Graphing names... working together... having fun...

Using letter cards, my students created a graph to find out who had the longest name and who had the shortest. Looking through baggies full of mixed alphabet cards was no easy feat. I smiled as I encouraged them to help each other and watched their cooperation. I sincerely have a lovely group of students this year.

Tomorrow is our Grandparents' Day celebration and I am happy to say my children know their song, have made a book, decorated a lovely card and even made yummy cupcakes. I'm off to write our weekly newsletter, turn painted coffee filters into flowers and other such fun... Tonight and always know that you are a gift from God to this world. You are a blessing. I wish you good things.. I wish you peace...

We cracked an egg...

I have eleven new dear ones. School has been in session a week now and as I get ready for the coming days ahead, I smile. I sincerely like my new students; they are nice little people. This past Friday as we worked together, cooking for the first time, I stopped to snap a few photos. In the calm of the moment I was struck by how very wonderful it is to teach small children. Joy... true joy... all from cracking eggs and half a blueberry muffin...

Tomorrow we welcome our new pet, a lovely blue beta fish. We'll vote on what to call him and begin our final preparations for this Friday's Grandparents' Day celebration... I am so glad to be a teacher.

I pray that your week is one of peace. I wish you only good things. May you be blessed.

Back to the routine... not a bad thing...

With laughter my students and I welcomed our new year. We did "Calendar" time and happily talked about the different year that was now posted. We read poems and sang our alphabet backwards... just for fun.

I also introduced a new center during Welcome Time where my students can use http://www.starfall.com/, an amazing reading site. It was delightful to hear them exclaim when they realized they knew how to spell and read so many "word family" words. If you have a young child who is learning to read, or know one who is, may I suggest checking out this effective and ad free site.

I will not pretend that my students didn't need to be reminded of a few policies or that they were not tired in the afternoon. However, I was very proud of their first day back. Tomorrow will likely be a challenge, as they will still be tired and the novelty of being back may have worn off. Like anyone, small people often chafe under the restraints of routine after a "break". However, I know that they, like the rest of us, truly crave the safety and comfort of the normal day to day.

Curling up on the couch watching "nothing exciting" with my kids, doing a "normal" phonics game, even walking my dog down the same path everyday. The familiar makes me smile. Like friends we have known forever and mac and cheese, the days that hold "no surprises" are not unpleasant.

So today,

I give thanks

for PB&J,

Coffee with cream and sugar,

infomercials,

comfortable jeans

and my dear ones who always love me.

Life is good.

May your night,

your days...

your forever

be blessed with normality.

May you find comfort

and just enough adventure to make your path all it is meant to be.

Good night my friends.

=-)

Goldfish Bingo!

I sit with a tummy full of coffee

and a satisfied grin on my face.

The dear ones were "wrangled" today.

(insert chuckle here)

With clothes pins inscribed with each name

and a cardboard chart,

a new way of life was explained.

Each half of the day ends with a bit of playtime.

The catch is,

it has to be earned.

(insert another chuckle here)

If a student feels uncooperative,

that is certainly their choice.

They can just "practice" listening later.

With a matter of fact attitude,

the new plan was unveiled and put into place.

My smile...

enough said...

Happy thoughts of the best educational atmosphere available

are dancing in my head.

...my little laugh?

...probably a bit too pleased...

Now and always,

may you be equal to the tasks before you.

If you find a situation to be a bit rough,

think it out...

talk it out...

plan your move...

May you be blessed.

=-)

(oh... the picture?... a wonderfully fun Bingo Addition game complete with goldfish cracker markers... I do love those little critters)

I love them...

Sigh...

Do you see my little Kindergarten kiddo?

His happy smile?

His sticker encrusted face?

Each of those stickers was earned...

He read sight words...

He identified words that began with certain letters...

He even worked on one to one correspondence and Spanish!

sigh...

My students have so much energy,

they are like bitty force fields of pure life,

lived to its fullest.

Joy...

the ability to embrace each moment...

and grow a little each day...

I wish you these things,

good things...

blessings...

May you live as a Kindergarten child does,

fully...

with love in your heart.

Now and always,

may you be blessed!

The night before Kindergarten

With my Red Communication Folders stacked,

activites gathered

and my alarm set for before sunrise,

I am headed to bed.

Two of my own children start school tomorrow as well.

Lunches,

supplies,

clothes to get ready...

Hang on,

the merry-go-round is about to twirl!

With a bit of a tremble

and a smile in my heart,

I'll jump into the new year.

May the coming season,

the new days before us,

bring new experiences

as well as a wonderful sense of comfort

when the traditions of years past are relived!

Now and always,

May you be blessed!

Just Playing

Today was such a wonderful day.
My students are such very nice little people.
If I had to describe our day in two words,
I'd say it was,
"busy"
and
"happy"!
We sang the chorus of our Grandparents' Day song for our principal
and our new afternoon Kindergarten teacher.
We even did the "dance"...
and yup...
it was all caught on tape...
And
"no"...
I don't have a great deal of dancing talent!
It didn't matter,
we had a wonderful time showing off anyway.
We painted "Friendly Fish"
to display in our Gallery.
Watch out Columbus Museum of Art,
we have free admission every weekday!
You just have to know one of our fine artists.
My smart,
endearing kiddos
even differentiated between uppercase and lowercase letters
on an alphabet sheet.
We took the time to meet our pets...
(Some even snuck their hands in the cages when the teacher wasn't looking!)
and ended our day by playing with puppets!
Through it all,
we also are becoming a group.
My dear ones are learning the expectations
and enjoying the privileges that come from good listening.
I sincerely can't wait until all of our class is together on Monday!

Giant Cookies!

Oh how I adore my new kiddos!
See the cookies they made for their Meet the Teacher Night?
The mixed them up all by themselves;
everyone had a bowl!
They also made their first class book
and I hung up the giant "Welcome" sign they made.

I can hardly wait for my families to arrive.
In the care of a crew leader,
while their parents meet with me,
my students will decorate their free choice journals
and ice cookies for their parents' snack.
They are such very nice children,
I am so excited to share this year with them.

amazing gadgets and gizmos...

Today after downloading some software from the Internet

and trying all manner of crazy computer nonsense,

I finally am able to take pictures with my phone

and transfer them directly to my computer.

My little brother and I worked for quite a while

figuring out the snafu's

that were holding up the process.

This new discovery couldn't have come at a better time as Transition Week started today at school and I took pictures of my children to post to my classroom blog. My regular digital camera has been "loved" a bit too much and is trying to die.

I would have been extremely inconvenienced if it were to stop working and I didn't have another way to document the adventures of my new students.

Today's meeting...

our two hours together...

Left me with a smile and a sigh...

I am going to really enjoy getting to know my new little people.

What fun to teach them...

guide them...

explore the world anew through their eyes.

I wish you could have been there,

as they questioned me,

told me stories...

collected stickers...

started to become mine.

Sigh...

May you and I have strength

for the tasks set before us

and may we rise to the the occasions

that we are fortunate to meet.

Now and always,

may you be blessed!

Pigs

From childhood tales of friendship and loyalty,

to modern day fairy tales like Babe,

there is something about pigs that captures the imagination.

A dear student of mine has requested to learn about these fascinating creatures.

So, learn we shall!

From why they like mud,

to what they like to eat.

We'll work hard to find out all we can discover together.

I smile when I think of the dot to dots, the "pig" sight word games and even a "pig" art project that will take place.

We will meet our standards and fulfill a wish at the same time.

The thought of the week makes my heart sigh.

Innocent curiosity and pleasure.

Mud and slop...

Smelly and dirty

or washed in buttermilk waiting for the fair judges...

The little one who requested knowledge of pigs will be so happy.

His classmates will enjoy the fun as well.

I am so sincerely blessed to be a teacher.

May the week before you,

the events yet to unfold,

be moments that touch your heart.

I pray that whatever you face,

that there will be some innocent pleasure

to bring you peace.

May you be blessed.

Differentiated Homework

I sit here typing with a smile on my face and a very impatient pup.

I'm smiling because I have just finished packing up my homework folders for the week.

My dog is disturbed because my bed has been covered all day with homework materials, center activities, take home books, card stock clocks and even little baggies of math manipulatives.

Homework takes a long time to assemble as I have different phonics, flash cards and take home books for different students. This means I also have different parent letters, question sets and book descriptions. It is so satisfying to find the perfect alphabet cards to reach the ones working on letter recognition as well as to work with the parents of a very advanced student to find books to challenge and entertain their little one.

I find that I'm always thinking happily about how to reach my students. How to find activities that challenge them and help them love learning. This means that teacher stores and the "One Spot" at Target are my downfall. How can I walk past the coveted packs of gel pens and not pick up a few for my little ones? How can I see snowman tattoos and Kindergartner's are #1 pencils and not buy eighteen?

I feel an awesome responsibility towards these little ones in my care. Teaching is the most difficult job I have ever had and the one that feels the most natural to me as well.

Everyday I blessed with the opportunity to grow as a professional. To learn better ways to teach, to find excellent activities and add to my growing "bag of tricks" that lead to an orderly classroom.

I love teaching. It is such a blessing to be able to lead small people in such an important way. I am humbled by their love and their desire to learn.

May you be equal to whatever it is you need to do. May you find happiness in the tasks set before you, in the people you serve and in the daily blessings that come your way.

Wishing you only happy things!

Shaving cream fun!

As I sit here writing lesson plans, I muse over the crazy activities my kids will be doing this week.

I know they'll like writing words in shaving cream, growing Sea Monkeys and identifying letters to win prizes!

I'm also just as sure they'd rather croak than practice their handwriting and that they will make me a little crazy when they flip the lights off in the bathroom a zillion times.

I think about how excited they'll be on our field trip and hope that "Fireman Dave" still has an open presentation slot for us.

I hope they like our new poem and that by the end of the week everyone will be a little closer to knowing their phone numbers and addresses.

Don't get me started on all the Halloween stuff I've bought for them... and please don't make me admit that I actually bought all three of the Peanuts holiday specials... scary... very scary...

Running and rhyming

This morning in my never ending attempt to keep my Kindergarten kiddos learning and having a good time too, I invented a silly game.

I drew four simple pictures: a pig, a star, a mop and a cat and taped one on each wall of our gym.

Then I told the kids that I wasn't, "Ms. Susan", instead I was a Super Amazing Tricker who was going to "catch" anyone who couldn't rhyme.

Next, I read a word and told the kids they needed to run to the picture that rhymed with the word I had just spoken.

With laughs of glee they ran while I pretended to catch them.

We played the game for ten minutes or so. Not very long in the whole scheme of life. But, I hope long enough to reinforce the concept of rhyming and to plant a happy memory of learning in their hearts that will stay with them.

Kindergarten... I'm tired... they're crazy... but I am so happy to teach them.

Field Trip!

I survived my first field trip! It was even fun. We picked apples! I even got to pick some myself. The kids had a wonderful time and were well behaved. No one got lost. No litigation resulted! Hey that's success isn't it?
:-)

Sick....

If possible stay at least ten feet away from people with a stomach virus.

In fact after reading my post, you should probably say a prayer, gargle with Listerine and find some garlic to tie around your neck!

I ended up having to take my lesson plans to school and then return home.

Being sick and working is never any fun. But when you teach kiddos, you feel like you MUST be there. (I don't hear any extra ego... so stop snickering!)

You want to know how they did at your lessons, if they behaved and if anything interesting happened. You actually miss them.

It is strange how quickly I have come to really care for the little people in my class. I want them to learn and grow, I feel the responsibility I have and I am both awed and a little frightened.

I love being a teacher...

Now if only someone could have got the memo that I don't have time to be sick!

I'm headed back to bed. More rest. More applesauce and bananas. Yum...

As for you... don't forget those prayers, Listerine and garlic!

"Squirrels"

This week my Kindergarten kids practiced a fall poem entitled Gray Squirrel. You should have seen them as one would pretend to be a squirrel while others were the nasty "winter wind" waiting to catch the squirrel unaware lest he (or she) decide to play instead of collecting nuts!

Kindergarten is such a lovely grade to teach because "fun" activities can be used to teach required standards. In Kindergarten, children must learn to role play, speak clearly and cooperate. Acting out the poem practiced all these skills. Additionally, in order to make their own set of ears, the children had to color and cut. Each of these skills are standards that must be taught. Can you think of anything more delightful?

Teaching these little ones is certainly a challenge. With short attention spans and a craving for routine, lesson plans must be consistent and creative. I am both exhausted and very happy. I hope you are all fairing as well.