Start of Cinta’s New School; 2 Ciclo
Year 5 at school is an exciting transition year here in Pt because the children are moving from a small school in the village to the ‘city’. Where it first was a small school of 15-30 children, two classes first and second year together and third and fourth year together. Even the Meir of the town came to welcome us all at the start of the school year and we got a lot of information about all changes that were happening in the life of our children. This was an hour of welcoming on the Friday before the classes start. But don’t forget to get the books already earlier that week!
But when?
Nobody is going to tell you. I found out too late, obviously there is a FB page where it said you could get your books. Do you need all workbooks? I don’t know, I bought them all but I also heard that some teachers don’t use them so you could wait until class until the teacher says something. If you need to order them then, the classes are already up and running…
3 classes of each year
The school in Ansião has three different classes of the 5th year. So you can imagine it is a big school.
Experiencing the first month now, I see It’s similar to secondary school (high-school) in the Netherlands. But this high-school starts when the kids are 12 years, that is two years later, which is a huge difference in the development of children.
Luckily there is time in the weekend and Wednesday afternoon to do all sorts of activities, such as trail running event (Trail de Ladeia Kids on the photo’s).
Arrange All Yourself
The 10-year olds have to organise everything themselves now. If they don’t arrange it, is their problem. For example arranging their locker with a lock that you have to take with you yourself, and reserve it yourself in the office.
Hmm, Cinta didn’t dare to enter the office with all adults, and secure her locker. There are children without lockers because there are much more children than lockers, so it is better to arrange it, also all the books Cinta has to carry daily, are quite heavy. The lockers are necessary!
I asked every day if she arranged the locker but she didn’t.
Confusing Communication
Of course parents are helping as much as they can, because the kids cannot manage all, I guess. We have a group WhatsApp of all parents and I see, some are confused, and need to understand all to make sure all flows smoothly; change of schedule, which books to take, a gym bag, with or without a towel and clean indoor shoes.
For sure some parents prepare the school bag for their kids but the information is not going to the parents but to the child, and the child is not telling all in a way that is clear, also because the teacher is sometimes not clear too. The showering was obligatory according to the teacher but not when there is no time, and not in the first month… So it is kind of a puzzle.
I am happy that Cinta is quite responsible and at least she takes care of her bag herself but I put her towel into another bag that we use for gym now. Not in the same bag as the books, what she wanted to do… And I immediately bought new indoor shoes which was also a must.
The thing here is really:
Prepare to be not prepared, because they are all telling you this in class, afterwards so when school already started.
A mother of a friend of Cinta said correctly: “In two weeks, she became two times as old“.
Bus at 8 o’clock
The lessons start at 8.45 am and the bus comes at eight. This is different in for everyone, but nobody tells you where or when. The woman of the 1st floor of the loja de cidadao herself doesn’t know it. And when I asked Fernando, a driver that I know, he said: They know nothing.
When I went there another time for confirmation, a woman phoned with Fernando to ask my questions when.
The school bus of Cinta was a little too late at school the first day but all goes smoothly now. However, the other bus of Gui, her friend, is a public one, this one is almost always too late. The teachers said that they don’t have to worry when it is the fault of the school bus, but still, they do, it is a stress for the children or parents and they will complain.
Cinta’s last lesson finishes at 4.35 pm, followed by a free period while waiting for the bus, which goes around 17:40. SHe will be back home around 18:25.
Every day she has one or two free ’45-minutes’, during which she has to keep herself entertained – either outside, in the library, or by quickly wolfing down her hot lunch. She has 45 minutes for that. It sounds like a long time, in The Netherlands I remember it is just half hour, but there it is not a warm lunch, just sandwiches that you take from home. The 45 minutes are over soon. Between queuing, having soup, a main course and a piece of fruit, time flies.
And on one day, we chose to play a sport during a free period. There are some sports offered during the lunch break: Padel, tennis, table tennis, chess and badminton.
Trabalho de Casa – Home work
And there is homework, right from the first week, and if you don’t do it, you get a mark against you, which counts towards your end-of-year result. As she goes to school by minibus, she leaves around 7.45 am and gets home at 6.20 pm. She’s already received a ‘falta’ (mark) because her homework wasn’t done.
The maths teacher said to the children:
When you come home, the first thing you do is open a book, and make some homework before you watch television.”
I told Cinta that I suggest the first thing she does, is to calm down, drink something, have dinner and talk with us. Afterwards it is bed time.
Discipline the Children
As parents, we receive all sorts of emails from her mentor, to ask for our cooperation and help us bring the children up to discipline them, so that they learn as much as possible at the new school and new phase of life.
One thing is sure: No matter which level the children have, they will not be behind following the national standards, for the end of the year. The first three tests for October are planned already.
Bottom Line
Cinta is enjoying school. She likes getting to know a lot of others.
She does crave for a day off to be at home to have some time for herself. Luckily the Portuguese schools have many strikes. We already had a day of in the third week, and may be again coming week a national strike of the municipalities.
