She's all about the fun....

A parent tracked me down at the end of the day... and instantly my thoughts streamed to what happened throughout the day to make sure they were approaching in a non-threatening, pointing fingers kind of way. If you are a teacher, I know you know what I mean. Teachers, out of habit of constantly self-reflecting, we tend to read into minor details and we know anything we say or do in class will get repeated at home (the good, the bad, and the ugly.) Luckily for me it was the good!

The parent comes into the classroom and begins by saying I don't know if I should tell you this but...

(At this point, I am so intrigued that of course I need to know what was said, and what incriminating evidence was shared at home that would warrant the parent coming to see me.) 

So the parent precedes to tell me how her daughter came home singing a song one of the other students shared during our closing crew circle. I need to mention this is song I wish they wouldn't ever sing and deserved a reprimand behind the scenes. (Closing crew is a time to share, remember about our day and to be just plain silly sometimes, it helps us become closer.) Apparently, her daughter was singing the song, over and over again at the top of her lungs. Finally, it started to get on the nerves of her family and her mom asked "where did you learn that song?"

      Student A responded nonchalantly,  "I learned it at school during closing crew." 

      "Oh, was Miss W. ok with that song? Did she say anything to the student who was singing it?"

      "No! Mom, Miss W. is all about the fun! She wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings."

I am so grateful that this parent shared this story with me. It was just a tad bit embarrassing, but it made my day to have one of my students know that school should be fun and most of all, I would never purposefully be mean to anyone. Sometimes as a teacher, you have to correct behavior and you always wonder how students are taking the corrections. Apparently, this student is taking it in stride!

Kids make my day!

Hello there stranger!

So I know it has been a while since I have posted anything and I plan on being much better about updating my blog! My goal is 3 to 5 times a week, highlighting the ups and downs of teaching and anything that I find that has helped teach different concepts. Now that obligatory phrase was mentioned, here I go!

Life flies by and in a moments notice you can be turned around, flipped on your head and right yourself once more. Maybe that doesn't make sense, but life doesn't make sense. 

One of the reasons why I love teaching is because of... you guessed it the money! Ha! If only that was the case. I never thought my favorite part of going to school day to day is the belly laugh of 25 students. The best thing is when they can make me laugh so hard I start to cry. 

Today was one of those days. I was tired, drained, frustrated (not at my students, at myself because I haven't seen as much progress in my students this year as last year and as a teacher you ultimately fault yourself a hundred-fold before even pointing a finger at someone else) and just plain tired... until one of my fist grade girls was read me one of her creative stories and accidentally nudged my nose with her pencil. I, being one for dramatics, decided to go with it to get the others students out of their funk. I preceded to fake an injury, this started a roll of belly laughs. Amazingly, my students took it in stride and just continued on with their work. 

Sometimes laughing is the answer. 

What I really want to know is it possible to skip without smiling? I would like someone to try it and get back to me. I think I am going to do it with my class tomorrow. 

Booger Pickers, Booger Pickers, Please No More!

I don’t know if I have ever gone a year without having “gold miners” in my classroom. I have the full spectrum of booger pickers in my room. If you are a teacher or a parent I am sure you know what I mean.  If I forget a kind let me know and I will make sure I add it to my list.

Sneaky Picker- This is the kid who has their back to you, so they think you don’t know what they are doing.

Nose-Cover Picker- This is the kid that remains great eye contact with you, but will ever so slowly use one hand to cover the nose and use the other finger to go for it.

Head In Their Lap Picker- This is the kid who puts their face in their laps and then proceeds to pick it.

Backpack Picker- This is the kid who pretends to go their backpacks to get something out, but really just trying to hide the fact they are picking their nose.

I am not ashamed picker- This is the kid who isn’t afraid to pick it, look at it and then eat in front of you.

I am sure there are more, but in my classroom these are the most common of them all. What do you do when you got so much picking going on?

At the beginning of the year we talk about germs a lot! From hand washing to covering your sneeze to blowing your nose, we try to cover all of our bases.

I make my kids sign a no picking booger contract and I hang it in my room all year long. The contract says, “I promise I will never pick my nose!” Then I make all my students sign it. So when my class becomes forgetful (especially in the winter) I revisit the contract and review.

Am I the only one with this problem?