Aaand we're off...

 

 First Day picture outside the house, no, outside her school, no, wait...

Underneath those demure jumpers are P.E. students ready to rock...

Lesson that made the biggest impression on day one: "You know, this really surprised me, Mommy, but I guess I never thought about it, and once I heard it, it made sense: Even MICHAEL PHELPS can't go swimming in the pool alone!"

There is enthusiasm about the prospect of merit badges/ribbons for mastering swimming skills (thank goodness, since she has resisted swimming lessons heretofore). First ribbon earned today: "I know the school swimming rules!"

 "What about me?!"

Sorry, Al, your first-day-of-new-preschool pics from two weeks ago:

 

(Note: Sign behind her does not refer to her school -- she's not in pre-K yet -- but entrance IS to her preschool, which IS in the basement of our building.)

Alice is being introduced to the letter "A" and the concept "apple" for what must be the fifth time in her already-long preschool career. I'd humbly suggest that apple lessons are rather overrepresented in the American preschool curriculum, particularly in week 1.

As for that new history teacher, word on the street (or in honors biology, where the history teacher has a spy) is that "She's tough! But she really knows her stuff!" Evidently she fooled them twice over.