Mundo Sesamo

Samuel attends a preschool for three and a half hours each morning, five days a week. Although they have “English class” once a week (in which Sam is the STAR), the program is entirely in Spanish with all Spanish-speaking classmates. The main incentive for enrolling Sam in school was to expose him to the language and to new friends.
Sam has been attending his new school, Mundo Sesamo, for four weeks now and what a difference four weeks can make! The very first day we left Sam, he cried and pulled at his ears and cried and begged us not to go. (I’m pretty sure the ear pulling thing had to do with hearing, but not understanding, so much Spanish.) I was SO nervous to leave him and called the school at least twice that morning. The entire first two weeks went something like the preceding description. Sam kept crying. Mommy kept calling the teacher. Except each day that passed, the teacher would report on the phone that he wasn’t crying as much during the day and that as a matter of fact, as soon as we left he did great.
And then on the third week came…the brave cape. Yes, the “brave cape.” Mommy suddenly had the idea to pretend to sew an imaginary cape, infused with prayer and bravery that would protect Sam throughout the day and take away his tears when we left. So Sam donned the brave cap and viola! the tears stopped.
The basics of preschool here are the same - Sam’s teacher, Andrea, is very loving; they have a daily schedule; Sam colors; Sam and his friends play on the playground; they all do crafts, etc. One time a week they have the following: English class, French class, music class, physical education, and what they call “Montessori class.” Besides the language, it may not be that different of a school day for Sam, actually. But for Mommy, it’s very different!
In the first four weeks alone, Sam has had only one actual full week of school. It is super common to be warned only one day in advance that school is cancelled the next day, or that he needs to bring some special treat or item to school, or that he will be in a parade, or that parents’ attendance is required at a special event, etc. We were given a September calendar at the beginning of the month showing the theme of the month and the specific activities scheduled for each day. This is great, but they don’t follow it! The month of September showed having one holiday…when in actuality there have been seven. At first I was pretty annoyed. Then I realized I’m in for a year and a half of annoyance if I just don’t adjust to the different cultural approach.
So…Cheers to adjustment! Cheers to Sam for his successful adjustment! Cheers to Mommy for slowly getting there!
If you’re curious, the school’s website is very cool and very informative. The preschool is one of the best in the city. I really am happy he’s there.

http://www.colegiomundosesamo.com/