Clingy.

"Affection is responsible for nine-tenths of whatever solid and durable happiness there is in our lives." - C.S. Lewis

As I prepare for my last day with my sprouts tomorrow, this quote from the author of The Narnia Chronicles, has stuck in my head like a jingle. Something happens the last few weeks in kindergarten… it didn’t happen when I taught second grade, and I suspect it doesn’t happen in most other grades, my students, all of them, become incredibly clingy.

Maybe it’s all the talk of ‘becoming a first grader’ or just the simple realization the end of our precious time together is near, but my itty bitty friends become, what my mother would refer to as, ‘Velcro puppies’.

The funny thing is, while they are hanging off me at every second possible, I’m finding myself feeling the same way. When they line up at Quiet Time to give me a hug, I’m squeezing them back with just a little more gusto. Grown men can be tenacious too.

There’s another powerful quote about teaching from Carol Buchner – ‘They may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel.” I think it’s the same for teachers. As I look back on the year, it’s not the benchmarks, data, and test results I’ll remember (for the record, they were good), it’s the affection. The love. The way they made me feel.

Graduation Reflections.

Yesterday was our kindergarten graduation. Always a bittersweet day, here some highlights.

• There's nothing much cuter than new dresses and new dress shirts on kindergartners.

• Practicing our songs in the morning, a certain kindergarten teacher had a mini panic attack when the entire class forgot the second verse of 'Rags' - a song we've sung all year long.

• When you realize that every other class is having some sort of celebration around the same time as yours, don't worry about parking... Just email all parents and ask them to take said parking chaos into consideration.

• Realize when your female teaching partner comes back from changing into a dress, a little boy saying, "You look like a cow!" is probably not a good thing... For the record, her dress was black and white - prompting the comment.

• When you emerge from the bathroom wearing a dress shirt and khaki pants and every child swarms to tell you how 'handsome' you are, it's most likely a sign that all the t-shirts and shorts you've been wearing the past few weeks have washed away the fact that you wore the same dress shirt and khaki pants all year long until it hit eighty degrees.

• When, not one, but two little boys have a clothes crisis (scissors and chocolate milk), be sure to start the phone calls to their mothers with 'He isn't hurt' - Both moms arrived with new shirts and for the record, kindergarten moms ROCK. Also of note - no wardrobe malfunctions for the girls.

• When you walk the class down to the cafe-gym-atorium a full half hour before the ceremony begins to set up, do not be surprised to see almost all of the parents there ready and waiting for you... after all, you warned them about the parking.

• When planning your outfit for the celebration, don't forget that while your classroom is air conditioned and cool, the cafe-gym-atorium is not. You will be sweating. You will be shiny. Get over it.

• Don't forget the extension cord for the boom box in the classroom. If you do, when you realize you've forgotten it moments before you need to hip play, you'll have to run back to your classroom on the other side of the school making yourself even sweatier.

• When kneeling down for pictures with every child after the celebration, try not to worry about the pain in your knees on the hard tile floor. Remember why you're here and the smiles will be natural.

• Don't imagine you're the President or Lady Gaga when the flashes from the cameras temporarily blind you.

• When the dust begins to settle and your realize one little boy had nobody show up, do not let his tears make you cry too. Take his hand, walk him back to class and offer him a chocolate pudding from your secret stash. Since naturally he's on the last bus, sit next to him, put your arm around his shoulders and read books with him until his bus is called to distract him from being sad.

• When his bus is finally called and he leaves, remember this is why you teach. You teach for the one kid who is alone after everyone else has left with parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and grandparents. You teach so you can give him a pudding, read with him, and make him feel better.

Monday is our last day. It's never easy and when I finally say my last goodbyes and get in my car to go home, I fully expect to shed a tear or two.

Double dog dare.

I've written about it before. My dear friend, Mrs. F. teaches third grade. I see those big, almost gangly, third graders limbering down the hallway and I know there is a universe between them and my tiny sprouts. Sometimes I forget how challenging the academics can be as the children grow.

Yesterday in the teacher's room, I ran into Mrs. F. at the copy machine. We began chatting about this and that (her son just turned one and is quite simply one of the most adorable little boys in the world...) and I couldn't help but notice what she was copying.

"What is that?" I asked with a tinge of fear.

"It's their homework for tonight," she replied.

I picked the paper up and studied it. I was intrigued by her 'double dog dare' - I loved that. As for the actual math problem, I kid you not, it might has well have been in Chinese. Here it is:

"Um, I see the multiplication sign, but that's about all I see..." I mumbled.

She then proceeded to try and explain to me how this problem would be worked out. Mrs. F. is a patient person. She's an amazingly gifted teacher. She achieves amazing results with her students. She was totally lost on me.

I was polite because she's my friend. I nodded and said 'yes' and 'ah, I see' from time to time, but really I felt like Homer Simpson with 'Turkey in the Straw' going on in an endless loop in my head as she spoke.

Today she emailed me to let me know nineteen out of her twenty-one students got it correct. This did not make me feel any smarter. I adore kindergarten and never want to leave it... bumping into Mrs. F. making copies only reiterates this for me.

Teechr.

Yesterday at bus time, Darlene handed me the following note:

I love it for many reasons. First, she has clearly mastered the 'ch' blend - something we've been working on diligently for months. Yay! Second, she loves her teacher, something I never tire of being told. Finally, she wants to be a teacher when she grows up. There's no better compliment than that. She got a big hug for this one.

Wild.

This morning at Sharing, Lonny, always one to give me a chuckle, offered this gem.

“Yesterday, I went on a walk and I was lucky enough to spot a wild caterpillar!”

The following thoughts went through my head:

Wild? Really? As opposed to what? A domestic caterpillar? A tame caterpillar? Was it rearing its head hissing at him? What made this caterpillar so wild? Did it bite him? Are wild caterpillars taking over the woods near my house? Should I be worried? Could one take my dog out in a fight? (My dog is rather skittish) With all the chaos in the world, now I have to worry about wild caterpillars?

But naturally, all I said was, “Thanks for sharing!”

Happy Friday! Here's hoping you don't encounter any wild caterpillars over the weekend.

Job.

Last week, as we were standing in line for the bus, some of the sprouts were talking about their parents coming along on our field trip to the beach the next day. Evelyn, whose mom was not joining us, was feeling left out.

“I wish my Mom could come on a field trip,” she said.

“Well next year, when your brothers and sisters are in school, maybe your mom can come,” Mrs. D. offered.

Next year, Evelyn’s little brother and sister will start kindergarten and maybe mom will be able to come along on one of Evelyn’s first grade field trips.

“No, my dad has already said he’s signing her up for a job next year,” she replied.

I had to smile. Parents sign kids up for soccer, T-ball, dance class, and other activities. Apparently Evelyn’s dad is signing her mom up for work.

Label.

Jason has a new toy. Someone in his family gave him an old label maker… remember the old kind where you had to move the dial to each letter and then punch it onto the green sticky tape? Well this new device is quite thrilling for Jason.

He came in and gave Mrs. D. a bracelet with her name on it first. She proudly wore it on her wrist all day long… even though I’m quite sure it wasn’t comfortable and maybe even a little bit painful for her. That’s what you do when you get a gift from a sprout… you wear it with pride… even if you need a band-aid or get a rash.

When Jason promised, “Yours is coming tomorrow,” I got nervous.

Unlike Mrs. D., I’ve got hair on my wrists, and that bracelet was going to hurt. I devised a plan… the label would go on my glasses instead! Genius!

When Jason presented me with my own label (with my last name misspelled, but naturally not mentioned by me), I proudly placed it on the arm of my glasses. As everyone arrived, they commented on my label.

As the day wore on, I forgot about my label. Always there to remind me of anything out of the ordinary, the other adults in the school all commented on my label… No, I didn’t forget my name… No, I don’t need my name on my glasses in case I get lost…

When I got in my car to go home, I saw my reflection in the rear view mirror and removed my label… I proudly put it on the dashboard of my car. I don’t usually like to be labeled as this or that, but when the label is from Jason, I’ll humbly accept it.

Earring.

This morning, in the quiet hubbub of arrival time, Penny came up to me with her hand out, holding something precious.

“Mr. ______, the back of my earring fell off,” she said.

Uh-oh. Another area of expertise I’m quite lacking in. The last time I tried to fix Nicole's hair, she looked like she took a very long ride in a convertible on a windy day.

“Um, hold on a second,” I replied and walked over to fetch Mrs. D.

Mrs. D. calmly fixed the broken earring for Penny.

When she finished, I remarked, “It’s a good thing you’re hear Mrs. D. – I am no good at earrings.”

“Girls simply cannot be without their earrings, Mr. ______,” she smiled.

With that, Penny skipped off to begin her reading. Another disaster averted.

Root Beer.

Well, I suppose I’m getting older. Yesterday I did something at school (I’m not sure what) and hurt my back. I was in pretty bad pain last night and this morning, while a bit better, I was still not myself. Before leaving, I popped more than a few Advil, and then placed one of those Ben-Gay patches on my back to provide heat to help the muscles relax.

I was wondering if my sprouts would notice the smell of the patch. It’s not super strong, but I can certainly smell it. All day long, not a word. Then at bus time, as Alexander was chatting with me, he apparently caught a whiff.

“Mr. _______, you smell like… like root beer,” he said.

“Hmmm – I guess it does smell a little like root beer,” I replied.

When the last children left, I headed to the nurse and asked her to remove my root beer patch. Hopefully, I won’t need it tomorrow… although I do love root beer.

In common.

Today as we walked outside for recess, David grabbed my hand. This isn’t unusual for him… as we walked to the hill, he looked up at me and said, “You know what Mr. _______, you and I have a lot in common.”

“Really? Like what?” I said, taking the bait.

“Well, first of all, we are both smart,” he began.

“Very true,” I agreed.

“Secondly, we both love to write,” he continued.

“Also a fact,” I said. I’ve shared my love of writing with my sprouts.

“Finally, we’re both quite handsome,” he said with a smile.

“No arguments from me David… now go run and play,” I instructed.

And with that, he took off like a bullet. My miniature carbon copy.

Fish.

These last few weeks of school are always a challenge. Mother Nature is partially to blame. With the warmer temperatures it’s more difficult to sustain the attention of a six-year-old, but I do my best. In kindergarten, more than some of the older grades, the kids are also beginning to become anxious at the prospect of leaving the safety and comfort of their friends, classroom, and teacher. Behaviors often spike.

When we began our Ocean Unit a few weeks ago, we also began our ‘fish’ whole class incentive program. It’s rather simple. A fish bowl is drawn on the board and for every morning or afternoon we can go without any major behaviors we draw a fish in the tank. Physical contact or a child needing to visit the Rest Stop defines a major behavior.

The incentive was an indoor beach party. We’d planned the party for yesterday weeks ago, but the class didn’t know that… they thought they had to earn it. We set our goal as ten fish. Ten. That’s it. With each day they had the chance to earn two fish - one in the morning and one in the afternoon. They could have those ten fish in one week. As luck would have it, we only earned the tenth fish the day before we’d planned the party. It took over two weeks to earn those fish.

Our party was a huge success. We made our own beach visors, wore sunglasses and flip-flops, laid our beach towels out, and sang all our ocean songs. We also watched Finding Nemo. I always feel like Mr. Ray was my inspiration to become a teacher... Being a movie released almost ten years before any of my sprouts were born, I was surprised how many of them hadn’t seen it. It’s always fun to watch a child enjoy an amazing movie for the first time… plus with all we’ve been learning about the ocean it’s really a good representation of all the facts we’ve discussed… except for the talking fish of course.

We’ve got a few more days to wrap our Ocean Unit and then it’s on to insects… I’m thinking we’ll be working on getting spots on a ladybug…

Important.

Yesterday was my birthday. I got many gifts and cards from friends, but, not surprisingly, it was the treasures from my sprouts that made my day. As they each arrived I got many ‘Happy Birthday’ shout outs and extra hugs. They really were excited for my big day. As we do for all birthdays we sang our special birthday song, A Cat Hat A Birthday. It’s way more fun than boring old ‘Happy Birthday’…

A few had made special cards, paintings, notes, and some even had treats! I oohed and ahhed over each surprise and by the time we arrived at the end of Morning Meeting I was on cloud nine. Then Mrs. D. told me they had a surprise for me.

When I was out a few weeks ago, they made me a special book. I had a clue there was something special, but I wasn’t sure what… kindergartners don’t keep secrets well, but they hadn’t spilled the beans entirely.

After reading The Important Book (one of my all time favorites), they wrote a book for me… The Important Thing About Mr. _______. Each child wrote and illustrated a page. As Mrs. D. read the book to me and shared the pictures, I tried my best not to get choked up.

As I sat and listened to her, I was overcome with a deep feeling of gratitude. How lucky can a guy get? I also couldn’t help but be taken aback by what the majority of my sprouts found important about me… sure a few mentioned ‘school stuff’ (he reads to us, he helps us count, and he teaches us), but overwhelmingly, they had written about feelings.

Here are a few highlights.

(Really, what could be more important than love?)

(Hugs are super important too.)

(Overwhelmingly it was about hugs and love. I also realized today, without me for a kindergarten teacher, they wouldn't have mastered the art of drawing curly hair...)

(Whoa.  This one really got me.  Simple, yet surprisingly deep.  Probably my favorite.)

There’s a famous quote, ‘They may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel.’ My sprouts definitely feel loved and really, isn't that the most important part of my job?  After reading my book, I consider myself a success... and that truly is the most awesome gift.  Best. Birthday. Ever.

Card.

Well today is my birthday. Yes, I’m a grown-up and I still get excited about my birthday. I got some amazing cards and gifts (more on that tomorrow) from little friends. Being my big day, I don’t have time to give my sprout’s gifts the attention they deserve today, but one grown-up card, from Mrs. D. just tickled me silly and I had to share it quickly.

In our class, we sing and dance to nursery rhymes daily. Each week we learn a new one and it then becomes a part of our motor break repertoire. The very first rhyme we learn is Jack Be Nimble. Naturally, we don’t just sing it – we sing the Jack Hartmann version which basically rocks out and has us jumping up and down like fools.

Well, this was the card Mrs. D. handed over today (click to make it larger).

I’m not sure how where she found it, but somehow, it was just the perfect card for me. Tomorrow, with more time, I’ll share my other gifts… Some of them literally took my breath away. Come back tomorrow to share my bounty.

Anticipation.

There was some major excitement in class today. No, it’s not our field trip later this week… we’re not having pajama day or a pizza party… we didn’t get a class pet pony… What is it then? Well, tomorrow is my birthday.

Yes, you read that correctly, my birthday. For some reason, this year, more than ever, my sprouts are totally freaking out about my birthday. To be fair, I don’t think I’ve hyped it up or talked it about more than any other birthday… they are just super ready to celebrate with me tomorrow.

I know they’ve got something special brewing… How do I know? Well, kindergartners don’t keep secrets well. Here’s what I know.

• They have some sort of present for me.
• They made it with Mrs. D. when I was out for a meeting a few weeks ago.
• It’s not in the classroom so I shouldn’t bother looking for it.
• I’m really, really, REALLY going to love it.

I’ve been told the above facts about eighty-two times by different children at varying times. It’s awfully cute, but heaven help them if they ever needed to keep a really important secret.

Today at calendar Andy was Calendar Helper. He was up there, super excited to be doing his job. When it came time to read what day was Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, he said, “Yesterday was Monday, today is Tuesday, and tomorrow is Mr. _______’s birthday!”

Actually, tomorrow is Wednesday… but it’s my birthday too and I suppose that trumps Wednesday in Andy’s book.

Most people with ‘regular’ jobs often take their birthday off… I wouldn’t dream of missing my big day tomorrow with my smallest friends.

Sandwich.

It never ceases to amaze and delight me the way a six-year-old (yes, most of them are six now…) can raise me out of a foul mood. As I wrote about Friday, it rained ALL WEEK. It was miserable. By Friday, I was not my usual chipper self to say the least.

During Center Time, I was sitting, gloomily, in the Kitchen when David came over to take my order.

“What do you feel like today, Mr. _______?” He asked.

“Hmmm. I’m not really hungry, why don’t you just bring me something light,” I said.

“I know just what you need,” he murmured as he walked back into the kitchen.

After a few minutes of rustling and mumbling from him and his co-cooks, he emerged with this in hand:

“David, is that a… a money sandwich?” I asked him.

“Uh-huh – sure to satisfy your belly and make you smile!” He cheered.

How could I not have a huge grin on my face as I pretended to eat my expensive snack?  Rainy gloom... you've met your match.

Scuba.

We are smack in the middle of our Ocean Unit. We’re learning about the water cycle and many ocean animals. I’ve shared some of my own ocean adventures (scuba diving, whale watching tours, etc.) and brought in some ocean relics to share. We’re taking a field trip to the beach next week and we’ve really just all got ocean on the brain… some of us a little more than others.

Yesterday during Sharing, Rebecca, who has a tendency to embellish, announced, “Last Wednesday I went scuba diving with my dad… we saw a… dolphin, but the waves were so big the dolphin got washed up on the shore… then my dad and me saved it.”

She ended with a big smile intended to convince me her story was true. I wondered, 'Who goes scuba diving on Wednesday?'

Mrs. D. was out and her substitute, the lovable Mrs. Hashbrown, looked at me and just started giggling.

“OHHHHHH… K then, thanks for sharing,” I said.

I’m thinking of asking Rebecca’s dad along on our field trip next week, with him, some scuba gear and Rebecca’s imagination, maybe we’ll spot a mermaid… or at least save a beached dolphin.

New Math.

Well it's been raining all week long here... we haven't been able to go outside at all and I swear I can see the skin literally crawling on some sprouts... as I drove home today, thankful for a respite for a few days, a math formula popped into my head.

Now I teach kindergarten.  We don't do much algebra, so I have no clue how accurate this is, but here it is:

A few clarifications:

1. I realize the + in front of rain kind of looks like a 't' making it look like 'train' which would totally change the formula... it's not.  It is a + not a 't'.
2. X = the grade level exponentially increases the value... maybe it should be -X because the lower the grade the higher the value
3. Y = Teacher Frustration

There you have it... the new math!  I'm praying for sunshine and rainbows next week!

Shark!

As part of our Ocean Unit, we’re learning about sharks… kids love sharks. They’re scary, but since they live in the ocean and we don’t, not super scary. We read Don’t Eat the Babysitter and many, many non-fiction books about sharks today. I wanted a simple shark craft, but didn’t have a clue what to do…

After searching online, I found this wonderful idea. It was actually thought up by a child, which made me love it even more. I got the supplies and prepped it for the class.

I just loved this activity… many kids struggled with making the triangles in the paper plate for the teeth, but it was good fine motor practice and an excellent way for me to see who needed help.

After we wrote some facts about sharks in our ocean journals, I wrote a few of them down and placed the facts and sharks out in the hallway. When we walked back from Music (that’s when I put them up), I heard David say, “It feels like we’re being attacked by a group of sharks!” I knew then it was all worth it.

Lovely.

Today Audra came in and I noticed right away something was different... as she came over for my morning hug, I swore I saw eye makeup on her... it didn't look right to me and not being a makeup expert (add it to the list of things I'm not an expert at), I asked Mrs. D. for her opinion. After scoping out the situation, she decided it was indeed mascara and because of the clumpy sticky look, most likely put on by Audra herself.

About midway through the morning, during Snack Time, when Audra came approached me for another hug (she really loves to hug), I thought I smelled a rather strong perfume.

"Are you wearing perfume," I asked.

She blushed.

"Yeah, it's my mom's... but she doesn't know I'm wearing it," she admitted.

"What about your makeup?" I prodded.

"No, I snuck it, but my dad saw before I left," she confessed.

"Well you look and smell lovely," I said.

"Lovely... I like that," she answered.

Another hug.

I'd love to see her mother's reaction when she gets off the bus and sees and smells her handy work.

Lessons.

Today we took a field trip to a local wildlife rescue park. They take in wild animals and take care of them. Most are hurt or injured and wouldn’t survive on their own. They have some amazing animals and was a wonderful way to celebrate our animal unit.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature decided a cold, wet, drizzly day was in store and so, with apprehension, we set off for the park. Here are some lessons I learned today:

• When it’s cold, wet, and raw, you get the entire park to yourself! No crowds!

• When you have the park to yourself, there’s no waiting for bathrooms – bonus!

• While teachers and parents may complain about the awful weather, the children could care less… they’re on a FIELD TRIP!

• When it’s cold and wet, ALL of the animals come out and are much easier to see – today we saw everything.

• In said weather, the moose, usually elusive, comes right up to the fence and almost looks like she wants to be petted.

• When all your chaperones show up on time and make your day easier, be grateful and make sure to thank each of them profusely.

• No amount of dreary weather can take away from the majesty of seeing a bald eagle from six feet away.

Rain, rain, don’t go away, you made our field trip extra special today.