Little snippets

Here are a few snippets of my life in the third grade from the last month.

• One student told me she had a dream that I stole her family's car. And here I thought I was having a good impact.

• Math problem: "Name an object in your classroom that is about one yard in length." Several students' answers: "Tanner."  Creative answer. 

• On a Social Studies test, the students were asked to write about one of the Christian martyrs from the Early Church. One student wrote this about one of the girls we learned about: "She was weak but strong innerwords." 

• I gained a little perspective on King Josiah from the Bible when a chapel speaker asked what 8-year-old boy would like to be king, and most of the boys in my class raised their hands. 

• We've been learning about homophones. (In case you've been out of school for too long: words that sound alike but have different meanings.) I gave them sentences and they were supposed to write the correct homophone on their white boards. I said, "My hair is brown." One boy raised his hand and said, "It could be either hair/hare." (Even though he obviously knew what I meant!) I said, "No, because I said, 'My hair is...' Oh, I see what you mean." Smile. 

• Teachers don't teach just academics. One of the many things we try to teach students is manners. So when students come up to me at lunch and say, "I don't have a spoon" or "I need a spoon," I just keep looking at them until they remember to ask, "May I please have a spoon?" This week one girl corrected herself before even finishing her first sentence. :) 

• I walked over to two boys who were standing at the mailboxes, because I suspected something fishy going on. My suspicions were confirmed when immediately, without me saying a word, one boy declared, "I didn't do that!" I'm still not sure what he didn't do. Sometimes my presence is all that's needed to stop mischief! 

• This last week, most of the class has gotten involved in solving this puzzle that one of the boys brought in. It was neat to see them work together and persevere until, low and behold, four students figured it out! They were so excited, that they begged me to take a picture of it. They were hoping to get in the school newspaper.