We had been planning what to bring (apple juice, pretzels and salami by Alex's choice), I've heard the song they would perform so many times, I can sing all the lyrics in my sleep, we'd thought about what to wear and what it would be like when I wouldn't just drop Alex off, but get to stay! He was most excited about this last idea.
Various parents had helped to decorate the garden/playground area of the school, had set up a space for the potluck buffet, and gotten the whole place ready, so that by the time we showed up, the whole school was already buzzing. It was another scorching hot day and most kids and families were already outside on the playground. We added our offerings to the buffet and headed outside. Alex immediately got down to business on the playground and I talked to a few of the other parents, some of whom are slowly becoming friends (just as we're beginning to say good bye!). There were not only the kindergarten kids, but also siblings big and small, parents, grandparents etc. so that it was crowded in a festive and wonderful way.
At some point, they lined up all the Kindergarten kids to perform the song they had practiced together. They were very earnest in their performance. Very cute!
Afterwards, the "school kids" i.e. the kids going off into 1st grade in the fall, performed a special little play for everyone. In Germany school starts with 1st grade when the kids are 6 or older, ironically, there is no Kindergarten-grade. Instead, Kindergarten is the equivalent of preschool with little to no emphasis on academic skills. No letters, reading etc. (that's reserved for proper school). Instead 3-6+ year olds are in mixed groups, playing, crafting, and hanging out together. It's hard to know which system is better. I know of preschoolers in the US who can read even before Kindergarten. That's completely unheard of here. Yet most 4 year olds can ride their bikes without training wheels. And they do all learn to read eventually...
When it does come time for kids to leave Kindergarten and enter school, it's a big deal. Traditionally, German kids get oversized cones filled with goodies and fun school supplies on their first day of 1st grade. In this particular Kindergarten, they have the tradition that the teachers make hand-made cones for "their" school kids to be handed over in a festive ceremony during the summer party. Each school kid got to choose a younger kid to hand them their cone and then they lined up: younger kids on the left, school kids on the right. In the first shot, you can see all the younger kids still holding the cones, in the second shot, they have been delivered to their friend who will bring them to the first day of school in the fall. It was a sweet and meaningful ceremony (most of the school kids have been at the Kindergarten for 3 or 4 years) and there were some teary eyes.
After the ceremonies, there was time to storm the buffet (people had brought a wide variety of really yummy home-made things) and then we just played and socialized. I also got a great shot of Alex (and me!) with his two teachers, Nicole and Jenny.
And here they are with Alex's dear friend Victoria.
You can see the teachers each got a flower and a gift from the parents. Being a part of this German Kindergarten has been a great experience for us! We love it at New Pathways and Alex is eager to return, but this was a wonderful interlude.
Here's a final shot, not from the party, but taken a few days later of the whole school showcasing their new playground equipment, which ran in one of the local papers.
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