The most fun part of the day was art... I thought most of them had Fire Posters and Peace Posters to work on, but I guess we read-aloud so much today that all but one finished. So instead of doing a fancy art project, I came up with a filler one that was super easy and didn't require a lot of thought... "Roll a Monster". I have these gigantic dice they rolled. Each time they rolled they added something else to their monster: body, arms, eyes, nose, mouth, hair, feet. The number they rolled went with a different shape/style. They had a lot of fun!
My kids were super crazy this afternoon. We went over to practice bells for a bit and they spent five minutes arguing over seats in the car! They couldn't just get in anywhere. And we went through the same song and dance coming back to school. Ugh. On the plus side, our songs sound pretty good. Not perfect, but we'll sound all right. Hopefully they don't freeze up in front of such a huge audience.
I'm headed over to church to get stuff ready for the Silent Auction. My friend Kristin got free tickets to the Maverick's hockey game tonight, so that's my other plans for the evening. Tomorrow, our first volleyball game is at 9:20 and after the tournament I'm hanging out with Laura. Sunday= Pork Chop Dinner for most of the day. Hopefully I'll have a little afternoon left afterwards!
Friday, October 9, 2015
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Last Practice
My life has been filled with Silent Auction items. I think I have most of the bidding sheets filled out (and the items organized somewhat in the closet). Some of the smaller items, like gift cards, I'm waiting to put together in case we want to pair them with another smaller item. A few parents are meeting tonight to wash potatoes for the dinner... no parent told me about it, so I'm hoping I can sneak home before they ask me to stay...
This morning one of the boys quoted a line from one of my all-time-favorite youtube videos... bacon is good for me. I added more quotes from the video and half the class looked at me like I had lost my mind. Actually, the other half of the class looked at me almost the same, like "wait, you actually know what we're talking about???" So at the end of the day we watched the video so they would all realize that their teacher was not totally crazy. I couldn't help mouthing along to some of the best lines... one of the 6th grade girls caught me at it (more than once) and laughed. That video was so fun, we watched another one! This time it was Top 60 Ghetto Names. Their favorite name was "guuuuuurrrrllll".
Our last volleyball practice was good. It seemed kind of silly to put up the net for only one hour of use, but set it up we did! To make matters worse, half of the younger girls forgot about practice and didn't stay. So we had six girls. But we got a lot accomplished and I feel ready for the tournament.
We play handbells for the first time on Sunday, so we had to get the tables set up over at church. For some reason they just couldn't get it through their heads that we had to go over to church. Why? What for? Yikes! I couldn't have them walk over with all the heavy traffic our road gets, so we piled into my car and cruised over. Overall the songs sound okay if they remember to play them right... we could use some more practice. Maybe we'll go over tomorrow too. I'll have to check with Mr. E what's going on in his math class if can steal my 6th graders back early.
This morning one of the boys quoted a line from one of my all-time-favorite youtube videos... bacon is good for me. I added more quotes from the video and half the class looked at me like I had lost my mind. Actually, the other half of the class looked at me almost the same, like "wait, you actually know what we're talking about???" So at the end of the day we watched the video so they would all realize that their teacher was not totally crazy. I couldn't help mouthing along to some of the best lines... one of the 6th grade girls caught me at it (more than once) and laughed. That video was so fun, we watched another one! This time it was Top 60 Ghetto Names. Their favorite name was "guuuuuurrrrllll".
Our last volleyball practice was good. It seemed kind of silly to put up the net for only one hour of use, but set it up we did! To make matters worse, half of the younger girls forgot about practice and didn't stay. So we had six girls. But we got a lot accomplished and I feel ready for the tournament.
We play handbells for the first time on Sunday, so we had to get the tables set up over at church. For some reason they just couldn't get it through their heads that we had to go over to church. Why? What for? Yikes! I couldn't have them walk over with all the heavy traffic our road gets, so we piled into my car and cruised over. Overall the songs sound okay if they remember to play them right... we could use some more practice. Maybe we'll go over tomorrow too. I'll have to check with Mr. E what's going on in his math class if can steal my 6th graders back early.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Fire Prevention Week
The firemen came to school today. They brought their "fire house", the one that you can go in and see what a house on fire looks like (they pump nontoxic smoke through the house) and try escaping through the windows/down the ladder. Yes, it's a mini-two story house. Two of the 5th grade girls were scared to go in it and would only do it if I went in with them. So I did. Maybe not the best idea with my cold and all, but it turned out fine. Mr. D charged me with taking pictures of the older kids... I used the new school camera and it was actually somewhat fun! Normally taking pictures is not my favorite thing to do, but for some reason this camera made it better than usual.
We also got to sit in the trucks, try on helmets/other gear, and spray the fire hose. They really go all out for Fire Prevention Week!
After "playing" outside, a fireman was supposed to come to our classroom and give the fire prevention/safety spiel. No one came and no one came and when it looked like they were packing up outside I finally asked one of my kids to poke his head out the door to see if they were going to send someone in. Sure enough, they had forgotten about us. But a fireman came right in and gave us the talk. By 5th and 6th grade they pretty much know everything, so there weren't a whole lot of questions. The fireman passed out a bunch of free stuff... plastic hats, lanyards, bracelets, safety stickers to put in bedroom windows, and a fire prevention coloring book. Like I said, they go all out for Fire Prevention Week.
In the afternoon, the 7th graders presented their first powerpoint of the year... it went okay for most of them. They had a week to do the powerpoint and plenty of time in class. For some reason, these kids have a hard time getting their work done. They always have tons of homework and never enough time to get it all done. I don't think the entire class has been allowed out at noon recess once this year because someone always has something late they haven't finished/turned in yet. Time management, I think. Hopefully it gets better.
Tonight there's an anti-bullying speaker at New Ulm High School... Bob Lenz is his name. The 7th graders went there this morning to hear him and they said he was good. And you know when a 7th grader says a speaker is good, he really is. So I'm going. Mr. D also expressed interest in going, so I'm going to pick him up and we'll go together.
Update on last night's volleyball games... it was close! but we lost all three. We have one more practice tomorrow and one more tournament on Saturday and then our season is over. It's a bit bittersweet.
We also got to sit in the trucks, try on helmets/other gear, and spray the fire hose. They really go all out for Fire Prevention Week!
After "playing" outside, a fireman was supposed to come to our classroom and give the fire prevention/safety spiel. No one came and no one came and when it looked like they were packing up outside I finally asked one of my kids to poke his head out the door to see if they were going to send someone in. Sure enough, they had forgotten about us. But a fireman came right in and gave us the talk. By 5th and 6th grade they pretty much know everything, so there weren't a whole lot of questions. The fireman passed out a bunch of free stuff... plastic hats, lanyards, bracelets, safety stickers to put in bedroom windows, and a fire prevention coloring book. Like I said, they go all out for Fire Prevention Week.
In the afternoon, the 7th graders presented their first powerpoint of the year... it went okay for most of them. They had a week to do the powerpoint and plenty of time in class. For some reason, these kids have a hard time getting their work done. They always have tons of homework and never enough time to get it all done. I don't think the entire class has been allowed out at noon recess once this year because someone always has something late they haven't finished/turned in yet. Time management, I think. Hopefully it gets better.
Tonight there's an anti-bullying speaker at New Ulm High School... Bob Lenz is his name. The 7th graders went there this morning to hear him and they said he was good. And you know when a 7th grader says a speaker is good, he really is. So I'm going. Mr. D also expressed interest in going, so I'm going to pick him up and we'll go together.
Update on last night's volleyball games... it was close! but we lost all three. We have one more practice tomorrow and one more tournament on Saturday and then our season is over. It's a bit bittersweet.
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Drooping and Dragging
Not gonna lie, this morning was rough. Possibly the roughest start to the day I've ever had teaching, all because of this stupid cold. Fear not! I'm feeling more human now and can actually breath through my nose (and though my ears are still pluggy, that's getting better too as the day goes on). I kinda just went through the motions this morning.
One of the boys who was sick yesterday was back. On a usual day he can need some reining in... today I could tell he still wasn't feeling 100%, which meant even more surly behavior. And I did not feel up to containing his outbursts. So. Like I said. This morning was rough.
But after lunch was good! I even felt better enough to join in the 4-square game at recess. Just in time too, we have our last volleyball game tonight... I should leave in a few minutes actually. I was supposed to bring some players with me, but they all told me today they now have other rides. Fine with me I guess. I have everything done for tomorrow, so I can actually go straight home after the game and not even stop back at school! Woohoo!
Oh, we had a fire drill today. I knew it was coming, but even with knowing, the sharp sound of the alarm startled me. One kid looked at me with panic and raced to line up at the door... and then he realized it was a drill. No one told the cook, so she actually screamed when it went off! Although she said she probably would've screamed either way. We always time our drills to see if we pass. I think we did today. Tomorrow the fire fighters are coming out to visit and test us again!
One of the boys who was sick yesterday was back. On a usual day he can need some reining in... today I could tell he still wasn't feeling 100%, which meant even more surly behavior. And I did not feel up to containing his outbursts. So. Like I said. This morning was rough.
But after lunch was good! I even felt better enough to join in the 4-square game at recess. Just in time too, we have our last volleyball game tonight... I should leave in a few minutes actually. I was supposed to bring some players with me, but they all told me today they now have other rides. Fine with me I guess. I have everything done for tomorrow, so I can actually go straight home after the game and not even stop back at school! Woohoo!
Oh, we had a fire drill today. I knew it was coming, but even with knowing, the sharp sound of the alarm startled me. One kid looked at me with panic and raced to line up at the door... and then he realized it was a drill. No one told the cook, so she actually screamed when it went off! Although she said she probably would've screamed either way. We always time our drills to see if we pass. I think we did today. Tomorrow the fire fighters are coming out to visit and test us again!
Monday, October 5, 2015
VIP Day
Of course I come down with a cold right before VIP Day! My ears aren't quite as pluggy as they were yesterday, but my nose has been stuffed up all day. Between my students and me, we've gone though a whole Kleenex box! I had two boys out sick today... tis the season I guess.
We had a large number of Very Important People visit our classroom this morning; it was standing room only! We started our day normally and I finished up the religion lessons we didn't quite finish last Friday. Then we did Pictionary! Only one VIP got up in front to draw. Donuts in the gym afterward went well. The 7th graders served each table. It was a little tricky finding room for everyone... a new attendance record was set this year... 131! Our enrollment this year is around 62, so we had a lot of guests! I never know where to sit at these things, so I usually stand awkwardly on one end of the gym until everyone is done eating or I finally pick a spot to sit. This year enough people talked to me that I never had to pick a spot. Of course then I didn't have firsthand access to the donuts... though I did sneak one out of the extras left in the kitchen.
Our entertainment for the morning was the Zoomobile, a program run by the Minnesota zoo. The speaker was super good! He was funny and interesting and he showed us lots of animals. I was expecting cute and cuddly, exotic animals, but we got some creepy crawlies and Minnesota animals instead. He showed us hissing cockroaches, a possum, a red-tailed hawk, and a ball python. The kids got to pet the python at the end. That was a hit with the kids! The adults... not so much.
The rest of the day flew by! More people dropped off Silent Auction stuff (we're running out of room in the closet! I need to reorganize!), the 7th graders worked on their powerpoints (we're getting to the really good part in our read aloud book), my class did Presidential Physical Fitness tests in PE.
We're still learning about plants in 5/6th science, and today we did a mini-quiz on the four tropisms of plants. Then they remembered I was supposed to show them a video of sunflowers turning toward the sun. So we looked it up and couldn't quite find a video that showed us what we wanted. So we looked up another one, and another one, and another one. And then I wondered how they harvest sunflowers... turns out they use a modified combine to cut the heads off. The seeds are shipped to three plants in America where most of them are turned into snacks/bird feed. About a third is sent to an oil processing plant to become sunflower oil. All this from 3 million acres of sunflowers. Pretty cool.
We had a large number of Very Important People visit our classroom this morning; it was standing room only! We started our day normally and I finished up the religion lessons we didn't quite finish last Friday. Then we did Pictionary! Only one VIP got up in front to draw. Donuts in the gym afterward went well. The 7th graders served each table. It was a little tricky finding room for everyone... a new attendance record was set this year... 131! Our enrollment this year is around 62, so we had a lot of guests! I never know where to sit at these things, so I usually stand awkwardly on one end of the gym until everyone is done eating or I finally pick a spot to sit. This year enough people talked to me that I never had to pick a spot. Of course then I didn't have firsthand access to the donuts... though I did sneak one out of the extras left in the kitchen.
Our entertainment for the morning was the Zoomobile, a program run by the Minnesota zoo. The speaker was super good! He was funny and interesting and he showed us lots of animals. I was expecting cute and cuddly, exotic animals, but we got some creepy crawlies and Minnesota animals instead. He showed us hissing cockroaches, a possum, a red-tailed hawk, and a ball python. The kids got to pet the python at the end. That was a hit with the kids! The adults... not so much.
The rest of the day flew by! More people dropped off Silent Auction stuff (we're running out of room in the closet! I need to reorganize!), the 7th graders worked on their powerpoints (we're getting to the really good part in our read aloud book), my class did Presidential Physical Fitness tests in PE.
We're still learning about plants in 5/6th science, and today we did a mini-quiz on the four tropisms of plants. Then they remembered I was supposed to show them a video of sunflowers turning toward the sun. So we looked it up and couldn't quite find a video that showed us what we wanted. So we looked up another one, and another one, and another one. And then I wondered how they harvest sunflowers... turns out they use a modified combine to cut the heads off. The seeds are shipped to three plants in America where most of them are turned into snacks/bird feed. About a third is sent to an oil processing plant to become sunflower oil. All this from 3 million acres of sunflowers. Pretty cool.
Friday, October 2, 2015
Memory Soccer?
Ah, Friday. There's no other day of the week quite like it.
I had one 6th grader out sick today, and one 6th grader who was supposed to be gone but was in school... his grandma from Michigan isn't doing so good and their family was going out to visit her, supposedly this weekend, but he showed up in school all grouchy this morning saying they were going to go in a week or two.
One of the 5th graders had trouble with Luther's Evening Prayer. I told her she could practice it outside at noon recess and then say it to me when she was ready. She and her best friend tried playing soccer as she memorized... it was hilarious. This 5th grader has her nose in her folder, trying her hardest to memorize those tricky phrases that have been tripping her up. Her friend is 20ft away, kicking the ball to her. Once memory-work girl has the ball, she (still with her nose in her folder) kicks where she thinks the ball is. But she can't keep her balance. Down goes the foot! She tries again, this time keeping her balance, but completely misses the ball! Again, she tries again, loses her balance, re-aims without looking, and tries to kick the ball. Another huge miss. Her friend and I exchange grins as we watch her focused dance with her memory work and the ball. I couldn't help chuckling! And then her concentration was broken enough she could pause to kick the ball. She did get her memory work said before the end of recess!
VIP day (aka- Very Important Person Day, or Grandparent's Day) is on Monday. We always set up tables in the gym for our VIPs to eat donuts with us. There aren't enough tables at school for us to use so we have to have someone bring some over from church... all the guys who usually help are in the fields. So Mr. E borrowed one guy's truck and hauled a couple over this afternoon while I watched his class. We were working on one of the many posters contests we're involved in... there's the Lions' Peace Poster contest and the Fire Department's Fire Safety Poster contest, both due next Friday. I wish they could space them out a bit. My students always freak out because they don't have that much time to work on them. But they always get them done.
At 2:00, the Lions came to talk to the 6th and 7th graders about helping out with their annual Halloween party. My 5th graders and I set up the tables and chairs in the gym. They did a great job taking action without me having to hover over them constantly telling them what to do. Unfortunately, we finished just as it was time to pack up... no time for recess. But my class is a convincing bunch and since they packed up in record time we went out for five minutes of four-square.
My weekend is a little more relaxing than last... a college friend is coming over tonight for movies/hanging out and Saturday afternoon I'm headed down to Fulda to hang out with the fam. That's about all I have planned. Next weekend is going to be whirlwind! Faribault volleyball tournament (last volleyball event of the year!) and the Joint Service with Redeemer/Silent Auction/Pork Chop Dinner... and all the set-up that goes with it. Yikes! I better rest up while I have the chance!
I had one 6th grader out sick today, and one 6th grader who was supposed to be gone but was in school... his grandma from Michigan isn't doing so good and their family was going out to visit her, supposedly this weekend, but he showed up in school all grouchy this morning saying they were going to go in a week or two.
One of the 5th graders had trouble with Luther's Evening Prayer. I told her she could practice it outside at noon recess and then say it to me when she was ready. She and her best friend tried playing soccer as she memorized... it was hilarious. This 5th grader has her nose in her folder, trying her hardest to memorize those tricky phrases that have been tripping her up. Her friend is 20ft away, kicking the ball to her. Once memory-work girl has the ball, she (still with her nose in her folder) kicks where she thinks the ball is. But she can't keep her balance. Down goes the foot! She tries again, this time keeping her balance, but completely misses the ball! Again, she tries again, loses her balance, re-aims without looking, and tries to kick the ball. Another huge miss. Her friend and I exchange grins as we watch her focused dance with her memory work and the ball. I couldn't help chuckling! And then her concentration was broken enough she could pause to kick the ball. She did get her memory work said before the end of recess!
VIP day (aka- Very Important Person Day, or Grandparent's Day) is on Monday. We always set up tables in the gym for our VIPs to eat donuts with us. There aren't enough tables at school for us to use so we have to have someone bring some over from church... all the guys who usually help are in the fields. So Mr. E borrowed one guy's truck and hauled a couple over this afternoon while I watched his class. We were working on one of the many posters contests we're involved in... there's the Lions' Peace Poster contest and the Fire Department's Fire Safety Poster contest, both due next Friday. I wish they could space them out a bit. My students always freak out because they don't have that much time to work on them. But they always get them done.
At 2:00, the Lions came to talk to the 6th and 7th graders about helping out with their annual Halloween party. My 5th graders and I set up the tables and chairs in the gym. They did a great job taking action without me having to hover over them constantly telling them what to do. Unfortunately, we finished just as it was time to pack up... no time for recess. But my class is a convincing bunch and since they packed up in record time we went out for five minutes of four-square.
My weekend is a little more relaxing than last... a college friend is coming over tonight for movies/hanging out and Saturday afternoon I'm headed down to Fulda to hang out with the fam. That's about all I have planned. Next weekend is going to be whirlwind! Faribault volleyball tournament (last volleyball event of the year!) and the Joint Service with Redeemer/Silent Auction/Pork Chop Dinner... and all the set-up that goes with it. Yikes! I better rest up while I have the chance!
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Slow...
My computer is being slow. Has been all day. It's super annoying.
Another normal day today. More kids said memory work. They all turned in their spelling. My last presenter finally presented his powerpoint. We had fun playing 4-square at recess. Typical Thursday-ish stuff.
Bookmobile came... along with the movie I ordered! Yay! I refrained from checking out more books, so that's good.
Our staff meeting lasted 2 and 1/2 hours. Part of it was a teacher came to tell us about a new type of testing instead of NWEA or Iowa tests. It seems like a good system. The tests are 30 minutes long and students take them three times a year. The best part is the questions change to fit the level of the student, so if they get them wrong the questions get easier, and if they get them right the questions get harder. And scores are reported right away. We'll probably do those next year since it takes a while to figure everything out about them.
I wore my new arm-knitted scarf to school today. It's made of hand-dyed wool, so it's a beautiful blend of purples and blues. And not too scratchy either! It was so fun to spend time with Mrs. E outside school. We talked about taking another artsy class together at some point... maybe cake decorating or painting or something.
Another normal day today. More kids said memory work. They all turned in their spelling. My last presenter finally presented his powerpoint. We had fun playing 4-square at recess. Typical Thursday-ish stuff.
Bookmobile came... along with the movie I ordered! Yay! I refrained from checking out more books, so that's good.
Our staff meeting lasted 2 and 1/2 hours. Part of it was a teacher came to tell us about a new type of testing instead of NWEA or Iowa tests. It seems like a good system. The tests are 30 minutes long and students take them three times a year. The best part is the questions change to fit the level of the student, so if they get them wrong the questions get easier, and if they get them right the questions get harder. And scores are reported right away. We'll probably do those next year since it takes a while to figure everything out about them.
I wore my new arm-knitted scarf to school today. It's made of hand-dyed wool, so it's a beautiful blend of purples and blues. And not too scratchy either! It was so fun to spend time with Mrs. E outside school. We talked about taking another artsy class together at some point... maybe cake decorating or painting or something.
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