Jiliang Visits T.J.'s Kindergarten Class

I thought that it would be helpful to have Jiliang visit T.J.'s classroom and allow the kids to learn a little about her special needs. I figured that it would be easier to come right out in the open about her bald spot, versus having kids whisper or ask endless comments. I know that it is not entirely avoidable, but I felt that it would be a very positive experience for T.J. and for the children in his classroom, which it proved to be.
The night before I went, I asked T.J. if her had told any of his friends at school that his sister had a bald spot on her head. He said, "Oh no, Mom. That was a good thing, right Mom?" I told him yes, but explained that I was going to come to his school and talk to his class about her head. He replied with a protective, "Why?" I explained that if I told everyone, they would understand and get used to seeing her head without a hat. I also explained that I did not want everyone asking him questions or talking about her to him, because it might upset him. He agreed.
His school is currently doing a Jump-Rope for Heart fundraiser, so I was able to tell them that Jiliang needed to have a surgery to fix her heart. There was actually a heart transplant recipient in his class. That child amazes me.
I very briefly talked about her having a bald spot and a bone that needed to be fixed on her head. None of children were focused on that. They were more interested to find out what language she spoke, what English and Chinese words she knew. I believe almost all of the students raised their hands to ask a question or two. They asked questions such as:
Does she talk?
Why is she quiet?
Does she speak English?
Can she understand what we are saying?
Does she speak Spanish?
Why are her cheeks rosy?
How old is she?
When is her heart going to be fixed?
What hospital will she go to for her heart repair?
Is she a good girl?
How do you say "hello" in Chinese?
What other Chinese words does she know?
They wanted to be notified if she has surgery during the school year, and they also want to learn some Chinese ABCs.
I will have to get my China travels on a slideshow for them to review.

Mrs. Chestney told them that if they had other questions about T.J.'s little sister, that they could ask her, and she would give me the questions to answer for them. I am sure that they will still ask T.J. questions about her at school, but at least the ground for questioning will now be a positive Q&A for my son.

One of the things that made me laugh and we exited to go home was a child's comment to her mom. I only laugh because I have been there with my own son for awkward or embarrassing comments. One of T.J.'s dear kindergarten friends was excited about our little China girl forum and walked outside and immediately said to her mother something like: "Look mom, T.J.'s new Chinese sister has no hair on one side of her head!" Of course, this was the same child that doted on her in the classroom and raved about how "cute" she was. The mom was obviously taken by her daughter's comment and responded appropriately, but she probably didn't realize that we had been talking about it in class. Children are so darn sweet.

Thank you to Mrs. Chestney for your classroom support, and for making T.J.'s adjustments to his new Chinese sister a positive and proud experience for him at school. We attribute much of his positive Big Brother transition to your encouragement at school.