When I think of first days of anything, whether it be elementary school, high school, or even my first day of the education program here at IUK, there is no way I can leave out the jitters, butterflies, or whatever else you want to call it that overcame my body. I think all first days come with at least some excitement, but sometimes they also come with a heaping helping of anxiety that has the potential to swallow this excitement whole. Katie Carew, an anxious, but hopeful incoming fourth grader and main character in the Katie Kazoo Switcheroo book series by Nancy Krulik, can definitely relate to this feeling as she is walking toward the list that holds the names of her classmates for the whole year. As Katie approaches this famous list, she puts her fate into its hands. She wonders, will my best friends Suzanne or Jeremy be in my class or will I end up alone? Will I have the teacher everyone in fourth grade wants to have? Let's just say, Katie is going to have a rough start to her fourth grade year.
I felt sad when Katie discovered that she will start her first day without her best friends by her side. When describing Katie's reaction to what she saw on the list, the author reveals, "It was hard to see through all the tears that were forming in her eyes" (p. 5) It seems like Katie is really upset by not being in the same classes as at least one of her best friends. I began to think of my days when I did the same exact thing Katie did. I walked to that list in what seemed like slow motion. Yes, that's how dramatic I was. Hopefully I wasn't the only one. It made me think of how disappointed I was one year when I realized I did not have class with by best friends. There was a feeling of fear that took over my body. So many thoughts ran through my head. What if my other friends forget about me? Or even worse--what if they replace me? Will I even be able to make friends in my new class? I am almost certain Katie had the same questions flooding into her mind and overtaking her thoughts.
When I saw the title Who's Afraid of Fourth Grade?, I immediately thought of my class full of third graders that I am getting to know and learn from through my field placement. I wonder if they will have the same thoughts and feelings as Katie had when they start the fourth grade. Katie describes her thoughts about fourth grade by saying, "In fourth grade, you got real textbooks to keep for the whole year--not just worksheets that the teachers handed out. The fourth, fifth, and sixth-graders all got to play in the big yard--the one without the swings and seesaws" (p. 2). She is describing so many changes that she will be going through and she feels like she might be going through these big changes all by herself. I hope that no child feels like they are going through these changes alone. I also hope Katie can overcome her fear of being alone and losing her friends. So, do you think Katie will just have a rough first day or a rough year?
