Bumpy Start To Full-Time Education

SamÂ’s started school full-time this week. Not long until heÂ’ll be doing his GCSEÂ’s and bringing girls home. He does enjoy his school, but thereÂ’s a couple of things about the new term that IÂ’m not enjoying....

First of all, pick up time. Quarter past three. Sounds lovely, same as I used to do from nursery. What’s different though is that nursery was a car ride away, whereas school is about a ten minute walk. Ten minutes walking for me that is, on the way back it’s twenty minutes, because Sam is only 4 years old. So, we arrive home later than we did from nursery, and by the time we have shoes/coats/schoolbag sorted, it’s quarter to four.

Then there’s the homework. At FOUR years old, I am amazed and disgusted that pressure like this is being put on such small children and their parents. Much as Sam enjoys reading with Daddy, doing numbers work, writing bits and pieces, etc, he would rather be playing after school, and as he’s only 4, I totally agree. But we have to spend 20/25 minutes doing whatever homework has been set, plus reading a book together, all of which I have to make a note of in the Reading Log and Sam’s homework sheet.

So, we’ve finished homework at about quarter past four, it’s already one full hour after collection, and Sam has yet to have any “fun”.

Sam’s mummy has insisted that the return time is brought back from half past six to six o’clock - supposedly that Sam can get to bed OK. But with a six o’clock return we have to start getting shoes and coats back on at twenty to six.

So, after homework and before return time, we have approximately one hour and 25 minutes. Sounds a lot, but in that time I have to make tea, we have to eat tea together, and also fit in bathtime. So, since Christmas, my midweek time has been massively reduced, despite an apparent cut-back of only half an hour. I guess I am just feeling annoyed about it, as this is the first week we’ve done it, but whereas before the holiday our midweek evenings were relaxed and leisurely, now it’s all about Daddy pushing Sam to the next essential item on the “to do“ list. I wouldn’t think that’s a lot of fun for Sam, it certainly isn’t for me.

But balance that against Dads who are never allowed to see their kids and I have to admit I am Mister Luckypants. And when I eventually land a “proper” job I might have to cut the midweek stuff altogether, which will be traumatic all round. So, for the time being I’ll be doing my best to make the most of things. I’m going to have to start making our tea the night before so I can just microwave it, which will save some time but add extra faff to my life. Small price to pay I guess.

It might sound like I’m whinging for no real reason, but yesterday and today Sam has been in buckets of tears when it was time to leave, because he wants to stay and play, and it’s not fair, and I don’t want to go back Daddy. And that’s ****ing tough to deal with.

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