In other news...

[cybermule]

The garden was going great til the sun blasted it to brown twiggy dust. I mostly refuse to water things. Before they died from this straight-edge horticultural policy, the smoke bush and acanthus both flowered for the first time this year, which made me proud. The allotment has started yielding actual edible food. And the gardening business has got to the stage now where I'm actually starting to be glad when prospective clients *don't* phone, as it takes a while to fit them in. That'll hopefully change when the B-boy gets settled at nursery and I establish a regular gardening day.

Talking of nursery, they're kind of sketchy. I'm not sure if all nursery schools would piss me off by default, or whether it was a mistake plumping for the Steiner option, but they're rubbish at sorting things out. We'll see how it pans out. We've not even addressed the issue of the consent form that allows them to dose the child with homeopathic Arnica if he falls over or experiences "other shock". If you google Ben Goldacre, you'll find out why I can't be arsed with homeopathy, but in a SFW package. More importantly, experiencing the odd physical setback is part of life's rich tapestry IMO, and I'm not keen on the sprog being educated into taking medicine every time he falls on his bum. The plus points are breadmaking, stonking outdoor walks in dried up bullrush ponds, and carpentry for toddlers :)

Comments

[janinemarriott.livejournal.com]

I have to say I've steiner kids to be quite self reliant when I've come across them. Not prone to falling down and crying every 5 mins. However, those that I've taught who have gone for steiner primary then moved to mainstream school are usually quite off the wall and dont' fit awfully well into mainstream later on. Just a thought for you

[cybermule.livejournal.com]

Thanks :) I don't know any primary teachers, so that's really cool feedback :)) I think when I first had B I assumed that he'd be like me (nursery and primary school were utter misery and torture - I seriously didn't have one friend to play with the whole time :(). So Steinergarten was going to be a gentle and nurturing intro to schooling that would give us total flexibility in when he started (he's a late-in-the-school-year kid). Plus, for early years, I think they have a great approach.

As it is, B has turned out to be an immensely sociable and confident child, who to be honest will probably outgrow the Steiner setting in 18 months or so and want to be stretched more academically. So it'll all work out in the end. I don't think it is good to move between Steiner and mainstream at "proper" school either - they start diverging quite wildly from 7 onwards. I couldn't afford Steiner education for B, and honestly don't think it's particularly good for setting you up for normal life. Plus, with a strong science background, it would probably end up panning out similarly to sending him to a religious school, and I don't want to be scary mom who rows with the teachers :)

With the falling over issue, it's kind of personal/genetic principle for me - my family has a really strong history of drink/drug abuse, and the one thing I want to give B is the sense that if something goes wrong on any level, putting something in your mouth or up your nose to make it better just really isn't an option to consider :) If that makes sense (I'm aware I'm probably a bit paranoid on this one, don't worry!)

[janinemarriott.livejournal.com]

Glad u didn't think it was being too nosy or knowitallish. I think steiner is a great early yrs option. Also don't think u r begin paranoid

[cybermule.livejournal.com]

Thanks :) And no - not at all. Apart from two great godmothers, we're pretty much on our own for parenting, so we're doing it by consensus ;)