Tag Archives: school

Sep4

the hills are alive….with the sound of squealing.

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     happy to welcome my kindergarten back yesterday, and not only the children, but the parents as well. i gain so much wisdom from them everyday.  one mother, returning with her 3rd young child, reminded me of how she’s able to get everyone dressed and off to school on time. i have always seen this process as a minor miracle, having had to deliver 3 young ones to school at one point in my own life.

     she told me she does the laundry and then simply dumps all of it into one giant pile. the kids then climb and all forage around it, until they are able to put an outfit together.  and that’s it, they are ready for the day. no stress, and always an adventure for all. i think this is brilliant.

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‘it’s better to have loved and lost than to do 40 pounds of laundry a week.’

– salvatore dali

Aug20

it’s my story, and i’m sticking to it

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returning to school this week for a bit of professional development. gearing up for the return of my kinders in just a couple of weeks. had a case of ‘mistaken identity’ this morning that made it clear that i’m getting back into school mode. 

reached into my purse, and this is what i expected to put on my lips:

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instead, this is what i actually put on my lips:

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good thing it is ‘disappearing purple’ color. 

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Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.  – Albert Einstein 
Aug14

a kiss is just a kiss. unless it’s a miss.

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when he was just 6, one of my kindergarteners handed me this story that he had written using his invented spelling. . as he read it aloud to me, i transcribed it into more traditional adult spelling. i found it to be heartfelt and very funny and i’ve saved it among my treasured writings . recently, i gave him a copy of his story, as he heads off to college, a little older and perhaps little more worldly and wiser. 

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original invented spelling version

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transcribed version

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Women still remember the first kiss after men have forgotten the last.

Remy de Gourmont

 

Jun3

i am now the ‘janet jackson’ of the kindergarten world

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nothing like the feeling of wearing my spring dress and strappy sandals to school. ha – winter be damned, i was floating on air – swingy, breezy, light, summery!  found out halfway through the day, at recess, that not only was my dress light as a cloud, it was also completely see-through. i only found out at that point because a fellow teacher described exactly what i was wearing under my dress while i was wearing it, and happily chatting away with her in the sun.  thought back on all the places i’d been that day – beginning with a stroll past the administration at our faculty breakfast, greeting our children at the curb as they were dropped off for the day, a saunter past many parents in the hallways, a walk to another building on campus and a meeting with human resources, dropping off the kids at specials’ classes all over the school, lunch with 2 classes, and on and on.  well, at least it makes me feel better about the day i wore my shirt inside out all day as i completed errands all over town. not so bad in comparison and it really puts things in perspective – i am now beginning to better understand how janet may have felt after her wardrobe malfunction at the super bowl. i wonder if we’ll have a dress code next year? 

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Sometimes you can’t see yourself clearly until you see yourself through the eyes of others.

Ellen DeGeneres

May17

things i learned in my kindergarten classroom today #2

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it was camping day today and when the children checked out the cool bear cub our room, i was reminded of the different approaches that boys and girls each have to life.  as the girls went up to it, they gently petted it and commented, ‘it’s so soft!’ as the boys approached it, they all bent their heads down to look under its legs and asked, ‘does it have a penis?’ and herein lies the difference –

Apr30

one of my favorite lunch events ever for our kindergarten

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perfect for the discerning tastes of our 3-5 year olds?

Good Day All,

Just a reminder that tomorrow will be our “Chef 2 School” program and we will be featuring “World of Cheeses”.  Once again we will set up in the back hallway behind the small dining room and I will be coming around to release the tables to visit our “World of Cheeses”. 

We are also excited to say that this time we plan on including the Early Childhood Center with a cart that will go from table to table with samples of different cheeses.  

Sincerely,

HJ

 Director of Dining Services

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this is more like it!

Mar31

rise up! i am now officially afraid of easter.

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while looking for holiday lesson ideas to share with my kinder class, i stumbled upon this one from a home-schooling page online. i must say i found it terrifying.

‘jesus in the tomb – cooking lesson’

‘jesus said he would rise from the dead in 3 days. he rose in 3 days.’

supplies needed: crescent rolls, marshmallows, cinnamon, margarine

directions: take one marshmallow and dip it in margarine. roll it in cinnamon. have the children place it inside of the center of the triangle of dough. have them fold the dough around the marshmallow so that the marshmallow is ‘buried’ in its tomb. bake according to the crescent roll package directions. have the children take the role of the guards at jesus’ tomb. have them stand guard at the oven. take the rolls out of the tomb (oven) and let the cool. the marshmallows will be gone, just like jesus’ body was gone!

other suggested lessons:

creative writing – have the children pretend to be reporters interviewing pontius pilate. ask him things like: why did you make your decision? were you pressured into it? have the children use their imagination to answer the questions.

art/literacy lesson – have them lay on large paper, trace them, and write across their chest – ‘jesus lives in me.’ 

food lesson – make easter sandwiches, crust symbolizes god, white is jesus, fillings are holy spirit. choose your fillings, can use red fillings to symbolize blood, share them, give thanks and enjoy!

after reviewing all of this, i opted to color eggs, hide them, show scary easter bunny pics, and eat a lot of chocolate.  

Feb27

spring stomps in like a 373 pound lamb –

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so happy the snow fairies have worked their mischief once again and hit us with a lovely, lively,fest of swirling snow, sleet, slush, and snain, bringing us another joyfully amazing snowday off of school. winter does not go easily into the good night. in other news, dairy queen opens in 2 days.