Senior Year at Preschool

So Sam is a senior this year, his fourth and hopefully final year of preschool.  I guess he'll get to ride in the back seat of the bus, smoke cigarettes, and generally rule the school.  Oops, come to think of it, there is no bus -- this is preschool after all -- and he won't be smoking any cigarettes riding with me in the carpool line.

To give you some background, there is a phenomenon these days for boys with late birthdays to start school a year later.  Since Sam's birthday is June 23, he definitely falls into that category.  Thus, he is a "junior kindergardener" this year and will go five mornings whereas the "real" kindergardeners go five full days.  (Daze?)  People, including myself as a guilty party, often refer to the deal as "holding him back" for lack of a better term.  We all know what we mean, but back in my day it meant something bad -- you got HELD BACK!  Bad, very bad.

Since some of Sam's buddies are starting kindergarten on time, I've been a little worried that he might feel bad that he isn't quite ready for prime time.  Gosh, will it give him a complex?  What would Freud say?  I know, I know, he can tell his therapist all about it when he is 25.  Still, though, that nagging thought has lingered, especially this morning when he was staring out the window wistfully at the gaggle of kids gathered on the corner, including one of his favorite preschool friends.

Later this morning as we headed into the gym late, Sam started to complain about going to school for five whole days this year.  "It's going to be BORING," he announced as if his life was ending.

"Well," I countered, "Daddy and I saved you from going ALL DAY long for five days!  We decided to give you an extra year for building with LEGOS, having play dates, and doing fun stuff in the afternoon."

Sam started to giggle, like he knew he was getting a good deal.  (And he is, there's no doubt about it.)
Then he pondered life for a minute and suggested, "Maybe next year I can SKIP kindergarten!"

So there you go.  I'm pretty sure he's not traumatized.  He's too busy bucking the system with the Great Kindergarten Revolt.  Seriously, who drops out of school before kindergarten even starts?

Then the background starts to fade as the song "Kindergarten Drop-out" (formerly known as "Beauty School Dropout" from "Grease") starts to play....

Preschool drop-out,
No graduation day for you,
Preschool drop-out,
You lost your snack and then your glue.
Preschool drop-out...


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