Ms. Kohout had the sign-up for parent-teacher conferences out during the Kindergarten open house, the Friday before the first day of school.  I signed up, but as it approached, I realized I was a bit nervous.  Never having done this before, I didn't know exactly what to expect and it's always a bit nerve-wracking when you know you're going to be talking about your kid's progress and how he's doing in general.  I'm a worrier and even though I knew he was doing just fine, I was still nervous.

I got to the conference in time to grab a cup of (bad) coffee and check out the cool artwork on the boards outside Jack's class.

Then, I went in and chatted with Ms. Kohout. First, I just really, really like her. She's no joke and has 20+ years of experience, which I appreciate. She is also really good at explaining what the kids are learning, and even more HOW they learn.  My main concern with Jack is that he had a good attitude at school, that he tried at things, because at home, he can be negative and give up easily. Ms. Kohout confirmed that he always tried new things and approached learning with eagerness... which was quite a relief to me. She did ask if he rubbed his right shoulder up on his ear at home, especially when asking a question. He doesn't and she is concerned that he has anxiety when asking a question... she assured me that he still asks the question, but is thinking he may be nervous about it... that's something we'll work on.

We talked about how kids can be different at home and at school.  And, we talked about Writing Workshop, which is a periodic writing time where the kids draw detailed pictures then write about them. She explained that the key is to draw detailed pictures, and those kids who draw the details have an easier time transitioning to writing.  She instructs the kids to be original - no copyright infringement and they talk about plagiarism! - and they write their own stories.

Then she showed me Jackson's Data Notebook. What a wonderful, wonderful thing she does!  In this book, she captures his progress... The book starts with Jack's self-portrait that he drew back in April when we went to the Kindergarten Orientation.  Once school started, they do a self-portrait once a month. It's amazing the difference over such a short period of time!

The book also has Jack's weekly Weekend Writing. Every Monday, they write about what they did the previous weekend.  In September, she was writing out their captions, but beginning in October, the kids are on their own. Jack's words are spelled incorrectly, but I can definitely see where he's going... it's Awesome.

The notebook also shows the "testing" she does... letter recognition, first sound fluency, numbers, etc.. He's doing very well and is beyond where he is expected to be.  Ms. Kohout is confident he'll be well beyond the expectations at the end of the year.

We chatted for about 45 minutes and I felt really good about the conference - about Jack and his progress and so thankful for a wonderful teacher.  What a milestone for me, lol.

After I posted about the good conference and being thankful for Jack's teacher on Facebook, I got the nicest message from Bonnie, one of my aunts on my Dad's side who just happens to be a retired Kindergarten teacher:

"Sarah, I hope you realize it is easy to be a great teacher when a child comes from a supportive family that has made learning part of everyday life from the time he was born! Yes, applaud the work of a great teacher and be glad Jackson loves school but remember parents have a critical role in all of that success! Congrats!!
So proud of you!!
Bonnie"

I tell you - this note made me feel so good...definitely like we were doing something right - thanks, again, Aunt Bonnie!