The little girls still like to wear dresses and tights. And sure, some things have changed since my husband and I were kids. The kindergartners are learning to write in the D'Nealian style. Their classroom has computers and its own bathroom. School lunches contain more packaged foods and are no longer cooked at the school.
Handouts are Xeroxed instead of mimeographed.
It is riding the bus, though, that clinches for us what it means to be a kid, and we were relieved to learn that Helen is having an experience similar to our own. On her bus, the big kids still sit in the back. A couple of bigger girls still look out for the little kids. Choosing where and with whom to sit is still a matter of great importance. And, most importantly, the kids still sing songs and recite poems in which bodily fluids and functions figure prominently.