Mason's Interview

On February 6th, we experienced something you only read about and imagine, in a humorous way, under normal circumstances. We had to take Mason to the "big" school for an interview. We are trying to enroll her in the Albert Einstein Academies in San Diego. It is an International Baccalaureate accredited program where the instruction is in both English and in German. The interview was required to demonstrate that Mason can speak fluent German. We know she can. Her teacher in her preschool, Die Rasselbande, knows she can. So, we took Mason for her interview, telling her only that she would be meeting Renate, her teacher, at the "big" school, and should speak Deutsch with her. We were on pins and needles, because there were already more than 200 applicants for 80 kindergarten slots. The slots go first to siblings, then to fluent German speakers, and then it is a lottery. We desperately wanted Mason to prove her ability so we could avoid the lottery. She told me she had sand in her shoes, as we walked to the classroom where Renate was waiting. I suggested to her that she tell Renate this problem "auf Deutsch" (in German), and maybe Renate could help her out. Sure enough, Mason walked in and said in German, "I have sand in my shoes." It was the only complete sentence she said throughout the interview. It was enough. Thank goodness.

Last week, we received our notice that she was accepted to Albert Einstein for kindergarten. There are so many magnet and charter schools out there, it has become very competitive to get your children into any school but your local one. It's a crazy system!

Note: This is our future protege! >>>>>>>>