Going to Kindergarten

Dear Diary,

Come this March, Zarra will be 5 years old. We think that she’s ready to start kindergarten. We enrolled her at Tadika Alya Az-Zahrah. It is under the same management with Imran’s school. In fact, both are located in the same building which makes it easier for us as well. Imran can keep an eye on his sister. Zarra’s session starts at the same time as Imran, 8am but ends at 12pm.

Since this is her first experience going to a school, I’ve been preparing her mentally since last December. I’ve been telling her about school, teachers, friends, etc and also about being independent in school. Both Hubby and I thought Zarra will have no problem at all because among the three, Zarra shows more interest in books and learning.

Zarra’s first day was smooth sailing. We arrived at the kindergarten about 15 minutes before 8am; so we took the time to familiarize her with her new surroundings. All her teachers are warm and friendly, and most importantly child-friendly. They know how to tackle young kids.

After saying goodbyes, we just left her there. No waiting, no looking from afar like we did with Imran. Alhamdulillah, she survived the first day without a glitch. When we fetched her in the afternoon, she was all smiling and happy to see us.

Well, the second day until the second week of schooling was totally another story. She cried each time Hubby dropped her off in the morning. Every night too she’d tell me that she didn’t want to go to school. One day she even imploringly asked me why she cannot stay at home with me anymore like she used to. She said she loves me, wants to keep me company at home and looks after her little brother.

Though I know she’s going through separation anxiety, it still broke my heart seeing her like that. I patiently reasoned with her. Alhamdulillah, towards the end of second week, she didn’t cry anymore. Now, she’s eager to go to school and play with her new friends.

Moga Allah terangkan hati Zarra untuk mencintai dan menerima ilmu dunia dan akhirat.