The Academy

Jaxon started The Acaemy at Roosevelt Centert on Oct 15. We found out 2 weeks before he started that he got in. They were starting their Fall break so he had some time to get use to the idea. The first day, he was of course nervous. I took him in to meet his new teacher and he immediately was introduced to 2 boys that showed him where to put his things. I left with a hug good-bye. All day long I felt like I was going through the 1st day of Kindergarten with Jaxon all over again. My thoughts turned to him frequently throughout the day. I wondered how he was doing, if he was making friends, if someone sat with him at lunch, how his teacher was treating him. The only thing that was different than from Kindergarten, is I didn't leave him at the school screaming for me not to leave him. I went to pick him up, and as I was waiting in the line of cars, I caught a glimpse of him. My heart sank. There he stood, with his head down, hands in his pockets, all by himself. When he got in the car, he burst into tears. He told me he hated it and wanted to go back to Syringa. I let him vent all the way home. He told me how dumb the school was. It had small bathrooms, no upstairs and not a big enough plan area to play football at recess. When we got home, he went to his room to change his clothes. He came back with his clothes in his hands and headed out the door. I asked where he was going and he said he was throwing the clothes away. (at the academy, they have a dress code. They wear navy blue, while, tan and maroon) His crying started again. I began to wonder how I could have felt so right about something that was causing such termoil inside of him. I honestly don't remember EVER seeing him so upset, even when he knew we were moving. I didn't know what to say to him. I just put my arms around him and hugged him. By the time Nate got home that night he was doing much better and not even mentioning school. He showed Nate his Spanish and told him all about his day. The next morning he was fine till we almost got to the school. I ended up stopping a block before we got to school to wait for him to stop crying. My heart hurt for him, but the reasons that he gave for not liking it wasn't enough for us to say, Nevermind. Picking him up from school went a little better then the day before. By Wednesday afternoon when I went to get him, I saw Jaxon back to his old self. He was standing there with a bunch of kids laughing and talking. When I asked him how his day was, he responded "Great". That was the end of that and we haven't looked back since. I got an email from Jaxon's teacher on his 2nd day of school that helped me to know that he would be alright. She said that he was doing very well and that she had never had a student blend into a class as quickly and easily as Jaxon had. So, having completed 3 weeks in a new school, Jaxon is loving it. (Mom and Dad are too) He loves the science experiements, learning Spanish, and working in Computer lab. He came home the other day and showed me all he had learned about Excel, he could even put a spreadsheet together! I know change isn't easy, but I am so proud of you Jaxon for not giving up and quickly turning this situation around. But then again, you are the kind of person that attracts people. No one can resist your smile and personality. Just remember, that we don't give up. When things are hard, if you know they are right, you don't give up.