Preschool Preview

Photo by Erika Fletcher on Unsplash

When four- and five-year-old children think about school, what do they imagine? Do the smatterings they hear from older siblings, cousins, and friends give them a fun picture or a bleak one? I was curious to find out, so I asked. This is what they said.

What do you think school will be like?

• It feels like rest time, I think. Cuz it’s really quiet and comfortable.
• Ummmmmmmm. Like church.
• At the first I know I’ll feel a lil scared maybe? At the first. An then I think it might be fun. At the end of school I will want to go back, and when I get used to it, I think I’m gonna like it.
• Colorin’ pictures.
• You will get teached a lot.
• Fun! To ride on a school bus. I’m excited that I can color. When do they do coloring?
• I’m gonna miss my mom. And I hope she’s gonna miss me.
• Be like? I don’t know… Be quiet and write words. And write pictures. That will be easy because I already know how to write people. But not hands. I just do a line down, and then arms across, and then a head, and then two dots, and then a nose that’s a dot, and a smiling face. And then umm do legs. Actually I know how to make another kind of people…

Will it be easy or hard? Why?

• I don’t know. Maybe easy. I like writing in books so that’s gonna be my fun thing.
• Hard. Cuz of colorin’ pictures. I don’t like colorin’ pictures.
• Easy. Because. Because… I KNOW that it’s gonna be easy. You just gotta sit still. Easy! I can already write good. But I’m gonna have to learn to write words before I go to school. Because I needa write words on my books. Kinda hard. I might have to practice.
• At the first it will be hard an’ then it will be easy at the last. Cuz I’m not gonna know the teachers.
• It will be easy in first grade, but then harder. Because there is more stuff to do when you get older.
• Yeah. Easy!
• Hard. Because I needa do math and do doublecase numbers. And doubleknot my shoes.

Do you know anybody who went to school?

• No.
• Chloe. One of my girlfriends. All the people that are kids go. But that’s gonna be fun on the bus. Is there beds on the bus? Awww. I LOVE sleeping.
• Kelly and Regan and Aarick. And me. I’m GONNA go to school. And my doll. Hahahahaha. No, she didn’t go to school.
• Makenna has some sisters that go to school, and Ellie goes to school but now she’s sick, and I can’t talk much else.
• Devon. That’s all.

What do you want to learn about when you go?

• I don’t know because I like so many stuff. I don’t know.
• Letters.
• I wanna know how to do everything.
• I want to learn how to read so I can read my own books.
• How to listen and how to read stories to the children. How to write letters. And write my name, and write letters RIGHT.
• I wanna learn about Jesus.
• Well, math. And umm… Breaktime!
• How to count to one hundred and ten.
• About snakes.
• I wanna learn about letters and numbers and taking care of a real baby. And making good soup and carving good, and cleaning dishes and sharp knives.

All in all, not a bad impression. A little bit easy and a little bit hard, book learning mixed with a few real life skills, and being away from Mommy but getting to ride on a school bus?

They’ll take it.

*Thanks to the mothers who asked their children these questions for me, and shared their audio recordings of the results. Social distancing does not automatically prohibit interviews. Yay!