Veterans, We Love You

As my Super Stars were deciding what "thankful" meant, one of them asked "Mrs. Sommerville, what's that holiday after Halloween, but before Thanksgiving?  The one for Army guys like my dad?"

Veterans Day, perhaps not the holiday that many students of civilian parents would group together with the usual Halloween/Thanksgiving/Christmas trio, but one that we as teachers on a military post observe with respect, not only for our nation's Armed Forces past and present, but for their families and children as well.

After we identified who veterans were and are, and agreed that veterans not only gave us our freedom but continue to protect it as well, I asked what kind of art project we should make for our hallway display.  Our shared kindergarten wavelength being what it is, one student began "Veterans gave us our freedom..." and a second student finished the thought with "We give veterans our hearts.  Mrs. Sommerville!  We should make hearts!"

Of course I teared up.

And then got to work.

I traced a large open heart onto white tagboard:



...asked our aide to punch out red and blue stars (each student used six or seven of each, depending on how far apart they spaced them onto the heart):



After students affixed the stars around the heart in an AB pattern, they glued it onto purple backing paper (yes, one of my student's fathers is a Purple Heart recipient):



Students then wrote "Thank you Veterans.  We love you." on handwriting paper and glued it onto the heart (apologies for the grainy photo):



Silver glitter glue was swirled onto stars for some added sparkle, and the hearts framed our bulletin board turkey character:



Student-inspired displays are the best, don't you agree?

New Homeowners

I'll be "off the grid" for a week or so, but for a wonderfully good reason:

Dear Husband and I have bought a house!

Yes, we are still in possession of our right arms and our first-born child.

The packing and moving crew are the same ones who helped rescue us after the flood, so we're in good hands.

Have a great week, and check back soon... I'll be busy unpacking boxes and decorating!

:)

Labeling Personal Property

Perhaps this one can also be filed under "more stuff your teacher prep courses don't teach you."

My Super Stars were finishing up with their afternoon centers and had started to clean the room, when from two tables away I heard:

Uh, Mrs. Sommerville.  There's something moving on the floor.  


No, wait.  The floor is moving.


No, I was right the first time.  There's something moving on the floor.

It's a snake.

**Not** my favorite words, but words that, as a kindergarten teacher, I must respond to.  Quickly.  Appropriately.


C-A-L-M-L-Y.


Imagine my relief when I discovered that it was a baby snake.  Small.  Petite.  Itty bitty even:



Can you see him?  He was fabulously camouflaged, which made for an interesting discussion as my aide quickly found a camera and a parent volunteer gathered the students over into the cubby area to pack up for home time.



It was terribly handy that we had a clear manipulatives tub that could be dumped out and utilized as a trap...

...but it was this shot that had me laughing:




The snake is apparently my own personal property now.

Label your belongings, dear colleagues.   Label them.

**grin**


*****

This is the second classroom visitor we've had this year!  I wonder what's next...

Bailey Book Giveaway Winners!

Congratulations to my winners for Scholastic's Bailey Book Giveaway!

Grand Prize Winner: Lynola said...

I teach K and I have a super cute little dark brown dog. He is soft, stuffed, and doesn't shed.

Runner Up #1: @reeree62 said...

I'm a volunteer teacher aide in a K classroom & LOVE it!! Mom of 3 grown kids, we have 2 Labs, Casey (chocolate) and Holly (yellow)!
Love the Bailey book!!!


…and Runner Up #2 who has yet to respond to my email message:

Runner Up #2:  Keys4Education said...

I am a mutt kind of girl. A lot of great pups mixed together to make perfection! :o) I have no pups right now; however, I can't wait to bring one into my home again. :o)

PS. I teach kindergarten! 



Congratulations!  I have forwarded the names and addresses of the grand prize winner and first runner up to our Scholastic Representative, Chelsy!  

Many thanks again to Scholastic for offering such a wonderful story to students, teachers, and families via a blog giveaway!

M.

Versatile Blogger Award and Meme Invitation

How nice for Chrissy to include me in this fun meme~!



Here we go, S-E-V-E-N things you may not know about me:

1)  My name is Michaele, pronounced "My-kul," like Michael Jordan.  It's NOT **Michelle**  (Yes I'm sure, and no, my parents didn't want a boy.)

2)  I prefer to wear men's watches, big, clunky, and loose on my wrist like a bracelet.  I'm often told "Oh, Mrs. Sommerville, be careful, your watch isn't clasped, it's going to fall off" by eagle-eyed parents and colleagues.

3)  I miss pile carpeting for the sole reason that I'm addicted to the carpet tracks created by a fresh vacuuming.

4)  The fingernails are ~real~.  I highly recommend this topcoat product found at Sally Beauty stores:



5)  My favorite Muppet is the Ma-Nah-Ma-Nah Guy.

6)  I'm not a big fan of people who WON'T share.  Might be a kindergarten-teacher-thing.

7)  Along with forty other teachers, I was recently honored as a Kansas Teacher of the Year Nominee, proudly representing my school district, colleagues, Super Stars, and their families:



The funny thing about the banquet?  I forgot to wear a watch.  Turns out all nominees were given one (with an apple on the face of course!) in recognition of their dedication to teaching.  It's the first women's watch I've owned in over a decade, and with the leather strap, it's anything BUT loose.

I guess people won't have to worry about me losing my watch now!

*****
Chrissy tagged so many of the bloggers that I would have chosen to participate in this meme, so instead of redundantly requesting that they play along, let me issue an open invitation to you, dear readers:  I'd love to learn more about you, and would very much like to visit your blog!  Grab/copy the badge above, write your post, and then link back by commenting on this post so we can all come visit.

Another Thing Your Ed. Prep Courses Don't Tell You

Sure, you'll wear ~many~ hats as a teacher:  teacher, snack-provider, disciplinarian, nurse, speech therapist, and soother-of-boo-boo's-and-owies.

But there's a good chance you'll also need to be a PIRATE, and possibly even...

... a MOOSE.



Make sure to staple paper headgear so that the prongs face to the OUTSIDE of the band, otherwise you'll risk ~major~ snag and scrape damage.

That's what I'm here for: teacher fashion heads-up and advice.

**grin**

*****

Here's a great pirate hat and eyepatch template from Made It~

The Sassy Pepper shows us how to make a very cute "Sunday" or fancy hat with newspapers...

Want to make the traditional triangular newspaper hat?  Click here for a photo tutorial~

Paper bunny ears found here...

... and why not use a paper plate to make a flower crown?

*****

Winners for my Bailey Book Give Away have been selected, but I haven't heard back yet from the Scholastic representative.  Once I do, I'll let you know who the winners are (nope, I'm not trying to leave you in suspense)!

As We Observe 9-11

Families, this weekend please remember:


Young children often do not have the necessary coping or filtering skills that adults do.  Repetitive and graphic imagery and video of planes crashing into buildings and people plummeting to their deaths are not appropriate for them to view. 


Thank you for considering the needs, fears, and perspectives of our young family members as we observe and reflect upon 9-11.