Sunday, August 2, 2009

We're Done!

Well, it's done. We've made our decision, and the boys are off to public school in three weeks. I'm making my registration appointment in the morning and dropping off the withdrawal letter at our private school on my way to work. We've even told the boys and taken them for a walk around the campus. Two took it completely in stride; he is pretty much the same everywhere he goes. He'll do well academically while driving his teachers crazy with his stubborness, and have ten new best friends by the end of September. One cried for the loss of his best friend, but otherwise didn't have anything to say to argue against the change. He will pout more as the days pass, and there will be more tears, but I'm pretty sure once he adjusts that the school will be a good fit.

I am so relieved to have the decision over and done with! Thanks to all of you for your comments, emails and encouragement!

3 comments:

Alison Fairfield said...

Congratulations.

Now that you have reached your decision you may enjoy reading a New York Times piece that ran earlier this year, "About his deposit..." in which various New Yorkers knowingly commit financial suicide (their wording) to keep their child in private school out of fear-based motives.

Then you can happily conclude, "Well, at least I didn't do that!"

Jennifer said...

I have been praying about our decision for 2 years...and still am not sure what we will do when the time comes..

My husband went to a prep school in Atlanta for 13 years. I spent my first 6 years in a rural Alabama public school, inadvertently attending cock fights on the weekends that parents of my 2nd grade friends hosted in their backyard.

We both turned out just fine.

Tari said...

Wow, agree with both of you! You can't be motivated by fear in these decisions, and all too often we are.

JMom, I spent 10 years in rural public school and 3 years as a day student at a local boarding school. That school was there for me when I needed it, and the choice my mom and I made to have me go there was critically important. I think it's been hard for me to distinguish between that situation and the one my kids are in. I am really beginning to wish we'd given our public school a chance before we looked for alternatives to it. If you know yours has a good reputation, I would give it a shot; you can always change your mind (as I have amply shown!) later on. :)