Young ZooKeeper School

Friday was a big day in our house. I took Timmy to the Animal Park to check out a new preschool program they were launching. What started out of curiosity ended up being Timmy's first official day of preschool.  Well, technically it is the Young Zookeepers School, which is perfect for us right now.  

Once a week Timmy will attend the Young Zookeepers program where he will play with other kids, listen to a story, work on arts and crafts and learn about animals. Timmy absolutely loved the program, and I had no qualms about signing him up. I love seeing him play with other kids and engage on a more academic level. Because of his autoimmune issues, we can't enroll him in a standard preschool at this time. This class feels like it was created specifically for our needs!

The weekly class is three hours long and, although parents are invited to participate, it is encouraged that we stay in the lobby to allow the kids a chance to socialize and learn to depend upon themselves and their teachers. (The lobby has free coffee and WiFi, so I'm set while he's at school.) Timmy had no problem separating from me during the class and was grinning from ear-to-ear throughout the morning. I am happy to stay close by and out of the way while he works towards his Young ZooKeeper credentials.

Over the weekend Scott and I took Timmy to the store to purchase his school supplies. I'm not sure if Timmy made the connections about why we were shopping, but we are trying to highlight the concept that he is attending his own school.  Even if he didn't understand, he seemed to relish the attention and spending time in Target. It turns out that many of the items on his supply list are out of stock because they are seasonal, so I'll have to buy them online before Friday. He did pick out a shiny red Paw Patrol water bottle and somehow managed to convince his Daddy to buy a new train for his collection.  

I'm already looking forward to Friday!