if accepted. Done and done.
Remind me of how excited I am now when I start fretting about how far away her new school is come fall. But I guess it will be closer than the sleep away camp where she’s going for 2 weeks this summer. GULP.
New phase of parenting, straight ahead.
Comments (10)
Woohoo! Congratulations to the girlchild! Funny, I had a discussion at ye olde mother/daughter book club yesterday about whether a big deal should be made about academic accomplishments or not. Minefield, that topic is.
Well, that’s great news! My oldest was accepted into a magnet middle school and it was a great experience.
I guess she probably wants to know if any of her friends got in?
@transvestite_rabbit - Yes, it sure is! In my daily life, I am always super quiet on my kids achievements, whether they are academic, athletic (him) or artistic (her). But I clearly get the vibe that it would be most acceptable for me to blab/brag about the sporty stuff. (Do you think it’s the big shiny trophies and awards ceremonies that give me that “vibe”??)
@gottobereal64 - That’s right, because kids will be coming from all over our county to this school – so she wants to know what familiar faces she will see. Although, part of why she is so excited about this opportunity is the ability to meet new people, of course.
Congratulations to your daughter! Maybe she does have a magic pebble after all
That’s awesome! Congratulations to her on her hard work! And what a relief to you, I know. What is the focus of the program??
We are still waiting to hear about my daughter’s application to the school my son attends. I’m trying to be low-key about it since a) I don’t want her to feel bad if she doesn’t get in, and b) a lot depends on the financial aid situation since we will have to make a huge leap in tuition costs for her to go there. I don’t want to get her hopes up about “getting in” and then not be able to pay for it. gulp.
@mlbncsga – Thank you! Funny, she had me fooled saying she didn’t want to go if she got in…..I might have needed the magic pebble if that had happened!
@DrTiff – The “not knowing” can be quite stressful, even without the financial piece! I feel for you on that one — both of our options are public, so not an issue here. It is an International Baccalaureate program – so the focus is really “big focus,” world view, differing perspectives in all subject areas. She will love it.
That awesome! Yeah! Congrats to your daughter!
Wonderful news! I’m sure she would do well no matter where she ended up but this is rich soil – Hope she blossoms!!
At my school we make a big deal about academic, sporting and cultural excellence! All kids deserve to be recognized and congratulated when they achieve!