School so far

My kids have one month left before school starts again. B will be in 4th grade and G in 3rd grade. This is going to be their third year in a Spanish school and so far I'm very happy with their school. They go to a semiprivate semipublic school. Does that make sense to you? I guess not, so I'd better explain. It's semiprivate because it's a Spanish school on Moroccan territory, so once you enter the school you're actually on Spanish ground, which gives it a special status according to Moroccan law. But according to the Spanish school system it's a public school, not a private one and therefor it's semiprivate and semipublic. *lol*

B did 2 years in a Swedish school before we moved here and G did one year. It was a Montessori school and at first I was thrilled with that school. They did SO MUCH to help B and he actually mastered lots of his difficulties at that school. He was diagnosed with "a behavior close to Autism", so he was never really Autistic, only very much alike someone with mild Autism. When he was 4 years old his social skills were like those of a one year old. He never learned how to play with other kids, he preferred to stay close to grown ups instead because other kids scared him. When he started school the teachers got together to help him learn how to be around other kids and after about 6 months he actually started talking to a few of them. After a year he would participate in their games every now and then, but he still preferred to stay close to his teacher. He has GONE A LONG WAY since then! Now he's a very talkative boy, with lots of friends who enjoys playing with other kids. But he still has some difficulties handling crowds and other situations where he doesn't feel safe.

B has always been a very clever boy. He taught himself how to read when he was 5 and he loves to read. He is actually too clever, because he is way ahead of his peers and he gets bored in no time. He needs to be challenged all the time, feel that he's not wasting his time with stupid things. I hope his teachers will be able to keep up with him because if he gets bored at school he's probably going to hate it and refuse to study. I really should look for information on kids with a high IQ, because as a mom I feel it's my duty to make sure he still enjoys going to school.

G started school in Sweden one year early so he wouldn't have problems adjusting to the Spanish school system but oh boy, he was so BORED at school in Sweden! In Sweden kids aren't allowed to learn how to read and write at school before they are 7 and he was only 5 when he started school and he really wanted to learn to read. Instead, he spent the days playing and that's not what he wanted. He wanted to LEARN to master the letters, have homework and feel like a "big boy". I guess he thought going to school was just a big waste of time. He was thrilled to start school here and in less than 4 months he learned to read and write. He was so PROUD about himself and he loves to read whenever he finds a book he likes.

I'm happy both my boys enjoy reading. I think that's a very important quality because a person who loves to read will always find ways to learn new things and will have an open mind. The truth isn't always black or white, it can have different shades.