Going Against Their Very Nature

Boys + Sticks = Love

Playground Rule # 431  You may not play with sticks on the playground.

Saturday afternoon and I looked out the window to find the Council of the Boys taking place directly outside my classroom.  Every boy except for one had a stick in his hand.

I had a revelation.  Rule # 431 You may not play with sticks on the playground - must be a very hard rule to follow on weekdays.

I'm kind of glad that on Saturdays we don't have to follow the playground rules.  Who would want to deny them the simple joy of a stick?

Here's hoping nobody pokes their eye out on Saturday!

Ameracains and Canadians

It's report card time and not surprisely, I discovered an absolute gem of a piece of writing.  It makes the Canadian in me very proud! :)

Ameracains and Canadians
     (A Canadian Poem)
              by:  I. C.

Ameracains say that colour,
Is spelt with just an O,
Canadians say that colour,
Is spelt with O, U,
Ameracains say that favourite,
Is spelt with just an O,
Canadians say that favourite,
Is spelt with O,U,
Ameracains say that neighbour,
Is spelt with just an O,
Canadians say that neighbour,
Is spelt with O, U,
And the Canadians favourite letter,
Is U!

(As usual all original spelling and punctuation has been guarded!)

Full to the Brim and Running Out

Without fail the last weeks of the school year are full to the brim.  This week was certainly no exception.  Tuesday and Thursday morning the elementary students got their day off to a start with two hours of swimming lessons.  The elementary teachers were blessed to work in their classrooms during this time.  I'm not even going to lie, I jumped for joy and clicked my heels when the vans pulled out. There's plenty to be done in my classroom!

Thursday afternoon we all took a break from our classes and witnessed the baptism of six young people, five of them students or former students at Sahel.  It was a special blessing to hear these young people speak of their desire to follow Jesus wholeheartedly and to invite their peers to keep them accountable to the commitment they were making.

It is hugely encouraging to see former students return and to see that they are continuing to walk in the truth.  C graduated last year.  Early in May he returned to help out with the swimming program.  He's been helping in P.E. and Art classes and blessing tired teachers with his enthusiasm and willingness to love on the students.  I'm pretty sure there are more than a few people who are trying to convince him that he needs to be an elementary teacher! :) 

Friday morning the Fourth Graders put on a Medieval Fair for all of the elementary students to enjoy.  There was plenty of fun to be had from donkey cart rides, magic tricks and juggling to sword fights, jousting matches and tug of war.

And in other news, it's time for home assignment because I'm running out...

out of pizza sauce,

out of pepperoni,

out of parmesan cheese,

and out of bacon bits,

not to mention just about every other luxury item.

All I've got left is a handful of chocolate chips.

Yep it's time for home assignment because everyone knows you can't survive without chocolate chips! :)

Boring They're Not

Let's hold hands,

Run, jump,

Kick up the breeze,

And float away!

***In the interest of full disclosure, this was really our teacher's idea.  We don't know why but she seems to be obsessed with jumping pictures...probably because they are good for making up tall tales about us.

Divulging Secrets

It's a well known fact that I like getting mail especially from kids.  Well, I got a letter containing a very big secret yesterday but it was just so cute that I'm going to be divulging the secret today.

"Shh its a secert I absulootly Love writing."

Shh, it's a secret.  This letter absulootly put a smile on my face!

When I Get a Glimpse

Not every discussion in our Second Grade leads to the deepest of spiritual truths or application. That is definitely true of the way this morning's devotional time went as we somehow made our way from the woman who bled for twelve years to someone knowing a Bible story about a person who took a bath on the roof.  Honestly, I don't know what the connection was but once we had made it I tried to turn the conversation around.  However, my Second Graders insisted on discussing the merits of bathing on the roof.  It was concluded, and rightly so, that in this context that would not be a good idea because your toosh would be burning!  Ah yes, it wasn't deep or spiritual but we surely arrived at a simple truth. :)

In Bible, we have followed the book of Genesis through creation to the establishment of the covenant with Abraham to the Exodus of the Israelites.  This afternoon we pulled out a model tabernacle.  I had introduced the tabernacle and its different parts to them last week but had promised that we would talk about how each one pointed the way to Jesus and God's plan to restore relationship with us through him.  They were excited to learn more and loved remembering many of Jesus' "I am" statements and how they related to the different parts of the tabernacle.  Then we skipped ahead and talked about the fact that when Jesus died the veil in the temple was torn in two and how we can now have a direct relationship with God.  After reflecting a bit, I encouraged my Second Graders to pray and thank God for the truths that the tabernacle reveal.  As they prayed, I couldn't help but think that those prayers must have been sweet to the ears of God.  Each one that prayed thanked God for making a way for us to know him personally.

Yes, the truths aren't always deeply spiritual but when God gives me a glimpse of what He is teaching them and when I hear their sincere prayers it gives me great joy.

"For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes?  Is it not you?  Indeed, you are our glory and joy."  1 Thessalonians 2:19-20

My Favorite Read-Aloud Chapter Books

Being a lover of children's books, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to link up with Run!  Miss Nelson's Got the Camera and her All-time Favorite Read-Alouds linky party. 

I'm not even sure it would be possible for me to pick a favorite picture book read aloud so I'm going to have to go with chapter books instead.  These are two that I have read to my second graders this year and they have been totally engrossed.

The Teddy Bear Tree by Barbara Dillon is one that was introduced to me in my first years of teaching.  I have found that first and second graders really connect with this book.  It's the story of a little girl named Bertine who plants a teddy bear's eye and ends up with a teddy bear tree and more teddy bears than she can handle.  One activity that is always fun to do after reading the Teddy Bear Tree is to have the students imagine planting an object of their choice and having it grow into a tree.  I've had students draw trees that grow money, jewels, candy and even paper.



This year was the first year that I read The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane to my second graders.  Written by Kate DiCamillo, I think this book is especially great for the Third Culture Kids that I teach.  It deals with the issue of repeated loss which is an integral part of the Third Culture Kid experience and learning to love again despite that loss.  My students were so invested in the character of Edward Tulane that many afternoons they didn't even want school to end because they wanted to hear more.  I'll definitely be reading this one again!

So there you go - two of my favorite chapter books to read aloud.