So, story time.

I may have mentioned this before here. Our family participated in an after school daycare cooperative with four other families for approximately nine years (kindergarten through 8th Grade). This was entirely the brain child of my spouse and two of the other parents. The story goes that they were standing around the sort of courtyard by the street waiting to pick up the kindergarteners and, being like-minded people during the Bush the Lesser Regime, struck conversation. They quickly came to an understanding that some of them had been at a, literally, adjacent day care the year before and remembered seeing each other at pick up there. Some one, and no one will admit to whom it was, suggested that each parent take a day to pick up ALL of the children and walk them home (Yes, we were that lucky. We all lived within a kilometer of the school). My spouse was the one who buttonholed the school secretaries for the appropriate and, imo, necessary paperwork to allow non-family members to retrieve the children from school at the end of the day. Four families participated but all five days of the week were covered because one of the families had twins and took two days of pickup.
I have long said that the joy of teaching Freshman is seeing them blossom and grow into young adults. I have taught middle school and high school in the US. And I have had the same sense of joy in watching these children grow into adulthood along with my own girls.
We have met and celebrated our successes and failures as parents (and now adults) for twenty-five years. Many have married, or will be soon. Several have their doctorates and are seeking their way in the world. Nora teaches in NYC and has recently made the leap from 4th to 6th Grade. We shared war stories this year and waxed philosophical about pedagogy psychology and all things teaching. Of all the things that I have helped created with other people in life, with the noted exception of my children, I am most proud of this cooperative Kinder Club.
Here’s to twenty-five more years of seeing us all grow, and love, and learn.

<3

That's great

Wonderful. I'm at a party right now with former mom group families. We met when they had tiny babies. Now the oldest are in college. It's an unbeatable bond.

4th grade to 6th? Did she change schools as well? Most Elementary schools are K-5, and most middle schools are 6-8.