Solar System

I've been blowing lots of minds lately. Outer space is a super hard concept for 5th and 6th graders to understand... it seems like they get it, but then they see how big space is and how small Earth is compared to it, and they just get lost.

They want to talk about aliens and life on other planets and details about the sun and galaxies. All things we'll talk about later on in the unit, but they want to learn it RIGHT NOW! Too bad I don't have an invention that will put information directly into their minds, like a sponge soaking up all sorts of stuff. They'll just have to be patient I guess!

There are basketball games vs. Janesville tonight and as usual, the girls are using my room to change. They all remember me from last year and of course Joe too. As they looked around the room, checking things out, one said, "What? You let them write on their desks?!" (referring to their names written on their desks with sharpie markers... my version of a name tag. It never peels off!). The Janesville girls were even more shocked when I revealed that I was the one to write on the desks. So I explained how it works and how you can erase the name tags by writing over them with a dry erase marker. Then they wanted to see a demonstration. So I complied. Yep, it still works! Their minds were blown.

We have a big meeting at church tonight. Well, maybe it's not big, but I've been dreading it ever since I heard about it. It's called a Reconciliation Meeting and it's for congregation members to basically hash out everything they're thinking and feeling about the church. I wrote down a few notes on what I plan to say (positive things in support). One positive that's come from all this is that my students and I have had some decent discussions stem from this meeting. They're all on the supportive side of things and even wrote down a few notes for me to pass on at the meeting (if need be). They're pretty sad that some people in the congregation don't like certain things that are being done/certain people who work in the church. They said they'd be praying the meeting goes well! And they want to know who the nonsupportive people are, but I won't tell them (I don't know all of them myself even) because I don't want them to think less of those people. Which led to a discussion about reputations and how we view people.

Well, I'm going out to watch the girls play. I got to see the last three minutes of the boys' game and my students have been asking me nonstop if I'm going to watch them play. So, here I go!