Wednesday, 4/3/13

Before spring break, we began a chapter in math about counting money. It is certainly not an easy an concept to pick up, but I've been very impressed with how well the kids have been doing. Unfortuanately, the chapter is only 5 lessons long so almost as quickly as we've begun the chapter, we're already taking the test.  As I've been teaching the technical skill of knowing coin values and counting coins, I've also snuck in some info about the little details that make American money so cool. Somewhere in the conversation we talked about money from different countries, and many of the kids said that they have coins at home from other countries. On Friday, with permission from their parents, some will be bringing those coins in. I have a great book that tells the process of how our coins are minted, so it should be a fun day of learning and exploring various facets of coins while also reviewing how to count the little buggers.

Tuesday, 4/2/13

Hi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Welcome back! I hope you all had a wonderful spring break and, if you celebrate, a lovely Easter and/or Passover!! As you might have been able to tell from my Friday-before-break post, I DESPERATELY needed time to rest and relax. Luckily, that's just what I got, and I'm back better than ever. It's 4th quarter, and I'm ready to conquer!!

I think I dodged a bullet when the district decided to give us the Monday after Easter, aka April 1st, off to compensate for Good Friday having fallen during spring break. Awhile ago some of my little ladies told me that they already knew what they were going to do to me for April Fool's--I proudly told them that we didn't have school on that day! (the HA was implied!!Lol!!) Of course, within a second of thinking they, as they often do, had a smart retort for me---that they didn't care, they'd just do it on April 2nd. Well, it's April 2nd, and knock on wood, I've escaped prank free.....  Now, those of you who may be parents of little ladies, remember, we're in this together, so don't be telling them tonight about their little plan that they've now forgotten. You're on my team.....my side......TEAM GROWN-UP, REMEMBER?????? Have my back!!! I know I can count on you!!  ;)

My parents came in town for Easter and aren't leaving until tomorrow, so I convinced them to come visit our class for a little while this morning. They've only come to school a handful of times in the past, so I think it was fun for them to see this group of kids I always talk about and watch how school runs "nowadays." I can't wait to go home and hear what they thought. It was their first time seeing a Smartboard in action. My dad is an electrical engineer (retired) so he was quite into seeing how it operated within the classroom. I'm surprised he didn't jump up and take over. My mom is the one who just plain adores the kids, and I heard her many times pipe in to talk to them. It was cute. One of those experiences I'll always hold in my heart. <3

Friday, 3/22/13

HAVE AN AMAZING, RESTFUL, PEACEFUL and CALM SPRING BREAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday, 3/21/13

Happy Kids Teach Too day!!!!!!!!!!!!! This morning nearly 60 of Benson's students assembled in the gym, set up displays and taught their peers and many, many adults about a topic of their choosing. It was UH-MAY-ZING!!! The kids (ages ranging from Kindergarten to second grade) chose a topic and created a display at home, then brought it in and when the event began----- had many people stop at their displays, at which time they educated each about their topic. Topics ranged from hip-hop dance to bugs to making slime to playing guitar...I could go on and on. The topics were as diverse as the children, and the level of the kids' knowledge was beyond any and all expectation. It is so fun to work in a primary building and see the kids, who by many are considered "too little," consistently rise up to any bar they are given. Never underestimate the power of the wee ones!!

It was a great day!  And on a related note--the parent volunteers who went around and spoke to the children and made up pages full of positive, meaningful, personalized comments were also uh-may-zing!! The event has become a well-oiled machine, and it is so special to me to sit back and observe the preparations all come to life.

Get a load of these cute little geniuses:



E embodying her intelligence about the Cheyenne

A and T rocking out on their guitars

J wowing with his number knowledge

G and R floating wisdom on swimming

Wednesday, 3/20/13

Happy First Day of Spring-----which feels like the first day of winter!  Good gravy it's cold out today. And it's probably more of a mental thing that makes it feel so cold. I ran to the post office at lunch and was thinking how, were this a January day, I'd love that the sun was shining but because it's the first day of spring---it's just COLD!! I'm over it and done, let's move on!

Today we had a very successful Character Counts assembly. It's always so sweet to have the whole student population in the gym. I get to lead them in the Pledge of Allegiance, which often chokes me up--hearing their little voices making that declaration to this great country. Then a few kids read some of their writing about the pillar of the month, and then we dance! Quick and effective! I've been running these assemblies for 13 years now, and while I often wonder if I should do something to change it up, I'm always told "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," so I don't. =)

Tomorrow is Kids Teach Too!! I'm so excited! We have a ton of kids signed up. There are many things that I am proud of in my career, but this is one of the biggies. We used to do something that was sponsored by Com Ed, but when they stopped their sponsorship, I worked with an IEPTO mom to completely revamp and what resulted was Kids Teach Too. I love seeing the kids' work and their pride in teaching others what they've prepared. It's really super duper cute and cool!

Til tomorrow..... stay warm. :/

Tuesday, 3/19/13

Tomorrow is our Citizenship assembly for Character Counts. In reading over what the kids wrote in preparation, I was amazed at how far their writing has come. I guess it's really starting to sink in that we are in the final days of third quarter and then it's only a matter of a very short time before my second graders become third graders. This has been an active, spirited year, but nonetheless, I definitely think that they will be ready for the move to Franzen. I wouldn't be doing my duty to the kids if I didn't metnion that they will be ready for the move if they continue to work and review the skills they learned all summer. And prepare yourself, because I will soon become a broken record regarding this topic. The summer months are a long time for the brain to not regroup, to not read, to not write and spell properly-----and it will kill me if all of the hard work that has been done all year ulitmately reverses or stalls out because of the summer. You won't do that to me though, right??? RIGHT???? =)

No answer? I'll take that as a "You're right Ms. Mitchell. We'll keep the kids working on school skills all summer!!"

Lol! Have a great night!

Monday, 3/18/13

After all I wrote on Friday, I don't have much to report on today. Apparently we are an all or nothing class. We had an "all" day on Friday and today was a "nothing." Well, let me be clear, not completely nothing---just completely normal. As I was complaining that I didn't have much to write, the kids let me know that I had a lot to write about---and then they started showing their personalities (aka--I could write about them!!). I figured out that I'd let a genie out of the bottle and now I'm seeing it.....I've told them all year how great and important it is to be different and "weird" and be true to themselves. Now, when I least expect it----they declare, "I'm weird" as proud as peacocks. In all honesty, it makes me soooo proud!! Personally I embrace my inner-weirdness (if you read my blog frequently, this comes as no surprise) and it allows me to see life in a fun and funny way, and that's one of my dreams for my kids. They need to be serious and studious and level-headed, but they also need to see the benefit of finding a happy medium and a time for silly, for left-of-center and for laughter!  I do my best to provide them with a healthy balance of those life traits, and in all honesty I love seeing them proud to be their silly, random, self-proclaiming "weird" selves-----themselves. If I could fast-forward and see the future, I would hope to see them continue to embrace and find strength in those attributes. There may come a time when others try to diminish those traits, and I hope to plant a seed that lets them know that those are the traits they should rise and be proud of. Stand up in who you are, let your colors shine---every single one of them: the light, the dark, the pastel, the bright, the dull and shiny-----every single one of them is necessary and vital to being who you are!

Okay---this took a bit of an odd turn, but I kind of like my stream-of-consciousness for a random Monday.