Elmer the Elephant

Ode to Elmer the Elephant
Your patchwork design pleases my eyes,
And your story is one that is full of surprise.
My classroom theme for next year you will be,
Bringing joy to my students as well as to me.
Your duty is to befriend each girl and boy,
And become something more than a book or a toy.
Your story has a great lesson [...]

Good news…

I didn’t paint this weekend, not a single room inside my home. 
I filled my time with another activity. 
I stained!  It’s not painting, it’s staining.  I should say “we” stained.  We: meaning our whole family.  Well, except for the cat.  I don’t think he would’ve been much help, and besides, the cat doesn’t accept cash, but the [...]

Summer thoughts

Without her small friends
Educator contemplates
Bittersweet summer
Mrs. V
A big thank you to  ~m over at Smoke and Mirrors for the haiku idea, and helping me move that writer’s block a little.

Teacher Quiz

This is a quiz I found and thought it might give a few of you a good chuckle.
Are you a true teacher?  Take this quiz to find out!
1. Do you ask guests if they have remembered their scarves and mittens as they leave your home?
2. Do you move your dinner partner’s glass away from the [...]

Rocks rock

What you see are rocks, right?  Multiple sizes and colors.  Some are just one color, others are speckled.  Some are shiny and some are dull.  It’s pea gravel, actually.  It’s also used on playgrounds.  Our playground to be specific.
Preschoolers see those little pebbles as treasure.  They will spend their outside time digging through the gravel looking [...]

Thank you notes

I love the gifts my students and their families give me.  I appreciate the generosity and the thought that is put into these presents.  So why is it so hard for me to write a thank you note? 
I have 29 thank you notes to send to be exact.  I’ve gotten 15 written, put in envelopes and stamped.  [...]

10 Words

Here are 10 words to describe how I plan to utilize my 3 months of summer break. Kind of a fill in the blank, I guess.
On my summer break I will _____________.
1. SLEEP
2. Parent
3. Read
4. Excercise
5. Clean
6. Organize
7. Paint
8. Relax
9. Reevaluate
10. Recuperate
I’ll revisit this in late August to see how well I did with my [...]

(Pre)School’s Out for Summer!!

To celebrate it, please enjoy this Alice Cooper and the Muppets video from 1978.  Thanks youtube.

School’s Out for Summer!
Mrs. V
~Yet another song that will be stuck in my head all day. 

I was under the impression…

That I was in charge.  I was mistaken. 
One of my students was asked by her parent “Is Mrs. V in charge?”  My student’s response was “No!”  So the mom asked who was in charge, and the little girl replied “Mrs. K.”  Mrs. K is my faithful sidekick and amazing assistant teacher. 
Ouch, that stung the ego a little.
However, [...]

Classroom Conversations

This is what I will miss the most when summer break begins, the conversations my students have with each other. A couple of examples for your enjoyment:
Conversation #1:
Boy A: “Come look at my guns!”
This of course catches my attention, since we don’t allow gun play at preschool. (A topic for another day.) So when I [...]