School Stuff. Part one?

We just got the letters from the Beaverton School District with the kids' ELD test scores.  Not surprisingly, they've both been identified as non-native speakers and will be receiving ELD services.  I noticed that Sasha's testing says he is a beginner, as we expected, but Inesa's says she is intermediate--two levels up.  I wrote it off as a) Kindergarteners aren't expected to know much and b) she might have been more engaged in the test.

I put the letters down and came outside to enjoy the evening.  Inesa had been playing with the two neighborhood 11-year olds in the common area.  I realized they were playing "What time is it, Mr. Fox?" a game she's played and loved at soccer practice.  She taught the neighbor kids how to play a game.  One was trying to circumnavigate the rules, and she hollered, "Stop!  No hands!  Only feet!  Is more fun!" 

Maybe 'intermediate' is the correct description of her language level.

In further back-to-school news, Sasha got on the wrong bus coming home on the first day, and Inesa wasn't able to get on today due to some SNAFU.  They seem to like school, but it is still a major change in our routine, and I know how hard it is to spend the day having to listen and respond in a still-new language.  Inesa comes home quiet and prickly, and takes awhile to relax and warm up again, but is still prone to melt down later in the evening.  Sasha has been revved up and unpredictable.  We've been taking a lot of walks around the neighborhood to refocus, and we've gotten a handful of odd jobs done, as "make a repair" is our response to bad choices.  But it was only the first week, and a short one at that, so I'm still optimistic that we will settle into our new routine.

But what a bait and switch, eh?  For weeks and weeks, it's all sunny weather and playing in the park, and then all of a sudden, BOOM!  Get to work!  At least the weather is still fooling them lovely.