Entry FeedToday Son Two, who has attended morning kindergarten since he started in JK last year, SWITCHED to afternoons.
Why?
Ministry mandate.
Seriously, why else would you switch children a month into school, but for completely bureaucratic reasons?
The Ministry of Education in Ontario mandates that there must be 90% compliance across each board to have a hard cap of 20 students in place for all primary grades through the third (I am sure the actually wording is much more complex and verbose, but you get the idea.)
In my son's case, he was in a morning class with 22 students. However, there is an afternoon class at his school that only has 18. From the superintendent's perspective, an easy switch!
However, when you look at the actual situation, it doesn't make sense. The morning class is all SKs, so easier to teach than the afternoon that is a JK / SK split. Plus, there is a student expected to join the afternoon class soon, and one will be leaving the morning class.
Some parents from the class decided that we should all call the superintendent to voice our displeasure. I think I may have been the only one to call, but I was accused of yelling at her assistant and hanging up. Honestly, I really wasn't even irate!
The principal was looking for volunteers, and I think I was the only parent who actually considered the switch. Yes, it is a pain in the butt. Daughter's activities were all booked for mornings so that her brothers wouldn't have to sit through them. I now play hockey on Monday mornings (son one joined me out there this morning), so finding babysitting for him will be a pain. However, it isn't a huge imposition, and Husband and I want to be flexible and support the school.
This afternoon Son Two joined a line up of kids he doesn't know, and entered his classroom. The teacher is the same, the room is the same, just the kids change. The good news is that he has already made a new friend, he just can't remember his name.