Fast forward a week - I got a phone call from Cross Lutheran School saying that I had won the grand prize in their drawing. Yay! Unfortunately that prize was $75 off the enrollment fees for this upcoming school year. I explained that Southern would only be 2, and since that would be of no use to us, she suggested switching that prize for the runner-up prize. I agreed and told her I would meet her to claim said prize and tour the school next week.
So today was the day. Southern and I set out not knowing what really to expect, but overall I'm happy with it and would seriously consider putting Southern here one day (if we can afford to).
We first saw outside the church. It looks nice and is new.
The we saw the outside of the school. Hmm... one side looks nice and offical. The other side reminded me of the elementary schools in Yoakum and Sweet Home with their little mobile home looking annexes. But we strolled on and found the front office (located in the right hand building).
We met with our tour guide and started off. Our first stop was the pre-k room. Not too impressed here. Just your typical small classroom with tiny tables and chairs. The kids were having snack time. We observed for awhile, I got to meet the teacher, and then we were off for our next stop - the gym.
This gym made me happy :) It reminded me of my alma mater, good ol' St. Joe's. It serves as their gym and cafeteria. She said the older kids set up the tables before lunch and clean them off and put them back up after they eat. That was nice to hear. We also cleaned in school. I remember cleaning desks, chalk boards, etc. At the time, I thought that was normal. Looking back, I realized this was due to lack of excess funds at a small private school, but I feel it helped make me the caring and responsible adult I am today. As opposed to Seguin High School where the kids just throw food/trash all over the place with no regard to self-image or respect for public property.
We soon made our way outside. As we walked, I learned that the school offers athletics for grades 5-8. They have tackle football and basketball for the boys, and volleyball and basketball for the girls. They also offer recess for all grades so the kids get plenty of fresh air and exercise. Here is the pre-k playground. I felt good knowing they have seperate playgrounds for the smaller ones. This one was for ages 5 and under.
This one is for the older crowd. They also have outdoor basketball nets. She said they are in the process of getting new play equipment right now so it should only get nicer.
Then we entered the "annex". Below is the main hallway. It was fairly nice and new. The kids here have lockers. It's grades 5-8. Their teachers all have bachelor's and are in different subject areas - math, science, art, and language arts. The principal also teaches a few classes. And they have a computer lab and science lab. Again, it reminded me of St. Joe's where the kids get a well-balanced education but it's on a small scale. The class sizes here looked around to 10-15 kids per grade.
I met and talked with the principal at this point. He met and talked to Southern as well. He was young-ish and seemed really nice. The kids all felt comfortable around him, and they were all quiet and well-behaved. Southern had spoted a toy panda bear magnet on one of the lockers and was holding it and playing with it as we talked to Mr. Dierks. When it was time to leave, I thought for sure there would be a scene. But my little guy surprised me by simply putting the bear back on the locker and turning to walk on.
And here we are back in the main building. Southern loved all of the art on the walls. We visited the pre-k again. They had finished their snacks and were in the process of putting on coats and lining up to go outside for recess. It was semi-chaos. But the teacher had a song they all sang that involved clapping that got most of the kids under control and in line. There were two little boys still playing with cars on the mat instead of putting on coats. Southern saw them and joined in. They soon were taken to their cubbys for their coats and Southern kept playing with a train as they lined up with the rest of the class. I didn't have any more questions and needed to get going to finish the rest of our errands for the day so instead of watching the pre-k recess which our tour guide offered as an option, I said we would just make our way back to the offices. Again, I thought Southern would throw a fit when it was time to put away the train. But I told him to put it away, that it was time to go, and he did! He put it back in the box with the rest of the toy cars and waved good-bye to the kids. What a mature little guy!! Needless to say, our tour guide was impressed and commented on just how well-behaved he is. :)
So our first tour of a school went well. I would love for Southern to have the same opportunity I had growing up in attending a small private, Christian school. The public schools here in New Braunfels are great I've heard. But it's just not the same. Dustin also benefited from small teacher to student ratios, involved parents, etc. and it really makes a difference. Hopefully our budget will allow for that one day.
