Graduation Party

Michael’s classmates had been very kind to him throughout the year. We wanted to have a party to celebrate their graduation! Although we would have loved to have the whole class, having a backyard pool made it important for us to keep the numbers of guests under control.

I asked his aides at school to tell me who genuinely loved spending time with Michael and I made sure those kids were on the list. I also invited kids I knew from previous years and kids who volunteered for his circle of friends at school.

One extra step I wish I had taken…I share so you can learn from my mistake…is asking the classroom teacher to look over the list.  I accidentally left out one little girl who was in  a close friend group.  All the other girls in the group were invited, but she was not. To this day, I feel badly about this. I’m sure she is well and truly over it, but it sticks with me because I never want to make anyone feel left out.

Party Invite List

So, if you’re throwing a party at home, and your child can’t tell you who they’d like to invite,

1. ask the aides who likes and hangs out with your kid
2. include kids from previous classes who have been kind
3. and then ask the current classroom teacher to give it a look to see if he or she might include anyone else in addition.

Then, you should be covered in terms of including everyone who will care.