Another reason I love teaching in a small town

I know that there are people who love the city life and all the opportunities it provides, but I love the life in a small town in a rural area.
A little over a month ago someone I work with was diagnosed with cancer. She is one of those sweet people that works quietly, doing her job and living her life as an example for the children as well as the staff. She rarely complains and is one of the kindest people I know.
So, with her treatment program being several hours away, the staff at school decided to have a family activity night and give the proceeds to help her family with some of the costs they are incurring as a result of the cancer treatments.
With 3 weeks to plan and pull off the event, it was a true team effort, but everything was organized and ready to go on time.
Tonight was the 'big event' and the community response was incredible. Our elementary school has around 400 students, small by most standards. During the 2 hours that the event was scheduled, the elementary was packed with students and their families. Almost every classroom had an activity going on and the cost of every game or item was only $.25. We also had food and silent auction items.
In that 2 hour period the community helped us raise over $4,500 for our friend and her family. That's a truckload of quarters! and a wonderful community of generous, caring people.
Yes, the city might have bright lights and glamorous people, but I wouldn't trade the kind and generous folks in my small, rural town for any of it. Even in a struggling economy, they open their hearts (and billfolds) to help a friend through a difficult time.

Wood/Wool

For the past several years we have done a science unit on wood and paper in Kindergarten. We start by reading about trees and looking at a slice from a tree to see the rings. We learn about properties of wood  and look at several different samples. We even make our own plywood, particle board and recycled paper.
In the spring we do a unit on fabrics, and always start it off with a presentation by a local woman who raises sheep and goats for their wool, cleans, dyes and spins the wool into yarn. The children get to feel the wool and help card and spin it. It's one of my favorite days.

So yesterday, two of my students are having a heated arguement and I walk over to see what its about.
Me: "Hey guys, what seems to be the problem?"
Lee: "I said wool comes from trees, and Jay says it doesn't."
Jay: "But paper comes from trees. Not wool."
(Now you have to understand that Lee has a few speech delays and sometimes several words can sound the same, including wool/wood and sheep/trees. S sounds seem to creep in for most any sound)

So we spent just a few minutes reviewing some of out previous lessons. "Yes, paper comes from trees, because paper is made from little pieces of wood and wood comes from trees. Wool sounds a lot like wood (I even wrote both words on the board to show them that only the last letter was different) and wooL is what we get from sheep."

Both seemed to be satisfied that they had been correct and went off to play together.
Ironically, our Weekly Reader for the day was about Terrific Trees, so everyone got a refresher on trees and their products. What great timing!

Wooden sheep :-) ......I love Kindergarten!

Rock Stars

     Last night the Kindergarten classes performed for their families ON STAGE!! It was so exciting for them to be in front of all those people in the auditorium, up on the risers and being 'rock stars' for a night. Our program was titled Everybody Has Music Inside and of course that is my feeling exactly! The first number had the kids wearing sunglasses and rocking out with actions (including a little air guitar at the end). Five and six year olds "gettin' down" with the music....too funny! Each child also had a special part, either reciting a sentence or doing a special movement for the Dancing Machine number. They did an amazing job!

      One of my former students (actually several of them) was there with her son. She made a special point of saying Hello and telling me I was her favorite teacher. It was a wonderful reminder that we don't just effect our students while they are in our classrooms, but sometimes our influence lasts beyond that 180 days that we share their lives. This former student makes me especially proud becuase she chose to become an elementary teacher. What bigger compliment could a teacher recieve? I guess that's why I've done this for so many years. :-)

New Beginnings

     This week I begin the process of meeting and assessing the Kindergarten recruits for next fall's class. We use the Gesell Kindergarten Readiness Screening. I've been giving this 'test' for 25 years. A few minor things in the dialog have changed, but for the most part it has stayed the same. More importantly, the norms and the milestones have stayed the same. It is actually reassuring to me that no matter what technology or organized sports competitions we expose them to before they reach 5, there are still things that are the same for these children that were seen in children 50 years ago. (The more things change, the more they stay the same I guess)
     One of the hardest parts about teaching Kindergarten for me has been watching parents send children that may not be developmentally ready for school. The screening we give incoming students looks at more than just what they can recite or write on paper. It looks at attention span, language skills, fine motor dexterity and how the child reacts to new situations. Yet when a child screens young, parents immediately think they can fix it before school starts in the fall. Although I've always tried to keep my room a Kindergarten that allows children time to play and interact, the curriculum guide has become more academic over the years. Another reason to make sure a child is READY for the task of reaching those standards and benchmarks decreed by the district, state and national tests.
     Sorry! I didn't mean to get on my soapbox. My goal was to say that I am looking forward to meeting yet another class of eager, wiggly, smiley 4 & 5 year olds. The children I work with give me so much every day. Their energy is contagious and it helps to keep me young. Just as Easter Sunday marked a new beginning, I think it's appropriate that I will begin meeting a new and eager batch of children this week.