A t-rex in language class

I told you about the girl with a tissue box on her desk. Today I noticed one of the girls has a whole bottle of hand sanitizer on her desk. Maybe that's a good idea. (Those of you who know me know I do love my hand sanitizer!)

One day we made brownies as an introduction to writing "how-to" paragraphs. They were too warm to eat right after they came out of the oven, so we ate them after we came back from our time in the library. The next week, we were getting ready to go to the library and one boy said to me, "Every time I think about the library, I think about brownies!" (Yes, that would be nice if we could have brownies every Tuesday.)

The funniest story I have from the last couple weeks is when we learned about a thesaurus. I wrote the word thesaurus on the board and asked if anyone knew what is was. One girl guessed a dinosaur. I said, "No, but that's a good guess, because it has the same ending as a lot of dinosaur names, like...stegosaurus..." I'm not very good at remembering dinosaur names, so they helped me by calling some more out... One girl called out, "T-rex!" which didn't really fit, but I ignored it and kept going. We discussed what a thesaurus is and how we use it to make our writing better, and then I asked them, "What is the difference between a dictionary and a thesaurus?" This girl raised her hand and said, "Well, a t-rex has more words..." So I had to clarify that a thesaurus is not actually called a t-rex.

Tissues, pencils, and erasers (oh my!)

In some ways it feels like we've been in school for a long time, but in other ways it's hard to believe that we already have three weeks completed! I was happy to overhear this conversation at the end of the day today:

"I can't believe it's the end of the day already!"

"I know! School days go so fast." 

Nothing too eventful has happened - just the everyday routine of a third grade classroom.

Much to my chagrin, I've called four of my students by their siblings' names. One time I didn't even realize it until they looked at me confused and said, "Who's that?" 

We've been averaging using a box of tissues a day. This doesn't seem like a good sign for the upcoming cold season. I guess maybe that's why one of the girls decided she should have her own box of tissues at her desk. One day in the middle of Bible class, this same girl got out of her seat, went to her backpack and began hanging a trash bag on the side of her desk. I'm glad she feels at home in our classroom, but I'm not quite sure that we have enough room for every student to set up individual tissue boxes and trash cans. 

It seems like having sharp pencils ready to go is always a battle (as I'm sure any teacher will tell you). One day I noticed one of the boys writing with a tiny little stub which he could hardly hold. I let is slide, but later when he had poor handwriting I suggested he use a bigger pencil. He paused, pulled out this huge pencil, and said, "This is the only bigger one I have."

One of the first days of school I noticed that this same boy had little pieces of erasers in his desk, and I told him he needed to throw them away or put them in his backpack. He looked at me so earnestly and said, "But I'm going to use them!" I relented. A week or so later, I happened to see the inside of his desk. I didn't realize he had quite so many pieces! But to his credit, they have not been making a mess, so he can continue to use them. :)

I'm happy to report that my students also have a sense of humor. One day one of the boys forgot to sign back into the classroom after going to the bathroom, and when another student pointed it out to him he replied, "I thought I would relax in the bathroom for a couple of hours." 

During reading class one day, I asked the class how many letters are in the alphabet. Of course they all chorused, "Twenty-six!" I continued the lesson when one boy raised his hand. I called on him and he said, "Actually, there are only 25 letters in the alphabet, because the angel said, 'Noel.'"

And my humor today came from (of course) a language worksheet. We've been practicing combining two sentences into one. The two sentences were:

Bob ate bear meat. Jim ate bear meat.

So one student wrote:

Bob ate bear meat and Jim. 

Maybe it's because I'm tired, but I'm still giggling about that one. 

One week down

As I reflect on the first week of a new school year, the first thought that comes to mind is, It's only been a week?!  From what I've heard, I think it's safe to say all the teachers are feeling the same way. However, when I asked my students this morning if it has seemed like a long week to them, a few timidly, partially raised their hands, and the rest looked at me with baffled expressions. So I think that's a good sign that it didn't seem long to them. And although it's been exhausting, I am thrilled to spend my days with all these new little people. I'm really enjoying getting to know them. In fact, in some cases I'm having flashbacks to six years ago. Two of the girls are sisters of girls I had in my first year class (who are now 8th graders!), and I have to stop myself from calling them by the wrong names.

There have been a few special memories from the week which make me smile.

On the first day of school, one girl signed out a dictionary from our classroom library to take home. The next day one of the boys did the same. I didn't realize dictionaries are popular reading material in third grade.

I had the students fill out a sheet telling me their favorites. One boy's favorite food is "shuger." (Mine too!) Another boy's favorite sports team is "Fightin' Phils."

On another paper, I had them tell me about their summer, and they were able to draw a picture themselves. Here are a few samples of my little artists:

And my favorite:

I can relate. For her mother's sake, I have to say that she has never come to school looking like that!

As always, I love to read my third graders' writing. Today they were supposed to write a sentence about cows. Most sentences were something along the lines of:
Cows eat grass. 
Cows are black and white. 

But a few students were more creative:
Cows and bulls are different because bulls are boys and cows are girls. 
I saw a cow giving birth coming home from church. 

I'm looking forward to lots of good times and stories in third grade this year!

Smiling on the last day of school

The students always list all of their teachers in past years who have cried on the last day of school. So I told them today, "I don't usually cry, but that doesn't mean I'm not sad to say goodbye to you!" My wonderfully witty student replied, "Then why are you smiling?" Caught me! Actually, even though it is definitely time for a break, I'm never quite ready to say goodbye to my students. I wish they were coming back to me next year.

There have been signs for several weeks now that we're all ready for summer vacation. One day one of the boys came in with a super short hair cut. I heard one student asking him, "Are you sure you didn't lose 50 years of your life? Because you look like you're around 60."  A few days later another boy came into the classroom sporting a new haircut and proclaiming, "There's a new 80-year-old in the room!" Today looking at pictures from earlier in the year, one boy commented, "That's when I still had all my hair!"

Yesterday in math class, we were using a grid and plotting points. My witty student gave the point (2,2) and muttered under his breath, "Which I'm not wearing." I tried to ignore it, but I couldn't wipe the smile off my face.

I'm pretty sure I don't even know half of what went on with my students this year. Today I had them share their favorite memories from third grade, and one boy shared that the most memorable part for him was the day he split his pants. I looked at him confused, and said, "I don't remember that."
 "No, I didn't tell anyone!"

In Bible class this year, we learned about faith heroes from the Bible. I had the students write in their journals about someone in real life who is a faith hero. Here are a couple of my favorites:

A faith hero is a person who loves God more than anything else. My parents believe in God real strongly.  

My parents trust God to make sure our old car keeps on running on long trips. 

Yes, I will definitely miss this great group of students! But like I told them today, I can't wait to see and hear about all the ways that God will use them in the future! I have good reason to smile. :)

Calm and frustrated and all excited

I can tell summer is just around the corner. For one thing, the noise level has never been louder in my classroom (and I mean never, as in all five years I've been teaching). And then there are the sentimental little notes and gifts I keep receiving from students. Even though I'm still in school mode (because I see everything we still need to accomplish before the year is over, and I'm not quite ready to say good-bye!), some of my students are definitely on vacation mode.

This note was handed to me last week, with at least ten more days of school.

Apparently, this student is ready to start calling me by my first name now that she's almost done with third grade. :)

I'm touched by this creative poem from a student who would probably not claim to enjoy writing. (I'll do my best to translate it!)

Teachers are nice and some are scared of mice. :)
Some are mean. Sometimes they're grumpy, sad, or maybe they're mad.
They give rewards and they're disappointed.
They like and dislike.
They're calm and frustrated and they're all excited. 

Tomatoes, lions, and a dollar a day

The year is winding down to a close... only 12 more days of school this year! I have so many memories to cherish. This is just a snapshot of a few of them from the last week or so.

I feel so appreciated and loved. Not only do I receive gifts, but I am also regularly blessed with handwritten notes and pictures.

There is nothing like reading a nine-year-old's writing. (I have come to realize through conferencing with students on their writing projects that sometimes I am better at deciphering their writing than they are!)

When asked to write about an Easter memory:

When I was about five I tried a tomato my first time (I was forced). I threw it against the wall after I took a bite. It almost hit my grandma.

After reading the story of Daniel and the lions' den, the students were asked: What "lions" can the Lord deliver you from?

• school work 
• thunderstorms
• going to bed 
• For Social Studies because I sometimes get stuck on a question. 
• brothers and sisters 

And definitely my favorite:

• Making a yes answer to a boy of marrying me. 

And we have a new, revised quote, as one of my students proclaimed one day: "A dollar a day keeps the doctor away!"

So he sat

Time is ticking away. I cannot believe it, but we only have half a quarter left of this school year!

I'll share a few of the highlights that I've managed to remember from the last month of school.

On one reading worksheet, the students had to write sentences using vocabulary words. I told them that their sentences should show me that they understand the meaning of the word, so they shouldn't write something like, "I like pastures." One girl wrote "I love the pasture." Another wrote "I like peeing. Do you?" Unfortunately, she misspelled peering. One student got creative: "The man's mustache quivered as he walked."

Students often like to share with their classmates at lunchtime. One day one of the girls was sharing about her cat. One of the boys asked her if she shot her cat. Looking absolutely shocked and dismayed, she gasped and exclaimed, "No!" The boy then proceeded to say that he's not fond of cats and other things that shocked the girls.

Last week we had roadside cleanup, when we go out in groups to clean up trash along the sides of roads as a fundraiser. In science a couple days before, we were learning about work. I said, "I'm sure some of you will tell me that roadside cleanup was a lot of work!" They loudly insisted that it would not be work, because there was no school work, and it was going to be so much fun. I just smiled and said, "Okay, we'll see."

I had three sweet girls in my group. We had a great day, but some of the comments I heard were:

"My bag is heavy!" and then another girl whispering, "Don't complain!"
"My feet hurt... but I'm having fun!"
"This is a little bit of work."

We had the pleasure of working on a road where a manure truck was making many trips back and forth. After the first couple times, the girls came up with a way to combat the smell. They yelled, "Cannon ball!", turned around, and curled up against the ground until the truck was past. I'm sure the driver was entertained.

The reward for making our fundraising goal is a half a day off school the next day. One of the boys kept insisting until the very end that he didn't want a half day off school. He changed his mind the next day though. :)

One morning this week I saw a girl carrying into the classroom a bottle of glue and a tube of glitter. Red flags and warning bells. "What are you planning on doing with that?" She replied that she wanted to make bookmarks. I was imagining glitter all over the classroom and suggested a time when she could do it, but not during class time!

I know I don't hear all the little comments that students make, and most of the time that's a good thing. But this one I caught, and although I ignored the student, I smiled inside. I was reading a book about Benjamin Franklin, and it said, "And Franklin could stand it no longer." And one of the boys commented, "So he sat."