The last day of school

Today was the last day of school for my class this year. It was a hard day. This class has been the best class I have ever taught and maybe I did my best teaching ever with them. In any case, I am so proud of the progress they all made and it was really hard to say goodbye to them. In the past, I said goodbye, but in reality, I still saw most of them almost everyday as they made their way in first and second grade. This year that won’t be happening, because I am changing schools. It seemed more final.

I’ve had parents show me appreciation before as well, but this year, I got page long letters from parents that just seemed to touch me more than I remember any doing before. At the end of the day, when the kids were gone, I sat down and read some of the notes and it really made me remember why I teach.

On Being Human

Student (out of the blue): “I’m a human.”

I said, “And what’s your point?”

Student: “I’m a human.”

I repeated, “What’s your point?”

“I’m a human.”

“I know that, WHAT”S YOUR POINT?”

Student: I don’t know what my point is, but I”m a human…..”

New School Year

I don’t finish this school year until this weekend, but my mind is already thinking about the beginning of next year. I’m changing schools within my district, but still will be teaching full day kindergarten. I haven’t had a chance to really get over to the new (to me) school and see what I have for supplies, and furnishings. I thought I would dedicate the next few posts to getting the room set up and ready. I want to outline here what I want to have in place for the new year.

One of things I started doing 3 years ago is to take pictures of each of the kids on their first day of school. I then have two sheets of wallet size photos made. I always carry my digital camera to school, and what seems to work well for me is to send the pictures over the internet to Walgreen’s, my local drug store. I do this throughout the year as new students move in as well.

One of the things I use the pictures for, is an interactive seating chart. I get some of these self adhesive

magnetic business card backs (at Office Max ) and attach one of the pictures and an address label with the student’s name on it to the card. I usually make at least two of these for each student. One for the seating chart, and one for the job board. Our marker boards (chalk boards )are all magnetic, so I usually use them more for displays than writing with markers.

The magnet cards end up looking something like this. I put clear tape over the names to keep them nice.

Gross things……. apparently…..

Today, the kids were working on some seatwork with some sight words, one of the words was “pretty”. This one little girl came up and asked me what the word was. I told her it was “pretty”. She said, “I’m going to write Mr. B is pretty.” I said, “I’m not pretty, I’m handsome.” So she said, “Then I will write that Mrs. B is pretty…” I said, “That’s one of the reasons I married her.” All the kids said, “EEwwww!!!!!!”

This whole idea of marriage, kissing, romance is just too gross for 5 year olds……

Except for the little boy and girl I caught under the table the other day…..

Which is of course why I like reading them books like “The Barking Mouse” so much….. the why, not being the kids under the table, but them thinking it’s gross.

I was reading on another Kindergarten Blog

He’s talking about a book called The Shame of the Nation subtitled The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America by Jonathan Kozol

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND

Kozol is critical, too, of the reforms brought on by No Child Left Behind. He doesn’t mince words:

“Turning six year olds into examination soldiers will not change this [the gap between rich schools and poor schools]. Denying eight year-olds their time for play at recess will not change this. What these policies and practices will do, what they are doing now, is expand the vast divide between two separate worlds of future cognitive activity, political sagacity, social health and economic status, while they undermine the capability of children of minorities to thrive with confidence and satisfaction in the mainstream of American society.

‘I went to Washington to challenge to soft bigotry of low expectations,’ the president said again in his campaign for reelection in September 2004. ‘It’s working. It’s making a difference.’ It is one of those deadly lies which, by sheer repetition, is at length accepted by large numbers of Americans as, perhaps, a rough approximation of the truth. But it is not the truth, and it is not an innocent misstatement of the facts. It is a devious appeasement of the heartache of the parents of the black and brown and poor and, if it is not forcefully resisted and denounced, it is going to lead our nation even further in a perilous direction.”

You can read his whole book review here

Phonics…

This one boy is  s l o w l y sounding out a word:

“Ch…a…”

The girl next to him glances at it and says, ” That’s chain.”

He starts over, “Ch… ay…nnn, (pause) I’m smart.”

She says, “Only because I TOLD you……”