Dry Erase for Centers, a project from Teacher Gutierrez

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Accelerate Phonics Learning, a project from Teacher Gutierrez

Like the rest of the fandom I’ve been sucked into the idea of making a Kindergarten Highschool AU. So, KIDD!

My kindergartener has been having trouble sleeping and has been fighting me on going to school, unusual for him. I asked him what was wrong, he said he didn’t want to talk about it. I had my husband ask him and that’s when we found out the reason for all the odd behavior. He confided in my husband that he’s being bullied by a kid in his class and when they get sent to the bathroom the boy punches him in the head and kicks him. The bully goes so far that he even threatens that if my son speaks up it will only be worse the next day. My heart literally broke for him. It’s unbelievable that kids can be so cruel at 5 years old. As sorry as I felt for my son I felt bad for the boy that comes into school with so much rage and hatred that he would do that to his classmates. School no longer feels like a safe place for my 5 year old boy who may be strong and a fast runner but is the shortest kid in class. His innocence that I cherish may be the reason why he’s the target. My husband and I explained to him that if anyone ever for any reason hurts him we give him the ok to stand up for himself but in this case he’s so afraid that he just can’t. I wish I could walk into that school and pull that bully out by his ear. Why do we have to worry about bullying in kindergarten? Why are kids assholes at 5 years old? You get pregnant, give birth, love, care for the child, try to teach them right from wrong. When they start school you pray that you did enough for them to be on their own, pick their own friends, do the right thing. The thing you never expect and can’t prepare for is feeling helpless. I went to the school, met with the principal and teacher. Since there are no witnesses and my son didn’t “tell them” himself and according to them it happens after school hours, the principal said that it’s not the school’s responsibility but that she would follow up with the after school program that he attends. Walking out of that meeting I realized everything that is wrong with this world. Bruises on my 5 year olds ribs and back, are not enough “proof that is was done by the boy in his class”. So my question is what needs to happen for them to get involved? I was promised that they will no longer be allowed in the bathroom at the same time, that was pretty much the extent of the punishment. The sad thing is that my son holds his pee and avoids using the bathroom at school at all cost. Society makes such a big deal about bullying, but only when it’s too late.

Everyone keeps telling you how much you’ll love school. That is very true. Everyone keeps injecting you with mini boosts of confidence. But as I listen to each well-intentioned person try to drive out any fear, it’s occurred to me you might also need to hear this: It’s okay if you’re scared. Because here’s the honest truth- Mama is scared too. Of what, you’re wondering? I’m scared of being apart from us for 8 hours every day. I’m scared of you spending too many of those hours in a chair, and too few running wild and free. I’m scared of the new words you’ll hear, the new behaviors you’ll see. I’m scared of the boxes you might get put in, the labels you might be given, the pegs you’ll be expected to fit into. I’m scared you’ll change. I’m scared you’ll lose your innocence, your sweetness. I’m scared people will try to harden your edges, toughen you up. And I’m just going to say it: I’m scared to give up control. To lose any influence your dad and I might have had on you up to this point. My dear son, Mama is scared to let you go. Clearly fear is present in my heart, and it’s normal if it’s hanging out in yours too. But here’s the good news: Fear is not the only story. Right next to that clenched ball of panic in my gut is something far more powerful: Hope. Hope for the opportunities your school will give you, ones that our little family alone cannot. Hope for the wider diversity of kids you will get to meet—and befriend. Hope for the chances you’ll have to show kindness to those who need it most. Hope for the chances you’ll have to receive kindness in the moments you need it most. Hope for the new and exciting ways your brain will be challenged. Hope for the new and exciting ways your heart will be too. Right now we’re sitting in the blurry place. We can kind of see what lies ahead, but the path forward is still fuzzy. There is so much we don’t know about the coming weeks, months, and years. But there is one thing we do know, without a doubt: You are ready. You will have to do hard things—but you will quickly see that you CAN. No doubt some days you will come home beaming, so proud of what you did that day. Others you will come home crying and collapsed. Some days you will feel on top of the world. Others you will feel utterly drained and depleted. You are ready for all of it. We’ve raised you to be kind, creative and empathetic—but our intention was never for you to be all of those things in a bubble. It’s time for you to take your kindness, creativity and empathy into the bigger world. And yes, you will change. I know that. But deep down I’m happy about it. I don’t want you to remain the same—static and stuck. So as you head to kindergarten, my precious boy, I have to let you go…a little bit. But I’m also going to stay right here: walking beside you, crying with you, cheering for you. Loving you as fiercely as ever. Facing my fears so I can be here with you as you face yours. Yes, Mommy is scared. I’m scared to watch you jump because I know sometimes you’ll fall. But without the fall, you cannot rise. Without the jump, you cannot soar. It’s time to see just how high you can fly. Johnny boy- you were destined for greatness. 

School toilets

Campers entering Kindergarten through 1^st grade have an exhilarating week ahead of them as Plankton Pioneers!

This camp introduces your budding biologist to the wonders of our amazing local marine life, both in the San Francisco Bay and in our world’s ocean. They will experience the animals and habitats first hand through a variety of fun-filled interactive activities. Campers will learn about and touch live animals in a safe and exciting environment, and participate in themed crafts, games, songs and stories. These activities spark excitement about nature and will inspire campers to appreciate our local life!

Belly biology on our docks

Pull up the mud grab!

Touching a leopard shark that was caught in the fishing net

Silly faces on the beach

Blue shark jaws

Learning about the schooling fish in the aquarium

Group shot!

Leather star

Towing the fishing net in the water

We caught a white sturgeon!

Each day of camp has a different theme, enabling campers to explore different aspects of marine science. Plankton Pioneers will also create fun crafts, including decorating their own reusable tote bag with marine animal designs and creating their own jelly to play with. They will also spend a day on board our 90’ research vessel, surveying animals from the San Francisco Bay! This ship was designed specifically for teaching programs in the San Francisco Bay. Join us as we go fishing, survey mud and invertebrates, study plankton, sharks, and so much more!

Camps run Monday through Friday select weeks from 8:30am-1pm. Extended care is available until 5:30pm.

Camp availability:

June 13-17 – FULL

June 27-July 1 – AVAILABLE

July 5-8 – AVAILABLE

August 1-5 – FULL

August 8-12 – FULL

Space is available – join the Plankton Pioneers today!

SIGN UP NOW

I require something more tangible than a grudge.

I have an uncanny talent for remembering miraculously far back into my own life with incredible clarity. My earliest memory is of the yellow lining inside my crib. Another is of my second birthday party, where I wore a light blue dress for the approximate length of one photo….before I tore it off and spent the rest of the event naked. 

Man, I knew how to party back then.

One of my favorite, and probably most shameful, memories is from Kindergarten. Let me preface this story by saying I was a real Goody Two Shoes. I followed the rules, I shared, I never picked fights, I always came in from recess on time, I talked about Jesus a lot. Like, a lot.

BUT.

There was this girl named Brittany in my class and she represented my very first encounter with a bully. Like some kind of villain from a Lemony Snicket novel, she wore the same shade of pink every single day. Even in Kindergarten, she already had a really good grasp on her Regina George persona. 

As a good kid, I wasn’t really familiar with enemies or bullies. Because up until this point, I’d never had any. All I really understood was that this Brittany was making my day to day life miserable. She made fun of my hair. She kicked mud on my shoes. She would pretend the snack I brought to class smelled bad. I did not know this word at the time, but I’d have described her as a fucking douchenozzle.

Now, my parents were big proponents of the “kill them with kindness” method, and I took that very much to heart. So whenever Brittany reminded me that I had a boy’s name or that she thought my Show & Tell was stupid, I’d laugh and let her cut in front of me in line for the swings.

That had the ultimate effect of just making her MEANER.

Plus, at some point, I think Brittany understood she wasn’t getting to me (she was, but on the outside your girl was cool as a cucumber), and that just fueled her fucking fire. So one day, she went for the jugular. And if you know me, then you know the jugular is my family.

“I saw your mom drop you off at school today,” she said.

“My mom drops me off every day,” I agreed.

“Well, your mom is ugly. And I bet your dad is too.”

Those words just hung in the air between us and I remember feeling really sick. All the color must’ve drained from my face because this poisonous smile slowly spread across her face like a puddle of oil.

No one had EVER said anything mean about my parents before. It felt foreign. It felt wrong. And I knew instinctively that it was unfair territory. I mean, it was one thing to say something mean about me - I could defend myself if I wanted to - but my mom? My dad? They weren’t even THERE. How were they supposed to stand up for themselves?

The thing about this memory is that after Brittany verbally attacked my parents, there’s a momentary blankness. I don’t know how I managed to get next to Brittany, I don’t know at what point I grabbed the front of her dress - but the memory picks up with my tiny hands on her pink collar, flinging her into the mud under the monkey bars. And then, I held her down. 

I held her down until her ruffled pink dress was drenched in playground sludge. And while Brittany screamed and cried and drew our class and teacher to one side of the playground, I slipped back into our classroom, went to Brittany’s personal cubby, located her Show & Tell piece - an iridescent Dance Magic Barbie dress - and shoved it down the neck of my sweater.

AND THEN I WAS SENT HOME FROM SCHOOL FOR BULLYING BRITTANY. 

It was a cruel twist of fate. My mom had to leave work to collect me from the main office, where I was being held. Through tears, I told my mom what had transpired. I told her how Brittany had been torturing me all year. I told her that I’d finally broken when she had said my parents were ugly. And through big, ugly, messy tears I confessed all about the mud and the stolen Barbie dress because I “wanted to hurt Brittany like she hurt me.”

And I waited for the hammer of justice to fall. 

The hammer of justice ended up being my mom buying me ice cream at Rite-Aid.

So, I guess the moral of this story is something along the lines of don’t fuck with my family or don’t be a bully….???? I don’t know. I don’t care. Mostly I just wanted to say, hey Brittany, if you’re out there, your Barbie dress still looks great.