Festivities

Today I decided to throw the schedule out the window and decorate the classroom instead. All the kids made at least one ornament and I hung them from clothespins on the fishline in the classroom. They look so cute! The room was a huge disaster, but all the first graders helped to clean it up and even though it took an hour longer than I thought it would, we turned on the Christmas music and they had a blast. They are PUMPED for the holidays...and I am, too!

Neel, out of control as usual! I'm quite confident there has never been more gold glitter in one concentrated area.

President

Miss Post: CJ, who is that president on your library book?

CJ: Hameraham Lincoln.

Here and Now

On Thursday, we had the holiday concert. I got upset and told my friend, another teacher, how much I want my own kids. She was confused; I have 27.

On Friday, I told my kids how much I love them. I started to cry and they thought it was funny, in a good way. I think that I will never have another class as wonderful as this one.


"Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life."
--Omar Khayyam

Lucky

Miss Post: Okay, we need to be ready and standing in line in 5...4...

[Malayna does not move from her post in front of me]

Miss Post: Malayna, you need to be in line. 3...2...

Miss Post: Malayna, get in line!

Malayna: I wanna hug you!!

Miss Post: [heart melts...hugs Malayna...loves job].

Obviously

Amulya: Miss Post, my doctor has the same last name as me!

Miss Post: That's cool. Do you know him?

Amulya: Yeah.

Miss Post: How do you know him?

Amulya: He's my doctor!

College Opportunity Friday

The end objective of NHA schools is to make students college-ready. A few weeks ago, we had the the big U of M v. State game and everyone here is a fan of one or the other. We capitalized on the event by taking the opportunity to promote college awareness. The students were allowed to wear shirts from their favorite universities. Nearly every one of my students who dressed for the event wore U of M shirts, but my brother's good friend is a QB for State, so guess who was the odd one out? The kids loved wearing their college shirts and talking about what they want to be when they grow up, the extent of which ranges from police officer to teacher to nurse to astronaut to heart surgeon. Oh the places they'll go!

Drama in the Aquarium

Miss Post: Do you have a pet? How do you take care of your pet?

Amulya: I had eight fish.

Miss Post: Were they nice?

Amulya: Seven were nice, but one was NOT nice!

Miss Post: Really?

Amulya: Yeah, my mom bought him because she thought he looked cute, but actually he turned out to be pretty fat. Once we saw that one fish was just gone one day... but there were some bones at the bottom.

Miss Post: Uh oh. I think I know why the fish was fat.

Amulya: We also had an eel...

Miss Post: WITH your fish?

Amulya: Yeah, it was bad times for the fish!

Harvest Day

As per NHA standards, we don't stray very often from our curriculum, but last week Friday our principal blessed us with an hour to celebrate the autumn season. From 2-3pm on Friday, the first graders rotated classrooms between an activity center in which they decorated treat bags and miniature munchkin pumpkins; Farmer Dale's center in which we invited another teacher's parents to talk about their life as farmers and church butter (which the kids hesitantly tasted); and the snack center in which we had so much food that the kids each took home a sandwich bag of extra snacks and we still had buku left over! All the kids and staff even dressed like farmers (read: WORE JEANS) which of course brought joy to everyone's heart.

How cute are these two?

The kids had a great time and it was so good for them to learn about something outside of the standard objectives. Only four my students said they had ever ridden on a tractor. None of them knew what wheat or soybeans looked like. They were even excited to touch ears of field corn. My favorite anecdote from our Harvest Fest goes like this:

Farmer Dale: Who has a question about the farm?

CJ: How do you make chicken?

Miss Post: Farmer Dale, do you want to field that one?

Farmer Dale: Yeah! Uh... [assorted comments about chickens and eggs]

Maddie: Ooh! I know! You get a chicken, and you shoot it with a bullet and it dies and you take off all the feathers and chop it...and...then you get chicken!

Entire room of adults: [shocked and speechless]

Yikes! Sometimes, you just don't see it coming.

Happy Birthday, Zoe!

Yesterday was my sister Zoe's 17th birthday and we have a message!! Love you.

Happy Birthday, Brady!

Today is my brother's 21st birthday party. This is my class's valiant attempt to wish him a happy one!

First Grade Economics

Miss Post: I have a math headline story for you today. Whose names may I use?

Christian & Aaisha: Me!

Miss Post: OK. Here's the story: "Christian has three muffins. Aaisha has five." You finish the story.

Students: They should have the same.

Miss Post: Well, how could they accomplish that? What would have to happen in order for Christian to have the same number of muffins as Aaisha?

Aaisha: I should eat two of my muffins.

Snack Break

We eat only healthy snacks at NHA. Fortunately, the kids are still happy about snack time every day. Here are some pictures. We are having a GREAT morning!

Welcome to First Grade!

I just finished my first week and first Monday teaching first grade! Here's an update, shared from a recent email to friends:



Just thought I'd update you a bit on first grade... It's going great! I love it and I love my kids. I have about 5 I am concerned about, but the rest seem to be at least mostly at grade level. I have lots of parent helpers. I have enough hand sanitizer to antibacterialize an army. I'm at school late every day (usually manage to leave around 7... tonight maybe 8). So I'm working 12-hour days and I don't even want to THINK about the tiny monetary difference between this and my summer jobs! But I'm very happy with this class and my school and this is right where I belong right now.



Please enjoy the pictures. These kids are too cute for words. They keep me busy! Thanks to everyone who is praying; I need it and I really appreciate it!

Countdown

Tomorrow, I begin my first of ten final days at Chandler Woods.

My heart is sad.

Misunderstanding

Miss Post: Evening is the time between dinner and when you start getting ready for bed. Who has something we can add to our 'evening' section of the chart? What do you do in the evenings?

Student 1: Homework.

Student 2: Play Wii.

Student 3: Play games with my dad.

Miss Post: Those are great. Who else has one? Anna, what do you do in the evenings?

Anna: Pancakes.

Recess Convsersation

Adam: Miss Post, when I grow up, I'm going to be BIBLE MAN!

Miss Post: That's great, Adam, except Bible Man isn't real.

Adam: But the armor of God IS!

Miss Post: That's true, Adam.

Adam: [Pantomimes while explaining] The belt of truth...the breastplate of righteousness...the gospel of peace...the helmet of salvation... AND the shield of faith!

Who Is My Neighbor?

My, it's been so long. I vow to update with many more stories and events, but I had to add this one just for today since it's on my mind.

Today, I introduced the topic of community helpers with the help of my Uncle Jeff, a pilot, who came to visit. (More on that later). Later in the day we were discussing what a community is and how community helpers help those living within the community. We decided that our classroom is a community, as well as our school and our neighborhoods. We even defined our state, our country, and the world as larger communities.

Then, one of my students suggested that God was a community, or maybe part of one. "What do you think?" I asked. I wasn't sure how to respond. I sure wasn't sure what I thought. I wonder, as I believe my students do, Is God ever part of our human community? Does God want to be part of us, to "pitch his tent" among us, as Jewish tradition suggests? Or are we too presumptive, too bold to consider Almighty God, in some ways, as "one of us?" Perhaps we spend a disproportionately low amount of energy on the idea of God as a member, if not the most important one, in every and all of our communities. Perhaps we strive to remember and care for all of our human neighbors and we forget that God shelved his divinity to live as a person for awhile and desires the same commitment to him that we give to others. Or maybe that thought isn't differentiating enough between who is human and who is divine.

So, is God part of our community? Who is my neighbor?

Anecdotes

If I had a nickel for every time my students cracked me up, I'd have my own economic stimulus package. Here are two for your entertainment:


Tysen: [scratching shoulder constantly]

Miss Post: Itch, Tysen?

Tysen: Yeah, I got inzeema.


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Miss Post: I'm going to say a compound word and you tell me what two words are part of it. 'Cupcake.'

Class: Cup; cake.

Miss Post: Mmm, I love cupcakes. Who has a favorite kind of cupcake?

Class: Chocolate! Strawberry! Vanilla!

Alexa: Pumpkin pie.

ValentiMe's Day

We celebrated Valentine's Day on February 13th. The kids were so excited that in the "Good News" beginning of our day, they told me it was ValentiMe's Day at least eight times. I explained that the 13th was the day we were celebrating Valentine's Day, but their declarations of "It's ValentiMe's Day!" continued. They made graphs with candy hearts for math, decorated cookies, and spelled Valentine words using the phonics knowledge they've developed over the course of the year thus far.

The spelling they are able to manage at this is quite impressive. I've often been pleasantly surprised at how much this kindergarten is more like first grade. On the one hand, it's difficult for me because the emphasis on academics is sometimes stronger than I'm comfortable with for five-year-olds, but on the other hand, I know I'm getting valuable experience that would enable me to teach first grade in the future, a prospect that before, I didn't feel I was quite ready for, since first grade is the year students typically learn to read. With varying levels of ability in both classes, it's almost like teaching a K/1st split sometimes, and I enjoy it.

During our Valentine's Day celebration, the kids also made bags in which to collect their Valentines. Then, they lined up in a train and went up and down the rows dropping Valentines in each other's creations. One of my friends didn't have Valentines, but Mrs. Grimm swooped right in and assured her that it was ok; she could still collect Valentines. We quickly decided together that I would sit and make them with her, since Amy had extra cards and I had extra candy. I sat with this little girl as she made her Valentines and I was thankful she could still be part of the celebration.

All in all, it was fun and encouraging to see our students so excited by dressing in pink and red, and Valentine cards and candy. It was a Valentine's Day that did not feel overdone or commercial, just full of the simple joys of giving and receiving little gifts.

100 Day

On Monday, Februrary 9th, it was the kindergarteners' 100th day of school. We made a 100 snack, licked Tootsie Pops 100 times to see if we could get to the middle in 100 licks, made 100-piece Froot Loop necklaces, and counted items and wrote numbers to 100. I even wore a sweater I borrowed from an awesome kindergarten teacher friend with 100 bows on it. At the end of the day, we ate cupcakes with 100s on the them...which I stayed up late making Sunday night with my good friend Carly, who helped expedite the process considerably. Bless her heart for frosting all of those with me! It was a busy day, but the kids sure had fun!

Meet My Kids!

They're precious! See photos at right. AM is currently posted, and I will add PM soon.

*PM now added.

Miss Post's First Post

Well, the original plan was to post on my very first day of student teaching, but the third day will have to suffice because it's the first opportunity I've had!

My first day at Chandler Woods was wonderful. I am student teaching AM and PM kindergarten with Mrs. Grimm at this small, National Heritage Academies school where parent involvement is high and students come mostly from supportive families. I have 21 very busy students in the morning and 16 more in the afternoon. Our morning class is talkative and energetic; the five extra students make a difference. In the afternoon, we have only six girls. When you're talking about five and six-year-olds, it makes a difference whether they're girls or boys!

On Day 1, I took the kids' pictures so I could learn their names. The girls I had down right away, but I am just getting there with the boys. I have three Madisons (all spelled the same; all go by Madison) and three Johns (all spelled the same; one goes by Johnny). I also presented each child with a bracelet I bought when I was in Mexico last month, which many of the kids promptly returned to me for un-knotting.

I had the chance to read individually with each child in my afternoon class on Day 1. We read their recent phonics book, "Ben is Ten." Here is a conversation I had with Samuel when we were reading together:

Miss Post: Have you read this book before?
Samuel: Yes.
Miss Post: Do you remember what it's called?
Samuel: Ben is Ten.
Miss Post. You're right. Do you know anyone who's ten?
Samuel: Yes.
Miss Post: Oh really? Who do you know that's ten?
Samuel: ...Ben.

This is just one of the many reasons I love kindergarten. I'm so excited to be in this classroom. I am, however, greatly concerned regarding the mountain of Calvin assignments I received last night that need to be completed on top of the actual teaching. Please keep my students, my teacher Mrs. Grimm, and me in your prayers these next few months...and follow along! More good things to come.