Look what I got...

I finished week 5 today and it was so much fun. I may have said this last week, but the week's have been going by so fast. I couldn't believe that today was Friday, I feel like it was just last weekend. Crazy I know. This week was a lot of fun. We are working on addition in math, mostly double digit regrouping and today we did a little bit of estimating. We are reading Ella Enchanted for our read aloud and the kids are loving it. It has been fun to read. We are putting read aloud on hold for a week because we have to do this IOWA state testing. I am not excited for the testing, it stresses out the children. Today we had this guy from a Karate place come and teach this respect lesson. It was so much fun and the kids were freaking out. One of the girls in my class got picked to break a board and it was so fun to watch. She didn't really think that she was able to do it, but she did. I would be so nervous if I had to do it. The instructor asked who wanted to do it and I raised my hand, sometimes I forget that I am the teacher and not the student.

Today I inherited this cute little monkey. Ooops sorry kid that you were just playing with it during class and I had to take it away.
I also made 3 kids cry this week. I had a girl who wouldn't stay on task. She seriously sat at her desk for 20 minutes and didn't do a thing on her worksheet. I told her she would have lunch with me and do her worksheet during lunch. She quickly got to work. Then the next day she was dawdling again and I held her back in read aloud. Then she and I had to have a little talking. She cried but hopefully she learned that she shouldn't waste time.

Incident number 2 came with another girl who wrote a story during writer's workshop. I had her come back to do a teacher edit and she told me the story. She said she went to California and her best friend came with her. One night her friend was shot and killed. She knew this because her Dad slept with one eye open. I had a feeling that girl was telling a lie. I told her it was inappropriate to lie. She looked at me with the most serious face and told me it really happened. My instinct told me she was lying, but she just seemed so convincing. So then I asked her again and she denied lying. I emailed her Mom to ask her about the story and she replied saying it was a lie. The next day I talked to her and told her I was really sad she lied. She tried to explain that it was her imaginary friend and that it really happened. (How is this 3rd grade girl just thinking about her imaginary friend being shot. Oh man, I feel so bad for this girl.) She held her own while we talked but after she fell apart.

3rd friend was boy in my class who never brings his homework folder back. So I didn't let him go to fun friday today. (Which is just a 20-30 minute activity for kids who do their homework and don't get in trouble during the week.) I gave him a paper with addition facts on it and had him do that while the rest of the class was having free time. He started bawling because "it's not my fault, my Dad wouldn't let me bring my homework folder to school today." SURE..... Haha. He told me that I was punishing him. Well hopefully he hated the math facts this week so next week he will bring his homework folder back.

I have an aide and she is awesome. Michelle has been doing so much for me including grading and helping my students who need some extra one and one time. Thank you so much Alpine School District for letting me have an aide since I have 32 kids in my class.

I got my new computer. It is so much nicer than the old ones we were sportin. I have the new MacBook and it is just so speedy and clean and fun. Everyone should have one. I have almost been converted to a Mac. I'm just lovin it.

Well, Thats a wrap. I am sure there is tons more, but at this moment, I can't remember.