Children do not grow by handoff; they grow by letting go slowly. Your presence in your child's learning world is not supposed to end at the school door. It fades gently, from full participation, to partnership with the teacher, to quiet contribution, so that by third grade you are the one steady adult in a world of changing teachers and new buildings. You are not a visitor to your child's education. You are the soil it grows in. The teacher changes every year; you remain. Before school starts, ask the teacher one question: "How can I be present in the building this year?" Even one morning a month changes how the whole year goes.