What I Have Learned

I have officially expended my extended weekend. Yes, I do still have tomorrow, but I have to factor in a drive back to Montrose, and getting my act together for school in the morning. Tomorrow is officially a school night. Many of my colleagues would have spent a four day weekend painting their nails, taking bubble baths, and catching up on re-runs of their soaps. Not me. I spent most of my time off grading papers, shopping for our third and final auction, re-stocking our treasure box, and figuring out how the heck I am going to teach fractions and plate tectonics by May 25th. What can I say, I am addicted.

My mom and I spent part of our day together shopping. We went to Barnes & Noble to check out their newest selection of Jodi Piccoult books, and the fishstore to check out their newest selection of neons, and starbucks to spend a gift card so generously given to me by a student for "Teacher Appreciation Week", and the Christian bookstore. It was a lot of fun. As we were driving under an overpass, I found it crucial to inform my mom that at this moment my kiddos were getting ready to start the Problem of the Day in math, and boy I hoped my sub knew enough about perimeter and area to help my struggling mathematicians. What can I say, I can't shut it off. I am a teacher, even on my days off.

I chose to spend much of this particular day off grading papers, especially writing. I love grading writing. I find myself chuckling out loud, and handing off various papers to my mom, so she can chuckle too. As I sat there reading their laborous paragraphs, it occured to me that I only have 12 days left with these guys. While a part of me is very excited about having 12 weeks off this summer (I have two Max Lucado books and a penguin puzzle, not to mention the first and second seasons of One Tree Hill on DVD I got for my birthday waiting for attention) a part of me is really sad about the close of my first year. Everyone tells me "you'll be at the same school next year, and you'll get to see them in the fall." Anyone who is a teacher would understand that it is not the same. There is a world of difference between having kids in your class, and seeing them in the hallway. As of May 25th, they will no longer be my class. This thought got me reminiscing about some of the funny and unexpected things that have happened in the classroom since August. Mostly, some of the things that have come out of their mouths.

My students and I have a pretty laid-back relationship. I use sarcasm often, and they know they can use it (within limits) with me. One day, I had the class get in to groups to work on a Science activity. I told them they could work with a partner of their choice, as long as they "used their time wisely." A few minutes later, one little girl came up to me and said, "Can we work with a friend?" I said to her, "I just said you could work with someone." She said, "Yea, I know, but can it be a friend?" Without thinking I responded with "No, work with someone you hate!" Without a moment's hesitation she smiled sweetly, linked her little arm through mine and said, "Good, in that case I'll work with you." There was another teacher in the room who almost choked on her diet soda at this point, and I was left speechless, trying to get over the fact that I lost a battle of wits and was completely burned by an eight year old. (Note to self: don't teach third graders sarcasm).

One day I was working with my high reading group. This was a small group of kids who were reading a pretty difficult book. In the story, one of the characters was grumbling about the salaries of baseball players. I asked the kids if they knew what a salary was. One of the smartest boys in my class looked at me and said, "Isn't that a green vegetable that gets stuck in your teeth?" Somehow I managed to keep a straight face. (Note to self: just tell them what a new word means, don't ask).

My student are right at that age where they are losing teeth left and right. I think I have a tooth pop out about twice a week. The nurse has these cute little plastic boxes that are shaped like teeth and attatched to a string. This way, students can wear them around their necks and keep track of their teeth until the tooth fairy comes to claim them. The other day, one of my boys came up to me, stuck his plastic tooth container in my face and said, "Look! It's a pregnant tooth!" I almost died! I actually wasted about three minutes of our precious instructional time just laughing, and letting the rest of the class laugh. (Note to self: Never ever mention the birds and the bees in a third grade classroom.)

The teacher across the hallway shared this one with me. She was reading one of the Little House on the Prairie books to her third graders. In one scene, the girls were present while a mother cow gave birth to a calf. In the middle of her reading, one of her students began waving his hand in the air. When she called on him, he had much to share. "There's more to it than that," he said. "Before the mother can even get pregnant with a calf, she needs the boy cow's squirm." Don't ask me how she managed to get through that with a straight face, but I seriously could not have done it! (Note to self: Skip this chapter next year.)

I was told I would learn a lot in my first year of teaching, but I never dreamed I would learn this much!

I love being an elementary school teacher. I actually feel really lucky that I am only in my first year and have many more years of this kind of stuff to look forward to. I hope those of you who visit my blog don't mind hearing about it. Often. While I do have tons of other things to talk about (ask my family how much I talk), some of my favorite things to talk about are stories from the classroom. What can I say? Teaching is not just my job. It is pretty much my life.