One of the first jobs to tackle upon our arrival in Dubai was the purchase of school uniforms for our girls. The list was extensive and the pocket poorer when we left the shop with an enormous bag of essentials. Induction days for both Year 1 and Nursery newcomers were held giving both girls a chance to meet their new teachers and some other new children, the plan being that they would recognise a face or two on their first morning proper. Rosie started on the Sunday (the school week runs from Sunday to Thursday in Dubai according to the Islamic calendar) and on Saturday night she made us solemnly promise to wake her up really really early because she was so excited about starting her new school. There's not much danger of a sleep in these days with the alarm firmly set to full blast at 6.00am! We took her to the playground where her teacher came to meet the children to escort them to their classroom for registration. It's clear that parents are expected to efficiently say goodbye to their offspring and let the teaching staff do the rest. This is a departure for us after the intimate and informal atmosphere of Alice Smith School last year. At the end of the day when it was time to pick her up she was her usual evasive self claiming not to know the names of any of her new classmates and when grilled about what she'd been doing replied with a curt 'nothing'. A few tears the next morning at drop off did little to reassure me that she would have a happy day. Nevertheless she was a bit more forthcoming at pick up about what she'd been doing (arabic class, art projects and some reading) and who she'd been playing with (a little girl on her table had promised an invite to her birthday party). This morning she entered the playground cautiously and after a faux cheerful kiss goodbye from me I had no sooner turned around to wave than she was running hand in hand with another little girl who the day before had also been crying into her mum's skirts. What are you crying for now........Mum?
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