I hope you had happy holidays and I wish you all the best for 2023. It will be a special year for my little family: our son will be celebrating his sixth birthday in May and will start school in August.
That still sounds very far away, but it means that we have to register him in January.
So now we have to choose a primary school.
But for which?
There's one right around the corner from us.
He'll probably be able to do it on his own very soon.
Actually perfect, and for a long time we were sure that it was the right choice.
But my son was going through a difficult phase.
He was very clingy, wanted to stay at home all the time, didn't want to attend pre-school at the day-care center and had difficulties separating from us or his primary caregivers.
They said he needed a familiar environment that gave him security.
For example his friends.
That's why the educators suggested registering him at the elementary school that his best daycare buddies will go to.
But that is much further away.
So we would have to bring and pick him up for quite a while.
more on the subject
Traditions and rituals: How we differ as families - and what still unites usBy Sandra Schulz
Christmas newsletter for families: Don't be afraid!By Markus Deggerich
Family Newsletter: Does your child force you to go to the beach too?
Again?By Julia Stanek, Life Department
Most of the other parents I spoke to said that his clinging phase would quickly subside and that by the time primary school started, the circle of friends would be completely rearranged anyway.
Almost everyone advises going to a nearby school.
Many have experienced something similar and have the feeling that they made the right decision by taking the shorter route.
When I complained to a colleague about my suffering, she reminded me that this was not just a »first world problem« but a »big city in first world problem«.
And of course she's right.
When I was that age, the question didn't arise.
I lived in a village with exactly one elementary school.
I am now a convinced Hamburger and never want to leave again.
I usually like the many options that the big city offers me.
But sometimes I also think: How nice it would be to live in the country and not always have to choose something because there is simply no choice.
But that doesn't help with the acute problem.
What are we going to do now?
My wife and I went to the far away school for an open house in December.
When we arrived, my wife looked at me and said, "I don't think I'm ready yet." Then we realized that it was also the school Christmas party, ate cake, made ornaments for the Christmas tree and informed each other on the side about the rich program of afternoon care.
Our son had a lot of fun and showed that he is definitely ready.
Now my wife is sure that we will apply to this school.
And I'm grateful that the decision is made for me and we don't have to move to the country after all.
Reading tips for the weekend
Since choosing the right school is so individual that no general recommendations can be given, I cannot offer you a service text from the SPIEGEL cosmos with the ten golden tips for parents in this situation.
We have to go through that alone.
Nevertheless, colleagues have repeatedly dealt with the topic.
In 2016, Anne-Katrin Schade reported on tricks when looking for the primary school of choice and researched cases in which parents gave wrong addresses just to get to the preferred school.
You shouldn't take this as an example: »If the fraud is discovered, the parents face a fine and the children have to change schools immediately.«
Before choosing an educational institution, many parents wonder whether it is the right time to start school.
Anna Clauss wrote a column worth reading about this last summer.
And thanks to Markus Deggerich and his text on “School enrollment from A to Z”, I at least know exactly what to expect in August.
In this context, Judith Horchert explained why she doesn't think it would be wise to equip first graders with smartphones.
We have discussed this topic several times over the past week.
SPIEGEL columnist Sascha Lobo re-ignited the debate at Christmas when he explained in an Instagram post that he was giving his 18-month-old son a cell phone.
On the subject of media use by children, I recommend this article by Hanna Zobel.
What do you think and how do you deal with it at home?
Can your children watch TV?
Do you play on your smartphone or tablet?
At what age should one start?
Please write to me at malte.mueller-michaelis@spiegel.de.
Between the years our son saw the Pippi Longstocking films with Inger Nilsson for the first time and was absolutely delighted.
We have decided to read the books now.
I hope that he will still enjoy going to school instead of just romping around our Villa Villekulla all day long.
The Last Judgement
The offer in the canteen plays a role in the choice of school.
The children's reporters Julie and Marlene interviewed Bettina Stark-Watzinger for the current issue of »Dein SPIEGEL« and asked her, among other things, why school meals always taste so bland.
You can find the answer and interesting facts about the Federal Education Minister's childhood here.
Instead of canteen food, you could prepare the cheap, tasty and quick-to-make oatmeal cornflakes schnitzel from colleague Sebastian Maaß’s justifiably popular “Cooking without Coal” series.
You should bookmark the page with all his recipes anyway.
There is always something beautiful to be found there.
my moment
On the subject of children, school and media literacy, I received this little episode from a reader from the pandemic period (the older ones will remember):
»We sat at home with Corona, but already felt fit again.
Consequently, my husband and I worked from the home office.
I asked our nine-year-old son to do something for school and homework, after all we would be going back to work.
Our son saw things differently because the schoolwork was much more strenuous.
After all, we would only be pressing the keys.«
I wish you a nice weekend and a good start into a year full of small and big adventures.
Sincerely
yours, Malte Müller-Michaelis
