Willow has been attending Youth Group at church this year on Sunday nights. They've met outside and only had a few cold times in the winter. She's made a new friend and seems to really enjoy going. The youth do a week mission trip each summer and this year they went outside Gatlinburg, TN. I was glad she was interested in going!
One of the chaperones said that it's usually a larger group but I think it was good for her first experience to be with a small group. I was thankful for all of the pictures they posted throughout the week!
We were proud to get this text from a chaperone after the first work day!
Willow borrowed my overalls to work in, which reminded me of wearing overalls during my AmeriCorps days:
I was excited to get an email from her during the week:
During the week they did various care for multiple mobile homes in a neighborhood. When she returned, we asked what her favorite part of the week was and she said the smiles on the faces of the people they'd helped :)
After 4 days of work, they enjoyed a day at the water park and a half day at the aquarium. In the evenings they were able to go downtown.
I think Willow enjoyed the freedoms and responsibilities they had during the week. They were "set free" to enjoy the water park on their own, so I was thankful that her friend was there too. They were also responsible for being places at certain times so it was a good experience for her to think through when she needed to wake up (she didn't take her blankie or music on the trip!!!). I hope she'll enjoy going on these trips each summer!
This school year has been interesting, that's for sure! Both kids were "hybrid" the first nine weeks of school, meaning that they attended in-person on Tues/Fri and did assignments from home the other 3 days. Thankfully Owen was able to return back to 5 days a week in October (when I was pulled to be a virtual teacher) but his class had to move to the cafeteria in order to meet the 6' distancing requirements. He had a great teacher and they made the best of the situation. Owen earned all As this year!
Willow remained hybrid for most of the year. In March they started going 4 days a week and she had a mixed reaction when I told her - I think she'd really gotten used to doing her work on the couch, with lots of snacks, in her pajamas :) She did great going back and was able to develop some new friendships. Willow also earned all As this year! When they approved the Pfizer COVID vaccine in May, she was able to get her first dose while at school, then we brought her to school for her 2nd dose a couple weeks into summer. Here's hoping for some normalcy in the coming year!!
The kids were great about helping with party bags for my virtual students. Below they were helping distribute valentine cards, which was fun for them since they didn't get to do it in class!
A colleague gifted me this sign when I became a virtual teacher:
I met some friends at a new axe throwing place in town to relieve a little stress during SOL testing week. It was a lot of fun!
Willow has coordinated with a couple friends to create a band. They brainstormed names and agreed on "Oblivion." Willow created a variety of logos and they've agreed on one as well. Willow has enjoyed writing a few songs and even playing around on the keyboard and writing down some of the music! They've had two "band sleepovers" so far to practice together and hope to meet weekly for practice now. They've created a YouTube channel and are working on their first music video. Stay tuned!
Willow had been asking to dye her hair black. She said she liked the color of it when it was wet after a shower. On the "things to battle with a middle-schooler," this didn't rank too high, so we gave it a try with an 8-week temporary dye.
She was a bit more confident than I was in my abilities!
Before:
After:
Before:
After:
She's pretty happy with it! She usually pulls her hair back in a pony tail 99% of the time, so it was nice to see her wear her hair down...though it was just for about a week. We're 4 weeks in and the color is holding on pretty strong!
We've been having lots of fun in reading intervention! The students love the stump chairs, their wooden pencils, and especially love when we move up a reading level and get to turn out the lights and wear headlamps! Due to germs, the book buddies are just watching us read:
After creating great routines with my groups and really making progress, the school board decided to bring 3rd graders back into the building 5 days a week. This is great for Owen instructionally but cause me to become a 3rd grade online teacher for students who opted to be 100% online. Although I was super disappointed to leave my groups and put the headlamps away, I've been excited to create a classroom community online and teach math for the first time in 10 years!
This year will start off a bit different than most due to the Corona virus. The kids will be on a "hybrid" schedule. They'll attend in-person on Tues/Fri and have online activities to complete from home the other days. While at school, their desks will be spaced 6' apart and they'll be required to wear masks. There will be LOTS of handwashing and eating lunch in the classroom instead of the cafeteria. Willow will do the Health portion of Health/PE while at school, then log her PE activities online from home. Owen will have Art and Music in his classroom instead of moving to those classrooms. Usually the kids would ride the bus home but due to spacing issues, families who could provide their own transportation were asked to do so since students have to be spaced out on the bus as well, limiting the capacity. I've asked Chris if he's mentally prepared for 4 car rider lines on their in-school days!!
(Not sure where Owen's glasses were for this picture)
We've already declared Mr. Seth is the 2020-21 Teacher of the Year!
Owen has Ms. Lafferty for his 3rd grade teacher. I've heard wonderful things about her use of flexible seating in her room. Unfortunately she can't do that right now, but I'm hoping she'll be able to at some point while Owen is in her class!
Here are a couple of Owen's activities from the first week of school:
Both kids seemed to enjoy being back at school to see people besides their family ;) The first few times at school were a lot of "how to do online activities at home" but now they seem to be getting started on some new learning. :) Praying for a healthy year for us all!!
It's been a while since I've posted Corona memes. Now seems like a great opportunity ;)
All jokes aside, this virus continues to be very tragic worldwide:
Global Confirmed
28,819,579
Global Deaths
921,156
U.S. Confirmed
6,496,159
U.S. Deaths
193,787
This year is bringing a lot of changes for me as well. I accepted a Reading Specialist position in the county where the kids attend. It's a small school (2 classes at each grade level) and has a great reputation for a great school community. Every positive thing I'd heard has been true! Everyone is so positive and happy that you can't help but be as well (even in a pandemic!!). It really is a little piece of heaven on earth and I feel like I've lost 20 pounds of stress already! The school used to regularly have 3 classes at each grade level, so there are a lot of classrooms sitting empty. I jumped at the opportunity to have a full-sized classroom and started dreaming big of a camping-themed room with flexible seating. The principal was supportive so I put a list together and was blessed with many generous friends who wanted to help turn the dream into a reality!! Due to COVID cleaning protocols and spacing needs, I won't be able to fully put it together at this point but I'm excited about what I've been able to do so far!
It's a huge room!!
I keep a live feed of a campfire going throughout the day. I love the calming crackling noise and occasionally you hear a person coming to stoke the fire. The custodian loves to joke about coming in to warm his hands by it :) I have star lights and a camping themed alphabet.
I love this wood bulletin board paper! I found a fun camping banner too:
I used black painters tape to make these fun mountains. A friend with a Cricket helped me make the vinyl letters for the wall.
Chad cut these wooden stumps for me, then Chris sanded the tops, rounded the edge, then stained and sealed the top. They're so fun and have been a huge hit so far!
"Still to come" are a tent with pillows, picnic table, camping chairs, and woodland animal reading buddies. In the meantime, I'm armed with Virex cleaner!
I've felt super supported by sweet people in my life! Here are some beautiful flowers from the Murrays:
A sweet note and fun mask from the librarian:
and gift card and sweet note from our church staff!
These sweet messages over 50 feet of sidewalk on the first day of school almost made me cry!! I've definitely never been at a school like this!!
