Empty

This morning I still had 5 days left to get used to the idea of saying goodbye to my students, to finish reading the story my third graders were fascinated by, to keep my promises, to buy a good-bye gift for my reading students, to take lots of pictures. Or at least, so I thought. Then today, 10 minutes into my last class of the day, our principal asked all homeroom teachers to return to their classrooms, so I took my kids back to class, wondering what was going on. With 45 minutes left in the school day, they handed out papers to all the teachers, explaining that we were closing for the year due to an increase in flu symptoms at our school.

When I go back on Monday, the halls will be empty, but I'll have cupboards full of workbooks I told students they could take home with them at the end of the year, desks with the pencil cases and crayons I bought for my students still inside them, and books on hold at the library that I now have no reason to pick up.

It's hard to have so little closure. It would have been disappointing any year, but on a year when I'm leaving for good, it's really sad. I broke down and cried for awhile, then went to say good-bye. I stopped in room 213 first to say good bye to Dynamo, Thing 1, and Princess Fiona. When I told them I wouldn't be back next year, I wasn't the only one crying. All 3 of them were distressed. I told them I'd be back to visit in December, and that they would be just fine without me. I know it's true, but they didn't quite believe me.

I didn't tell the students in the other classes I was leaving. I had wanted them to know why I was leaving, and where I was going, but it seemed selfish to tell them if they were going to be that upset. I know when they come back next year, they'll notice I'm not there, they might even ask where I went, but they'll move on, and there probably won't be any tears.

It's hard to say good-bye. I worked at this school for 4 years, and I've known some of my students for that long. My favorite student my first year was a cute second grader with a smile that melted my heart. He was my most difficult student- he acted out, never did his homework, and was way behind my below grade level reading class. But, he was enthusiastic, he loved learning about new things, he was affectionate and funny. I watched him grow from a Spanish-only speaker to a confident bilingual student. I haven't taught him in the past 2 years, but I still see him around. Today I caught him on the way out of his classroom on his last day in elementary school to wish him luck in middle school. He still acts out and never does his homework, but he smiled at me when I wished him luck, and his smile still melts my heart. I'll miss him and so many other students who have brought me headaches and challenges, but even more joy, smiles, and laughter.

One good thing about first graders. . .

"The first person to finish their work can sharpen the pencils" really works as a motivator.

Yet another reason to get married. . .

Today during our phonics word building, I had my kids make the word "wife" with their magnet letters. I explained what wife and husband meant. One of the kids asked if I had a husband. I told them no. Sunshine said, "you should get one and then he could come to school and be your helper". Sure, why not? Sounds like a good reason to me.

Dynamisms

We're in the midst of state mandated ESL testing at work, not usually the most entertaining few weeks of the year. Dynamo's done a pretty good job at entertaining me though, despite the tedium of reading "when you get to the stop sign, remember, put your hand on the stop sign, put your pencil down, and look at me. You may begin" ad nauseam. He raised his hand half way through the test and when I called on him he said, "You are talking like a computer." He was right. There's something about reading test administration manuals aloud that makes you sound like a recording. Try it sometime.

The listening test narrates a sequence of events and then asks the children to choose the pictures that are in the same order. Yesterday Dynamo finished his writing assignment early, so I told him to draw a picture of his story on the back. When I came back to his seat, I saw a picture of children throwing snowballs with an arrow pointing to children building a snow fort. Underneath it were the same 2 pictures, but in reverse. Each had a bubble to fill in next to it. He had a second set too, of kids watching tv and drinking hot cocoa. "Look" He said. "You have to pick which one it is". I turned over his paper, read his story, and filled in the bubble next to the right order for each of his questions. Too cute.

The real reason our parents feed us. . .

Today Thing 2 said something that really made me laugh. Made the whole class laugh. We were talking about needs and wants and the kids had already brainstormed that we need food, shelter and clothes. I was giving them clues to guess the next need. "What does your Mom do for you?" "She cooks for me", said Thing 2. "Why?" " Because she wants me to be strong and healthy" "Why?" Because she doesn't want me to die." "True, but why?" And then, Thing 2s best answer, "Because she wants me to help her work!" Ok, I was looking more for love and care being a necessity, not forced labor, but you know, whatever. (Don't worry, Thing 2's parents really do love him.)

Meet my class

I realized I don't blog much about my students anymore. So, I figured it was time for some introductions. The class I spend the most time with is my second grade ESL reading class. I have 8 second graders, all of them speak Spanish as their first language and have varying degrees of English proficiency.

Thing 1 and Thing 2 are my identical twins. I had them last year in first grade too and they make me laugh. Fortunately for me, Thing 1 has a mole on his forehead, so I can tell him apart from his brother. Thing 1 also likes to remove his shoes whenever I'm not looking and has made quite a bit of progress in reading this year. Thing 2 comes to visit me every morning before school starts. He is generally a bit better behaved than his brother, though he's not above playing air guitar when he finishes his test early and is bored. He's struggling with reading a bit more than Thing 1.

Miracle is the sort of student who makes you keep coming to work each day. When he started in my class at the beginning of last year, he didn't know a word of English, needed an escort to the classroom for the first week or so because otherwise he would get lost, and didn't know the alphabet. He has amazed me. He moved from speaking Spanish only, to answering questions with 1 word English answers, to speaking in complete English sentences, though he is still on the quiet side. He's one of my top readers too and is an absolute pleasure to have in class.

Dynamo is the sort of kid you have trouble being stern with because he always makes you laugh and he's never trying to make trouble. He just arrived in the States this summer, and like Miracle last year, he's been pleasing me with his progress. He had a really good Spanish school background in first grade, so he came to me knowing how to read and write in Spanish which is awesome! He is learning to read English very quickly. He is almost infallibly cheerful, unless he doesn't earn a homework prize, which always causes tears.

Sunshine likes to be helpful. Unless she's pouting (which is unusual for her), she's smiling, and her smile is contagious. She's one of my middle of the road students- I'm not too concerned about her, but I don't usually tell people glowing stories of her progress.

Molasses is my puzzle. While not my strongest reader, I'm often amazed at her phonetic writing- she writes words with blends better than almost anyone in my class. She's overly affectionate, tells incredible stories, and loves to try to tell them to me while I'm in the middle of giving directions, reading a book to the class, helping another student. . . She alternately tries my patience and makes my heart ache for her. She is obviously hungry for attention.

Chatty is my social butterfly. I've known her since kindergarten and this is her 2nd year in my class as well. She's had a history of poor attendance, but I've seen an improvement this year, and with it, giant gains in reading achievement. In addition to being a fairly fluent reader at the level of books we're reading, she's mastered the art of the head wiggle/teeth sucking/eye rolling.

Pearl is the sort of student you'd take a class full of. It would be much easier and more peaceful than the class I have now, though I have to admit, it wouldn't be as interesting. She is dependable, helpful, and friendly. She's also the best reader in my class. She breezes through our books, knows all the sight words, often before I teach them; and she does really well with her phonetic writing too.