Back to School 1984

Back to School 1985

In the late summer of 1984, I started the first day of fourth grade at Nathanael Greene School of Potowomut - or just Potowomut as we called it - in the small town of Warwick, Rhode Island. I stood on the front porch with my new outfit, school shoes, backpack, as I had done the four years before with the excitement of what the new year would bring and a smile for my obligatory 1st day pictures. My excitement was only sporadically interrupted by my nerves about my academic abilities. You see, just one year earlier, my third grade teacher, Mrs. Rossi * had me tested for Learning Disabilities because of my inconsistent performance ans lack of attention span. That was the year I was diagnosed with ADHD, but at that time there was not a tremendous amount know about this diagnosis.

But the excitement of a new year and old friends overshadowed the flashes of struggle and disappointment as I boarded the bus to Potowomut to rejoin my classmates in Mrs. Harris' * fourth grade class. 

This year unfolded much like past grades with some academic struggles tempered with my status as the "Social Butterfly", so school, while frustrating, was still enjoyable for me. In the year since my diagnosis, doctors and experts explained to my parents that I was not at all challenged by the difficulty of the information...on the contrary, my results showed I was able to understand concepts well above the 4th grade level, instead, my challenge was in the way I interacted - or didn't interact- with the material. So my parents found creative ways to help me through including reading aloud, and mnemonics for memory work. I still remember this gem...the New Jersey was a trend...Trenton is the capital of New Jersey. While the day to day work continued to challenge and frustrate me, I loved when projects were assigned because I could use my strengths and creativity.  And so the day Mrs. Harris assigned a science project  on the animal unit we had been studying, I got very excited.

Our assignment was to choose an animal to research and present to the class a report with a visual aid. I chose the Koala Bear.  Instantly my mind raced as to how I would present my project...what would I say, there were so many ideas.In the past, I had tried organizing my information on a poster board like many of my classmates, but I wasn't very organized and because my parents were insistent that I do my own work, "Sarah," my mom would say, "I have already been in fourth grade. It's your turn" I wasn't fond of trying the poster board again.  so I decided to MAKE a Koala Bear. My mom is an expert seamstress and I spent many years standing behind her in her chair watching over her shoulder as she zipped through seams transforming the limp fabric into stunning gowns or draperies for our home. I knew that would be something fun and different and I could do it MYSELF -with her supervision of course- I knew better than to use her machine without permission.

So with great excitement, I learned my koala facts and we went to Weintraubs, my mom's favorite fabric store. I picked the pattern, fur, felt,stuffing and notions we needed and I begged her to hurry up as we made our way back home. I knew my way around a sewing machine and had learned early on how to thread a needle for hand sewing and on a machine alike...Mom wouldn't let me have someone thread it for me. So I laid out all of the materials, found the salvage, pinned the pattern and began my project. If there is another project that made me this proud, I have no memory of it. 

I wasn't know for doing projects or homework ahead of time. In fact, I tended to wait until the last minute. Years later, I learned this is a coping mechanism for people with ADHD, but this project had me so excited, I finished early!

It seemed like months before the projects were due, although looking back, I'm sure it was merely days. But finally the day came. I carried my Koala Bear in a small bag inside my backpack and I looked on as my classmates struggled with their poster boards and paper mache off of the bus and into our classroom. The day dragged on through reading groups and lunch until finally, it was time! At long last, I could share my project that was unlike so many other assignments. It was finally time to share with my class the facts I learned about the Koala with the bear...and it was AWESOME! I shared with my class that Koalas are native to Australia, how the mommas carry their babies in their pouches and that they eat eucalyptus leaves and finally, I pulled it from my small bag and proudly showed them the Koala that I made.

The class erupted in OOHS and AAHs while some jumped from their seats to get a closer look.and within moments, Mrs.Harris was shushing and herding my classmates back into their seats. I was beaming! I DID IT- by myself - on my terms...and it was so good!

As the class settled and I wrapped up my presentation with a few questions from classmates, I looked to Mrs. Harris with excitement and eagerly awaited her feedback. I wasn't usually very excited to hear about what my teachers had to say about my work, but this time it was different.

I heard her say things like "interesting information" and "confident in my presentation", but what I really wanted to hear was what she thought about my koala bear.  And then it came...

"And Sarah, that's a lovely koala bear. Tell your mom she has outdone herself again..." 

 * Names have been changed.