School Pictures | 2018-19

Ryder is attending Pre-Kindergarten at Faith Lutheran School this year. 

He attends Mrs. Mattingly's class on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and is seeming to really enjoy this new adventure!

Ryder originally started at another school, which we believed would offer him a high quality pre-kindergarten education. Unfortunately, we were wrong. The "exceptional academy" we selected turned out to be nothing more than a crappy daycare center, and Ryder spent less than two miserable weeks there before we pulled him out.

After a lot of research, a promising tour, and at the recommendation of many local friends, we enrolled Ryder at Faith Lutheran, where he almost immediately began to thrive.

Although Stewart and I are not religious, we feel so much better about this new school and all that it offers. Ryder gets to look forward to a fun year filled with new themes each week. He'll build pre-reading skills and math skills, have sensory time, and work on vocabulary/language building. This will all be accomplished in a fun atmosphere with toys, games and seated work. 

In the classroom, students focus on kindness, community and safety, which creates a caring environment for optimum learning and growing. Children are encouraged to use kind words, to listen to one another and to share. This is all done through positive reinforcement, modeling and redirection. 

We love that Faith Lutheran School has strong academics, small class sizes, and caring, loving certified teachers. Additionally, they also offer on-site childcare before and after school, which is great for us as full time working parents. At childcare, Ryder will continue to develop his social, emotional, cognitive, and physical skills. All of the childcare providers at Faith value play based learning, creativity, and curiosity. Every child is loved, accepted, and valued as an individual. 

After transferring to Faith Lutheran, Ryder's behavior and mood almost immediately began to improve. He started laughing and singing again, he began to talk about friends and teachers, and each day he came home with adorable art projects, drawings, and stories. It was such a relief to see his happiness and ease as he settled into a loving environment where his well-being is clearly the priority of every adult who he interacts with.

Our sweet boy is growing up so fast, and we can't wait to see how much he learns and grows this year!

Ryder Starts Pre-K

Our sweet little boy started Pre-Kindergarten today at a brand new school in a brand new town, and it was a wonderful experience!

Ryder Steven Alway | First Day of Pre-K | September 5, 2018

Prior to our relocation to the Olympia area, I did a bunch of research on local preschools, and eventually found one that I thought would be the best fit for our little buddy's big personality. Cadence Academy Preschool gives children "an exceptional education every fun-filled day in a place as nurturing as home."

Although Ryder won't be hanging out on a farm like he did last year, he won't have a barnyard at elementary school either, so we're confident that his experience here will be an excellent transition to prepare him for Kindergarten. And in the meantime, we'll just have to plan extra trips to the zoo. 

Cadence Education schools use an expertly developed curriculum to give every student the skills and confidence for the next step in their life. "Kind Child" coursework emphasizes social skills, courtesy, and internal values, while "Kindergarten Club" prepares Pre-K students with key skills to excel in problem-solving, mathematics, reading/writing, social studies, and science. 

Everybody learns better when they're having fun, and Ryder jumped in immediately. The school has a large outdoor area filled with various equipment and activities, and hopefully we'll get a few more weeks of nice weather to take advantage of it. 

This year I was much more emotional than Ryder when I dropped him off. He gave me a lovely hug and kiss goodbye, but looked back for a second a little longingly before heading off to play with his new friends. It felt like a chunk broke off of my heart, and I expect to feel this way more and more as he continues to grow and gain his independence. But I also swelled with pride at his bravery during this new experience. And although he admitted that it was a long day (this year he's doing full days at school), he also came home with lots of stories about his fun-filled day. 

I can't wait to see how much he blossoms this year.

We love you so much, sweet Ryder Steven, and we're so proud of you!