Routines, School Bathrooms, and Not-So-Free Food

My son is adjusting to the routine and schedule at school. I can tell that he's learning things at school that spill over at home.

When we were first potty-training, he wanted me to come watch, clap when he was done, flush the toilet for him, and pull up his pants. Then he wanted me to wash his hands. I was more than pleased to do all of this because it meant no more diapers.

At school, this was a problem. The first week or so he came out of the stall with his pants around his ankles and expected his teacher to do for him what I'd been doing. Reality check. His teacher was not going to do that. She's his teacher, not his mother. Truthfully, I was worried about this.

But then I noticed that at home he was pulling up his own pants, flushing the toilet himself, and washing his hands. I still needed to remind him for a few weeks. Now, he goes into the bathroom at home completely on his own. I never have to remind him. He does his own wiping, he takes care of all his business, and I'm not involved at all.

Through all of this, he's not had an accident. He truly is potty-trained because he now monitors it himself. Hallelujah! I think going to school really helped with this and I think he's learning the routine and schedule at school now. He gets in line after going to the bathroom and sits in the right place, in the right way (the school expects students to sit cross-legged and look forward while in line), and then gets up and follows his class back to their room. He's "getting it" I think.

He did have problems in the school bathroom with being silly and going in and locking all the stalls so the other boys couldn't use the toilet. And he did use the urinal to wash his hands--that still makes me dry heave. I went up to the school for a few days during potty time to make sure he was behaving in the bathroom. Hopefully, it's now resolved. At least I haven't heard back that he's still being silly in there. Or--gag, gag--using the urinal to wash his hands. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

We are still in the midst of testing so we'll see what happens after the testing scores come back. I do know he can read and sound out letters to read unfamiliar words. His handwriting needs work, but he's improving. He needs to work on math facts, but he's slowly coming along.

We did have issues with him at the cafeteria. He saw that there were chicken nuggets and cheese burgers and he figured it was free food (after all, the food at home is free). He'd finish his lunch, then go through the line to get what he wanted from the cafeteria. Of course, it wasn't free. And he wasn't punching in his pin number, they were doing that for him. Once I got the bill, I talked to the cafeteria manager and his teacher and others to make sure he doesn't keep getting food. I pack him a lunch every day. It may not be as exciting as chicken nuggets, but I make it for him with lots of love :).

School has definitely been an adjustment for all of us, but I think it's been a positive one. So far anyway.