Howdy! It’s Thursday. I am so tired I am developing a canker sore in my mouth. My body always lets me know it needs sleep by cursing me with these painful and unpleasant sores. I have had chats with my body about this and how we could use a less dramatic way of telling me to sleep, but no. I don’t seem like a dramatic person do I? Right….
My therapy today are is from my students. Shocker, I know. Aren’t the students supposed to be the reason we need stress? Come on, we all have that ONE….you know who it is. Honestly, I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE my class! It’s not the students that make teaching so stressful. Sadly, it’s the big people. For real, you all know what I mean when I say it’s not the kids that cause me to need therapy but the adults I work with. Don’t even get me started. Let me share two stories that have me feeling wonderful tonight and has silenced my critics.
You’ve heard my saga of my ELL friend and the attacks on me because of my plan to help her adjust to my classroom. My plan was to allow her and her sister (3rd grader) to spend the day together. They spent a half day in my room and a half day in the third grade room. Not ideal, I know. But I was desperate. Fast forward to this week and our crisis team developed a plan to separate the sisters. Of course, the adults didn’t keep up their part of the plan. However, Mr. Greg is AMAZING. My critics are silent. Yesterday, my ELL friend who had screamed and cried and thrown things and eloped (did you know that is the technical name of a child who runs? ELOPE!!! Some days I want to elope from these big people!) spent a half day in our classroom. People, a half day. Laughing. Smiling. Working. Singing. Counting. Mr. Greg is AMAZING. People, today my ELL friend spent THE WHOLE DAY in our room. Not only did she stay with us, but she took over. She was telling people what to do. She was helping people with letters. She was helping people line up. Oh yeah, you hear those crickets? Those are my critics. Mr. Greg=AMAZING. But guess what? It had nothing to do with me. I allowed my students to take charge and help their friend become part of our family. They have surrounded this girl with friendship and love like nothing I have seen! Mr. Greg isn’t awesome. He is just fortunate to have amazing little monsters who rally to help and protect their own. I felt better today than I have all year! My little monsters did something no big people had been able to do. And my little monsters silenced a building of critics.
My other bit of therapy comes from my special ADHD friend. This friend was insanely wild at the beginning of the year. He had to be sent home by 9am every day. Yeah, that bad. We have been on medicine for a few weeks and I have gotten to see the true personality and potential of this little monster. (Disclaimer: I had his brother last year and the kids attend the daycare where I work in the summers so I have a great relationship with the family!) Yesterday we ran out of medicine. I was terrified that today would be a nightmare. Guess what? Never underestimate your students. My friend was great today. He was definitely more active and vocal than he has been, but he was able to control himself. Here is the best part of this story….
You need to know that my friend squints one eye when he wants to “tell me something!” It’s the right eye and you can tell he is working hard to get his words out. It’s quite cute and makes me laugh when he squints at me! So today during reading blog, he was struggling and I finally told him he could use the iPad. He sat straight up and that eye started squinting and he yelled out “Mr. Greg…Mr. Greg…me…me…me….me…I LUB YOU!”
A perfect day in Kindergarten people looks like a blonde hair blue eyed boy squinting at you and telling you he lubs you and a classroom full of little monsters protecting a special friend! Love knows no language.
Now you know why my kids are my Thursday Therapists!
And to celebrate, here are two freebies! Click to visit my TPT and download some Halloween math activities!
