Party

Hooray! It's Christmas break! Although, technically I'm not off duty for another three days since we have one more Christmas program. Practice went well; we worked out a few kinks. Presents went well; my kids seemed to like their word clouds. 

I got some cool stuff too: a blanket with an outline of a stack of books/tea/plants/Miss H made by a student and her mom, some treats, a giftcard to Applebees (my kids told me I should go there on a date night and sing the Applebee's Date Night song while I'm on my date... The song is called "Fancy Like" and it was all the rage a few months ago), a tea travel mug perfect for loose leaf tea, tea, and a hot cocoa bomb. Some kids said they forgot their presents and they'll give them to me next year, haha. 

We watched Monsters Inc as our all school movie in the afternoon. Such a good movie. One of my favorites. I got almost all my papers corrected during it! 

After school we had our staff present exchange. My initials were LB for lunch box, and I got 'luxurious booties' aka fuzzy slippers, lemon bar mix, little baby ornament (Jesus in the manger), and a Love Bug toy car. Cute! I had Mrs. E who's initials were SC, and I gave her scarlet cord (red yarn), two santa claus ornaments, and a scented candle. 

Questions and Comments

Only two days of school this week, and the kids are definitely excited. So many jittery bodies and mouths! 

My class had a normal day for once. Well, they presented their planet powerpoints to the 1-4th graders, so that was abnormal. Some groups made worksheets for the kids to follow along. They were surprised how much the audience struggled to keep up. Great teachable moment! Two kids present tomorrow, and since we talked about what went well and what didn't, those kids are going to tweak their presentations to make it go even better! Overall, the lower grades had a good time learning about the planets. 

My kids really tested me in religion today. They had super thought-provoking questions, so I asked if they wanted me to email Issues Etc. to see what their answer was. They said YES! (Earlier this year we submitted a question about angels which they answered on air, so my class is hoping for another on air 'appearance'). The question was, "We know God talks to us through the bible, but why doesn't God talk to us the way he talked to people in the Old Testament? When and why did he stop?" Before the end of the day, I had an email saying they might answer that question in today's comment line!

Before the end of religion, they came up with another stumper (except now that school is over I think I came up with an answer). This time, we called and left a message. Maybe they'll play the clip on the comment line. This question was, "Jesus tells the thief on the cross 'today you'll be with me in paradise,' except he goes to hell for three days, so did the thief go to hell with him too? Or how does that work?" We'll see if they play that one too! 

My answer, now that I've thought about it more is: God and the Holy Spirit were/are in heaven, so while Jesus was in hell, the other parts of the Trinity were in heaven so the thief could be with them right away. I'm curious if they'll answer both! Stay tuned!

Last Practice

Well, our last program practice went super! The bell songs weren't too fast, the singing songs sounded pretty, and the kids either remembered when to go or they were watching me for their cues. There's one song Mrs. L forgets where to come in, but she's going to count measures and make a note when she gets home.

My kids watched The Nativity Story all morning today. If you haven't seen it, you need to. It's the one thing that puts me in the Christmas spirit when I'm stressed with all the program prep. Since it has so much historical detail, we ended up pausing it a bunch so I could explain what was happening and why. My kids were really into it and asked if we could watch it again next year. Probably! 

This afternoon the kindergarteners invited my class to make gingerbread houses with them. Then we did a bit of bell practice at church, followed by our regular 1pm program practice. And that was the day. 

Only two days of school next week before Christmas break!

Extra

Practice went well today. It seemed like we didn't do too much else at school, but really we had a typical morning. After lunch, Mr. E asked if I'd run an errand in Mankato quick while he took the 5-8th graders for PE. He found a new mic stand that's easier to adjust (not so loud). So I popped over and was in and out of the store in 30 seconds. They had it waiting and will bill school, so that sped things up. 

After school, I got a call from the bible school teacher asking if I could come to their rescheduled practice tonight. So I stayed at school until 6, then ran through the program with them, and did all my errands afterwards and prepped for this weekend. Man, I am ready for a break. This week has been non stop! 

Slow Going

Wow, my brain is ready for a rest. It's been racing all day figuring out our regular day schedule to make room for Christmas program practice. The schedule got messed up more than usual because both bells and piano had to have practice over at church... right during math time. 

So... we had the 5th graders take math in the morning while I had study hall with the 7-8th graders. Then after lunch, we did 6th grade math and science with the 7-8th graders. It worked okay, but boy, my brain had to work hard to figure out all those moving parts. 

Practice today went all right. Even though we had a full hour, we still didn't make it all the way through the program. So tomorrow we're starting at 1pm. Wow. We've never had to start that early. I blame our snow day. And the new sound system. 

On the plus side, the stable is set up, the risers got moved, and we have just enough room for a little acting. The costume people now know their marks. Tomorrow is going to be the true test if everyone remembers their cues. Me too! 

Since we're starting so early, Mr. E and I are skipping each other's classes. The kids will be happy there's no math! I will probably do social studies in the 'spare' time since we've missed class because of practice. We've been doing parent art projects in the morning, so our reading/English time has been cut short this week too. Tis the season!

With the stress of planning the Christmas program, getting my students ready, prepping presents/cards for them to make for their parents, it's often hard to find joy in the Christmas season. Thankfully, there are Advent services. For once, I don't have to plan! I can just show up and rejoice in my Savior. Praise the Lord!

Good News and Bad News

Friday was a snow day! Good news at first, but the bad news is, it cut out one day of Christmas program practice and now we're really feeling crunched. We went over to church earlier than planned, but we still didn't make it through the program. Part of the problem was the IT guys installed a new sound system at church, but didn't teach anyone at school how to use it. Thankfully, they answered Mr. E's call and walked Mr. D through the basics. 

While they did that, I organized the kids in their spots and had them figure out which mic to use. We only made it halfway through the program doing that. Only four more practices. Yikes! I sure hope it all comes together. 

Unfortunately, the crabby-s are creeping up on me... My patience is very thin these days. 

I had to make a new cd for the program and iTunes wasn't working. Thankfully I figured out what I was doing wrong. Props have been found for the few speakers who need them. Costumes were tried on today for the nativity students. After school my basketball kids set up bells at church. We still don't have the bulletins to color. I should probably look into that. Maybe we can get them tomorrow.

Another sad thing today: I thought my class was getting along great, but one of the boys left his computer open with Teams up, and I noticed some not nice words in a chat between him and his classmate. Ugh. It started because they were talking about crushes and denying things, calling each other liars, etc. Sigh. So disheartening. Now I need to have some private conversations with them both. 

And the one 8th grade girl keeps using inappropriate language for school, I always hear her and call her out on it. She complains that the boys do it all the time and they never get in trouble. Not true. If I hear them, I get on their case. But the trouble is, I don't always hear it. Ugh. Is it Christmas break yet?

To end with good news, a grandma taught my class how to make gigantic snowflakes today. It was great. The kids had a good time problem solving how to build it, I had a little time to finish midterm grades, Grandma had a good time teaching the kids. A win all around.

Present

One of the 8th graders gave me something this morning. It was a printout of this:

On a different note, the snow is pretty much melted (only to have more coming tomorrow...possibly a foot). It's in the 40s today though. My kids wanted outside recess today, but surprisingly, almost all of them forgot snow gear. They were still able to have a good time. Most swung on the swings. Two girls and I squished a snow pattern monster with our boots. 

They all brought their laptops home tonight so they could have a lunch chat if school is cancelled. The snow day predictor says there's an 87% chance tomorrow. Who knows! I am kind of hoping for one... Better make sure I'm stocked up on library books then!

IT updates

Can you believe it, I actually got ahold of the IT guys today? I called to ask when the new sound system is going in at church (this week, perhaps tomorrow) so we could be ready for setting the sound for our Christmas program. While I had him on the line, I asked about a broken audio cord in the gym (would make practice so much easier) and downloading iTunes on my computer finally. And he did it! He installed iTunes right away and made a note to check out the aux cord when he comes to church this week. Wow, I feel accomplished.

I also got the Christmas bulletin approved and sent to our church secretary and projector designer, plus recorded next week's memory work hymns with Mrs. L. Oh, and recorded a stack of new books for the class library and made a study Kahoot for the 7-8th graders tomorrow. Whew!

Now it's off for a quick walk, then Advent services with my sister.

Spending Money

A generous donor pledged $15,000 to our school before the end of the year. Mr. E asked us teachers to give him ideas. Mine were for an outdoor learning space and hooks to hang the folding chairs in the shed. Another teacher thought of the Ecology Bus doing an assembly for us. Someone else thought of a fort building area on the playground. So after our meeting while I waited for bible study, I did research on all of the above. 

I found some giant lego blocks that would be perfect for fort building, along with some other outside compatible building things. The outdoor learning space I liked the best is out of the UK, but we could probably replicate it with an awning, wood benches, and a fence. We'll see what happens with our ideas! Mr. E had some ideas of his own... replacing the hallway floor, getting a new janitor's closet sink, adding a bathroom to the preschool room. 

I thought about going home after our staff meeting, but it snowed today, and I don't want to drive on the roads more than I have to. The snow was a surprise. When I woke up, I immediately thought, "Maybe we'll have a snow day!" Ha! Not a chance. Nothing on the school closings page. Still, we got more than they said we would. The forecast said a light dusting, but we got at least two inches. There's more to come this Friday... 

Found!

I searched for my lens for over a half an hour on Saturday. Cobwebs coated my hat from brushing against the underside of the bleachers while I poked around with a flashlight. I found $0.51, a new hair ponytail holder, two lego guys, a chip bag clip, a cuff earring and chain, a few pencils, and lots of trash. No lens. I swept the gym... nothing. I used a flashlight and pencil to get in all the cracks on the topside of the bleachers. Nothing. I gave up in disgust. I had to be under there somewhere!!!

My kids did a quick search this morning. Nothing. I asked the kids at program practice to check by their feet. Nothing. 

Later in the morning, a 3rd grader knocked on my door. "I found your lens Miss H!" He and his friend held flashlights; they spent their recess time looking under the bleachers (not too much of a hardship... they love any excuse to go under the bleachers). Hooray! I feel like the woman in the parable of the lost coin. Having complete glasses again is definitely my high for today. 

More basketball games after school. Half my class stayed, so I put them to work. We put the legos into bins and moved all the STEM stuff to the games bookshelf. They'll be much more accessible now. But where to put all the games that had been in that spot... The games we never play moved to the office and I put a few in our classroom closet. We use the STEM stuff more than we do the games.

In the midst of that, the kids made a 'pizza' to deliver to Mr. D, who called to ask me a few questions. (They now answer the phone, "Hello, Papa Murphy's!" so Mr. D took advantage and ordered some breadsticks and a pepperoni pizza.)

Our basketball numbers are quite small, so a few kids from the public school come play on our team. One is a 5th grade girl, and since she knows the girls in my class, she hung out in my room before the game. My girls gave her a tour of the room... "Books are like family in here," one girl said. Aww. 😊 The girl was impressed with our library, the couch, our class garden, and the flexible seating (the ball chairs especially). "It's so cozy in here!" she said.

Lost

One of the lenses in my blue light blocking glasses is lost in the bleachers. I forgot they were on my head when we went to recess, then I took them off and set them down when I taught my kids how to play Lightning and Snake. That game was a blast; it was super fun playing with them. 

But right at the end of recess, someone put a ball away by tossing it and it popped both lenses out. We found one lens, but the other is nowhere to be found. Sigh. I miss them already. I might even buy another pair, just to have them. You might think they don't make much of a difference, but when I use them I've had way fewer headaches and backaches from the computer.

Gender Reveal

A conversation overheard before school as two 7-8th grade boys studied their morning memory work:

"Matthew 1:21... the first gender reveal!"

"...but wasn't Jesus mentioned in the bible before Matthew?"

"No, no, they just said a savior would be born. Not that he'd be a boy."

At afternoon recess, my kids played with bubbles. It was cold enough that the bubbles didn't pop right away, so the bubbles floated all over the kickball field and they chased after them, running and jumping to pop them. It was so fun to watch them play. 

Science with the 5-6th graders was epic. Today's topic was an intro to the planets. We watched a video that compares Earth to the universe. Their minds were blown. We watched the video twice and they would've watched it a third time, just to get everything to sink in. Of course they had a million questions (seriously, it was a lot), and the questions are all things we're going to learn very soon, but not today. I tried to give them quick, short answers, but their thirst for immediate knowledge is insatiable. Whew! They probably won't be happy when I tell them we're doing history tomorrow instead of science...

PS- we did finish our read aloud book today. We voted on the next one to start tomorrow, Notorious by Gordon Korman.

Earthquakes

The 7-8th graders learned about earthquakes today. They were super into it; it was great. A lot of them asked questions about things we were going to learn, like, five minutes from now. It happened at least three times during our half an hour class. During study hall, we read more of our read-aloud book. It took a while to get into it since it's been so long since we've read. The story is right at the climax, but things are happening slowly. They like it, but they're not riveted.

The 5-6th graders, on the other hand, are on the edge of their seats with our latest book! Me too, since I haven't read it before. Gah, I want to read ahead so bad! My eyes keep flicking to the next page, or I read things I shouldn't when I'm checking where the chapter ends. It's funny because if I pause too long, my kids are like, "Miss H... are you reading ahead? Stop right now!" 

The good news is, we might finish the book tomorrow. Only 40 pages left! It's been a quick read so far, so 40 pages is probably doable. And if not, they're willing to barter rounds away for more read-aloud. And since I'm sucked in, I go along with it, the stinkers. This is the only book I've ever been tempted to read ahead on (that I've read aloud without having read before). In case you're wondering, the book is Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix.