Tears, Fears and New Gear Mark 1st Day of School

Filled with nervous energy and clad in the latest fashions, youngsters across Ventura County headed back to school Tuesday, blessed with cool weather and--in some cases--smaller classes.

Although the new school year has been underway for days at some county districts, Tuesday was the first day of classes for students in Simi Valley, Ojai and Ventura.

At the new Wood Ranch Elementary School in Simi Valley, a class of kindergartners acknowledged to their principal that they were nervous about starting school, only to learn that she felt the same way.

“How many people had butterflies in their tummy this morning?” Principal Karyn Cryster asked Marla Gagnon’s kindergarten class.

Nearly every hand flew up.

“Me too,” Cryster told the group. “Because we’re all at a new school.”

Combine the nervous energy of new students, parents and teachers, and it’s tough to tell who was most anxious.

“There’s probably more tears on the parents’ part than on the kids’ part,” Gagnon said.

Only one of her students cried as parents dropped off the kids. But it didn’t take long before all tears had vanished. The class spent the day learning names, reading stories, playing games and assembling puzzles.

“Kindergarten is fun,” said 5-year-old Saba Ahmed as she played with her new classmates. “People play and we have fun and we meet new friends.”

Although fun, it was all a little tiring for Melissa Edelson, who said she was exhausted just getting ready for school. After all, she did have to make her bed, get dressed, brush her teeth and eat breakfast.

“That’s a big job,” the 5-year-old said. “I’ve been tired all morning.”

Wood Ranch has an optional uniform policy, which about half the students chose to follow Tuesday.

In Ventura, youngsters at Junipero Serra Elementary were anxious to show off new clothes and rekindle old friendships. Fifth-grader Lauren Woods arrived at school sporting new jeans and tennis shoes and a new top that looked like something Sporty Spice would wear.

“I was actually really excited to get back to school,” the 10-year-old said. “It’s been great seeing some of my best friends again.”

Although Tuesday may have been a reunion of sorts for the kids, it served another purpose for their teachers.

“The first day of school is all about setting down the rules,” said Greg Harrison, who teaches fourth grade at Serra Elementary. “It’s also about letting the kids get to know one another.”

For Serra Principal Dan Munday, the day was exciting for yet another reason: It was the first day the state’s class-size reduction program had been expanded to include kindergartners through third-graders. Classes in those grade levels must contain no more than 20 students.

“There will be more teacher-student interaction,” Munday predicted.

The day was not without a few glitches. When the bell system failed at Matilija Junior High in Ojai, Principal Brenda Knight grabbed a cowbell and began ringing it.

“It was our only problem in an otherwise good first day,” Knight said.

At Nordhoff High School in Ojai, classes got off to a cool start because air conditioning had been added to two more of the school’s wings, Principal Jack Smith said. Workers were also putting finishing touches on new restrooms, fixing the sprinkler system and refurbishing the science wing at the school.

Meanwhile, construction continued at Wood Ranch Elementary. Trees were being planted in the main courtyard and workers prepared to pour cement in the front of the school.

Although all the finishing touches are scheduled to be completed by the end of the month, some parents griped Tuesday that the school was not yet finished. Consequently, special attention was paid to the safety of the 602 students, with more campus supervisors on hand to shuttle the kids in and out of classrooms.

That seemed to ease the minds of most parents.

“Like any project, it ran overtime. I’m not surprised,” said Maria Krasnigor, whose two children are Wood Ranch students. “It’s going to take awhile for everything to gel.”

School is scheduled to begin today for students in Moorpark Unified and Santa Paula Union school districts.

Tamaki is a Times staff writer and Hamm is a reporter for Times Community News.