First Day of School—German Style
kin·der·gar·ten 
| a school or class for young children between the ages of four and six years. |
[Origin: 1850–55; German: lit., children's garden, equiv. to Kinder children (see kind) +Garten garden]
A few weeks ago, I wrote about a German first day of school tradition. Parents or grandparents prepare a school cone, called a Schultüte, and fill it with candy, treats, and small gifts for a child going off to school for the first time.
My oldest is off to kindergarten tomorrow. I swear time takes on an unknown speed when you’re a parent. It’s hard to get my mind around the fact that he’s so big.
I’m excited for him, but sad that I’m going to miss going to the school with him the first day. My husband gets to do the honors since I’ll be teaching at the high school. It’s my first day, too, but it’s not nearly as significant when you’ve been teaching for 17 years. Still, in this profession, First Day is a Big Deal. Between my son’s first day jitters and my own, I don’t expect to get much sleep tonight.
I’m going to wake my kindergartener up early tomorrow and give him the Schultüte that I made especially for him. I’m not especially crafty. I just folded a piece of poster board in half, rolled it into a cone shape, stapled it, and evened up the top edges. It’s decorated with characters from his favorite show, Dinosaur King. Inside are treats for his lunchbox (including the sugary cereal I usually outlaw), pens, flashcards, stickers, and a cool clip for his backpack. I think he’s going to like it!
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