My First Day of School, Essay Example

I don’t really remember much of what happened as a child. All I know is that I grew up in a pretty normal household with a mom, dad and an older brother. Not much of the outside world scared me, or even intimidated me. I didn’t even know that there was much of an outside world. Everything I had at home, and around the neighborhood was everything I knew, and that was it. My mom efficiently prepared me for my first day of school in the way she thought to be the best. She would anticipate the day it would come, and assure me that everything was going to be okay. I remember her talking about the games we would play, how I would get to meet other kids my age and that there would be a nice teacher to guide me along my way. It didn’t sound that scary. I mostly liked the idea of getting snacks in the middle and getting to play with new toys, nap time wasn’t really my thing, though; I could always do that at home. There were some things my eager six-year-old self was excited about, but I never understood exactly why I had to go to school. My first day of school, being a big change in my life, is something I will always remember and relate to other dramatic changes which I have gone through. I’m sure that most people can relate to this in a sense that everyone has gone through a significant change in their life, no matter how mundane the event may be.

I wondered what the other kids were like, and why they had to go to school, too. I wondered if they colored, played or did things as well as I did. Probably not. My mom explained to me that I’ll be learning new things, and that I’ll have to go to school five times a week. For me at that age, a week seemed very long. What if I didn’t want to go? What if I just wanted to stay home? I really had mixed emotions about the subject.

After much prepping, the first day of school finally came. I remember getting out of the car and looking up at the structure in front of me. The building had colorful painting on its bricks on the sides, with a bright blue door. My eyes grew bigger, and I didn’t even realize I was holding my breath. All my mixed emotions drained into one at that very moment – fear. I was not sure of exactly what to expect, and I didn’t know anyone in there. How would I call my mom if I wanted something, if I was hungry or if I hurt myself? Suddenly, all of this school business did not seem like such a good idea. I turned to my mom who was holding her hand out to me and smiling. I gave her a worried look, which she caught on to right away. She stepped closer and nudged me towards the door. After she gave me a kiss on the forehead, that was it, she was gone and I was stuck in school, a place I was so unfamiliar with.

The bell rang and I proceeded to walk through the door. I took a big breath and looked around. The room was so bright and colorful and there were so many different artworks posted on the walls. I clearly remember a sea of pinks, yellows, blues and greens. There were pictures of animals, fruits and houses all drawn by other kids decorating the room. I recall there being desks desks with paper and crayons, and there was even a little corner with toys! This calmed me down, and made me feel like it was not as bad as I thought.

I looked at the other kids coming in; I did as they did and left my backpack on a hook near the door, and took a seat in an empty chair closest to me. We were greeted by an older lady; she told us that she was going to be our teacher. She started us off by calling us from a list one by one; to make sure we were all there. I also remember having name tags of some sort, I think we kept those on even a week after school started. At that time, I didn’t get why, I already knew my name after all.

We learned some songs, played a lot of games and because we all did what we were told, we got some time to play with the toys in the corner of the room. Next thing I know, we were given snacks. We then got to play outside on the playground. Because of all the playing, we got tired pretty soon, and they let us sleep. After a bit more games, another bell rang and the teacher told us it was time to go home. The day seemed really long since we did so much, but none of it was boring.

As soon as I grabbed my bag and stepped outside the door, I saw my mom waiting for on the side walk. I ran to her, and clearly remember feeling like I haven’t seen her in such a long time. During the car ride back home, I talked tirelessly about how the day went and all the new things I did, and how the other children were just like me, and most of them like the same things I liked. I asked her when I’ll go back, and I just got excited when she told me when I wake up in the morning, I’ll be going again.

I don’t remember ever feeling that anxious and excited all at once, all my expectations about school were mostly wrong. According to most researchers specializing in childhood psychology, children do tend to have very unrealistic expectations about their first day of school (Kendrick).

I had a pretty average childhood before kindergarten; I guess all my fears about changing my environment just came up because I was not sure of what to expect leaving the comforts of my home. This was the first significant time in which I realized that there is a bigger world out there, and there are so many things to learn, people to meet and things to do. I felt so grown-up at that time, being able to go somewhere where I didn’t need my parents, it was all just me, no help. I guess that this first day of kindergarten is much like all the other first days of school – like the first day of middle school, high school and even college. I built myself up with all these ideas, and you get all worked up about them, but once you’re there and you get the flow of how things are done, it becomes easier. When there is an event in your life, no matter how mundane or usual it may seem, it can change how you view things. Looking back at my first day of kindergarten and evaluating my thoughts as compared to what actually happened, I can say that I got overwhelmed more with the idea of kindergarten more than anything. Once you get over those negative thoughts in your head, you realize that it’s not that bad. You just have to rise above your thoughts and your fears. My first day of kindergarten will always be that event I’ll remember which changed how I saw things in life.

Works Cited

Kendrick, Carleton. “Talking to Children About Their School Anxiety.” School Resources & Educational Help By Grade & Subject For Parents. Family Education Network. Web. 14 Sept. 2010.