It's Sunday, the last day of holiday break, and at 4:30 my daughter proclaims she's ready for a bath.

"But what about dinner?" I ask. "You haven't even eaten yet."

"No dinner!" she insists, hopping up and down for emphasis. "I'm ready for bed. I want tomorrow to be here."

This, from a child who normally uses superhero powers to stave off bedtime, is remarkable, to say the least. But she has a reason for wanting to fast-forward the night: in the morning, she'll be switching to a new kindergarten class, and one of her best buddies is in it.<!--more-->

Night Owl is moving into the CTT (Collaborative Team Teaching) classroom, which PS 29 has in every grade beginning in kindergarten. What this means is that 40% of the class needs extra assistance, while the other 60% do not. All the children learn and play alongside one another, at mixed tables, but there are two teachers in the room—one of whom is trained in special education—so ideally everyone's needs get met.

Through the process of evaluations and meetings with the school, culminating right before the break, we reached a consensus that Night Owl would learn best in a smaller class with a greater ratio of teachers; her kindergarten CTT class will have 20 students and two teachers, plus an assistant.

Ironically, she has had a terrific year and loved her old classroom. School and learning are fun for her. On the first day, she struggled to print her name correctly, and now she's beginning to write down words, creatively, based on sounds she hears in them. Technically she's up to grade level, but her leaps have required a lot of attention from her teacher and assistant teacher to keep her focused on lessons, as well as three mornings a week of extended day help.

The bureaucratic steps, evaluations, and paperwork leading to this move have been no picnic, as any parent seeking special education services for her child will tell you. As controversial as Pre-K screening may be, it might have helped us to hone in on our daughter's learning and speech difficulties sooner last year—her teachers weren't too concerned, since she was quiet and well-behaved in class. It took us nearly five months, including private evaluations over the summer, to get anI.E.P (Individualized Education Plan), the necessary document to receive the support offered in a CTT classroom.

Since our daughter is excited about the switch, and the services are provided free of charge, my husband and I are ultimately grateful for the opportunities we have within the school. We have heard great things about the teachers and the environment in the CTT classroom. Even though a mid-year switch is less than ideal, Night Owl's ease with the transition so far, as well as the support she'll receive, promise a move in a positive direction.