Oh Boy, I've Got Joy... School with Monster

Before school started this year, I started to ask around for ideas on preschools or Mother's Day out programs or something for my little Monster.  He is super smart and extremely social.  I did a playgroup swap in South Korea and it helped my little Monster with his separation anxiety.  He also made some amazing friends and he learned and grew so much because of the playgroup swap.

While asking around, I found a group of ladies that wanted to start a preschool co-op.  Monster was just a smidge younger than the other kids, but he acts about 2 years older and is mature beyond his age.  All of us moms got together and started planning what we were going to do with our preschool co-op.  After much back and forth and talking and discussing and researching, the group decided to do a Joy School and follow the Joy School format.  Most of the moms didn't want to do ABCs or teach numbers, so it was decided to teach feelings, cause and effect and joy. 

There were six kids total to start with.  The best part about all these kids is that they are all the caboose of each family.  Each kid is the last and youngest. All of them had their own cute and adorable personality.  First we had Jessie.  Jessie is a quiet and at first shy and apprehensive little girl.  But after a while, she started to show her curiousness.  She is super soft hearted and she absolutely loves Payton, another one of the kids and she would just follow Payton around and do anything and everything Payton would do.  She would be sitting next to him and play with him, she was a very loyal friend to him.  Sadly, Jessie didn't stay with us the entire year, in December her family had to move, so we lost a dear little friend.

Here is Jessie.  She is a sweet little girl.

Next we have Payton.  Payton is a ball of energy.  He had a really hard time sitting still for longer than 10 seconds.  His mind went a million miles a minute and his body just had to follow.  He is a very happy little boy and loves everyone around him.  Payton was also one the pickiest eaters in the group.  I felt like I was always starving the poor boy, because I never had anything he liked to eat.  He also loved Jessie and was a very loyal friend to her.  He kept me on my feet and always kept Joy School active.  

This is Payton.  He is a ball of energy.

Next is Eliza, the second girl in our Joy School.  Eliza is one of the sweetest little girls I have ever met.  She was soft spoken and shy at first.  It was fun getting to know her and see the real Eliza shine through.  It took a while for her to come out of her shell.  She never said a mean thing, always included the other kids when she played and was kind to everyone.  My little Monster loved Eliza so much and always talked about how he is going to marry Eliza.

One of Monster's favourite friends, Eliza.

Katelyn was another one of the girls in the Joy School.  Kateyln is a very patient and smart little lady.  She was very kind and would always tell it like it is.  She acted very much beyond her years and was quick as a whip.  I always loved hearing what Katelyn had to say, and it always made me smile.  My little Monster said he was going to marry Katelyn after he married Eliza.  He loved playing with these two girls.

Katelyn was also one of Monster's favourites.

Spencer is the second boy in the group.  Spencer was Monsters little buddy.  Spencer and Monster played really well together. They are very similar in their personalities.  Spencer took a little bit to warm up to the group, but once he did he was full of energy and creativity.

Spencer is a super creative little guy.

Last, but not least we have my little Monster.  Monster took a loooong time to warm up to everyone before he let me leave him.  The first few times I had to stay for an hour or so until he was comfortable with the mom and the home.  Once he got to know all the moms and all the kids in the group, he loved Joy School and would ask every day if he had school today.  Monster is shy but super smart.  It was fun watching him grow socially, make friends, and learn academically.

Here is my little Monster.

We had some really fun things planned for the kids during the year.  We had parties, outings and fields trips all lined up.  One of the field trips the kids got to enjoy was the library.  Payton's mom set up a story time at the library with just our Joy School group.  The kids loved going to the library and picking out their own books.  They made crowns and spent time reading together.  Monster was so excited because he found a car book that he checked out.

We also had a big Halloween party for the kids.  The moms all came to my house and we had a big party.  The kids had a costume parade and sang some spooky songs to all their moms.  It was so wonderful to have a social hour with the moms while the kids ate and ran outside and played.  Not only do the kids all love each other and get along, but all the moms do too.

Joy School really did bring joy to my little Monster.  He has made some life long friends in this group.  He talks about his friends all the time and always asks if they can come play.  The kids loved making crafts together.  As a small group, we were able to celebrate all the small holidays with the kids. We made sure to do crafts and include fun snacks. After December, we started including letter writing, practiced writing their names, and number activities.  This is such a smart group of kids.  I am so grateful that Monster was able to find such a great group of friends.