Hope you are all are staying well! It wasn’t too long ago that I didn’t understand the meaning of a preschool graduation. Honestly, it seemed a bit silly to me, making such a big deal about starting kindergarten. Then in February out of the blue I received an email from our daycare with the date and time of my daughter’s graduation along with information on the prep they would be doing for the ceremony. I immediately burst into tears. My baby, my firstborn was graduating from the place she had been since she was 4 month old and starting a brand new school. I was a mess and suddenly understood the meaning behind this milestone.
Fast forward to everything going on in the world and schools and daycares closing and we found out she will not be back in daycare for her graduation. We’ve explained the situation to her and while I think she understands it as a best as a 5 year old can it was obviously still upsetting. So, I decided to plan our own graduation.
We’ve decided to do a backyard ceremony. I plan on lining up chairs for our immediate family and creating a “stage”. We’ll all get dressed up and she’ll wear this cap and gown linked above. We’ll do some sort of speech and announce her full name and have her walk across our makeshift stage. Then we’ll take photos with the different props as a family. The thing she was most excited about was that on the day of the graduation she would get to leave in the middle of the day before lunch. We had plans to go out afterwards and even though our stay at home order should be lifted by then I don’t have high hopes or think we’d be comfortable eating in a restaurant. So we’ll have to figure that part out. I’ll probably bake a cake or find a cookie cutter to make special cookies for her as well.
While this isn’t the same as having her ceremony at school, I think it’s important to acknowledge this milestone in a way that we thought we would. It may seem over the top or unnecessary but right now I think we need to celebrate joy in anyway possible. I also still fully expect to bawl my eyes out seeing her dressed up in her cap and gown.
If you’re in the same boat with your own kids I hope these ideas help you create your own celebration at home.
What other big celebrations have you adapted to fit the current situation?