Here is the entrance to Escola Augusta. It is in the reception area that I drop off and pick up Charles and Daniel from school each day. A few weeks ago Daniel would enter this building with hesitation, staying close by my side and suggesting I come all the way to the steps to drop him off. As he slowly ascended the steps inside (not shown) he'd watch me waving at him and wishing him a good day. Charles had an altogether different reaction to going to school. He would run on ahead, spurred on by nerves and adrenaline. It hasn't been easy for them, but they're doing it, and are adjusting well.


Early on they told us the most difficult times of the day were during "pati" which is recess. As they get to know other children better, there is more to look forward to at school and "pati" doesn't seem so daunting or boring.

While we're not too concerned that they retain information from school, we do expect this whole experience to shape and benefit them in some broad way. Of course, Duane and I only hear snippets of what actually happens. Here are some comments that Daniel has made:




"There's this guy who always speaks English." (Daniel told us this very early on. The "guy" who we had thought was another student turned out to be the English teacher!)
"I said something in Castellano today." (What was said remains a mystery.)
"I heard the teacher say 'No me molestes' to Filip. (Don't bother me.)
"Bhryyc (Daniel's classmate) always takes my pencils."
"I'm telling you, Mom, that's NOT how they make a cursive z!"




Charles often gives us grand stories of what has happened at school. He tells us what happened in soccer games during recess. We've heard how he tries to get his work done as quickly as possible because the student next to him helps him more than he wants her to. We've also heard about the special jobs assigned to him in class and during lunch.

Their favorite classes are music, art and phys ed.

Though the kids are in school, we maintain the homeschooling mindset. We tell the kids when they leave Escola Augusta, they come home to school. And that even though the school day is long (9-5), their school day is actually 24 hours a day.

Daniel is eager to learn to read. He practices in both English and Spanish. Not surprisingly, he prefers Spanish, as it's completely phonetic. Since we don't have many English books here, Charles has been kind enough to write stories for Daniel to practice reading in English.

Charles is a budding business man and has had many creative ideas on ways to make money, including ideas such as: leading a soccer camp for preschoolers, opening an adventure park, building a center where people can pretend to fight bad guys, and selling items he's created like games, stories and musical performances.

We are also learning a lot together. Sometimes completing Charles' homework takes the whole family discussing what each individually knows and understands. The kids have the advantage of having seen the lesson and hearing from the teacher. Duane and I use our knowledge of Spanish and help from Google's Catalan translator to make our input. How funny it can be for us all to work together to figure out the homework!

One day Charles brought his calendar home with a note indicating "Control de matematiques. Unitats 1 i 2." Since his math book was also in his backpack with units 1 and 2 already completed, we figured he was supposed to show his parents the work. Not correct. It meant he was going to have a QUIZ in math and brought the math book home to study. So, now we know, and it's a good thing, because this week he's got three "controls"!