Almost Summer

Well, it's almost summer! I made it through a year of first grade, relatively unscathed! With one teacher work day left (officially) and some moving to another new classroom to do, I imagine I'll be at work a couple more days than required. I plan to be ready to get started in my room in the fall, so I don't have to spend three weeks ramping up.

Of course I recently learned that, while moving to 6th grade is a good thing, I'll probably be teaching Science and Math. It's not that I can't do this. I know a few things about both of these and am still pretty adept at pre-Algebra, so it's likely that I'll be just fine, teaching the content. The truth, though, is that I LOVE Language Arts and History, so I was hoping those were the subjects I'd be teaching. The good news is I'll be team teaching with Davis, who I taught with at the Jr. High! I guess we all learn to take the bumps in the road in stride eventually!

The days of school were quite hectic! The kids were pretty much ready to be done after Field Day, which was the hottest day of the year! It was 90+ in the shade, and we got to spend the whole day outside. The kids had fun, but of course I was a rule breaker because I decided that I wasn't going to keep score and read off the winners after the day was over. The kids just played hard, did their best and we went with the motto, "If you had fun, you won!"

Some of the kids cried on the last day, some of them wanted to stay, and lots of them asked for my phone number. I decided to give it to them, and just see how many of them call me and ask me to come over to play this summer! If they have a pool, it's a good bet that I'll show up for some swimming. I even felt a little teary eyed! I will miss their enthusiasm, their hugs, and their boundless energy.

Now...with summer stretching ahead, it's time to think of all the projects I have to get done. Of course there is working on the problems in the math book, reading and creating units in the science book, and putting together materials to make those subject interesting to me and to the kids. At home there are fences to mend and apply waterproofing, a deck to waterproof, paint to touch up, cabinets to clean, and of course the yard and garden to take care of. I also want to get some sewing done, and set up a booth at Local Roots to sell my re-purposed aprons.

Then there are the travel plans. I trip to Iowa to see Taylor's crew, then on to Kansas to spend time with Whitney, helping her decorate her new abode. On the return it's back to Iowa for a couple of days, then home to meet Whitney's flight, so she and Faith can spend time in Ohio. The month of July is going to be pretty busy! I think I'm going to search out a little wading pool for the backyard for the granddaughters...too bad I've never built that in ground pool I was intending too!

I hope your summer is peaceful and fun, and all you want it to be. I will post some pix and stories here...maybe find my funny bone again, and make sure I have time to do all the things I love.