Tomorrow is my Kinder final!

Tomorrow is my final observation for Kinder.  I'm a little nervous and just want to get it over with! It's impossible to act totally normal when there is another adult in the room...just watching you.  I try to ignore him, but it's nearly impossible.  And the kids get all weird, too.  It's going to be even worse when i have to video myself teaching during my next class...it's a requirement for the state.

Gotta keep it short and sweet...gotta get a good night's sleep!

Valentine's Day AKA: How often can I sneak candy without the teacher noticing day

Happy Valentines (or as I heard 12,000 times today, ValentiMes) Day!  V-day with the kinders was...well...an experience to say the least. A ton of fun, but too much sugar!  We started the day by counting a graphing candy heart colors.  One of the kids had extra fun dips and passed them out at recess and one of the girls came in with a green finger...it was pretty gross!  During centers I caught a few of them sneaking candy hearts from their cubbies...We then read a few books, did a dot to dot a few other things then it was time to party! Watching the kids pass out their valentines was so funny!  They were so serious but excited at the same time.  Several of the parents came in today and one of them said "My daughter really likes you!  She talks about you all the time at home"  and another little girl gave me a valentine that was printed for a teacher. Love it!! <3 I was so surprised/happy that I received so much stuff from the kids and their families.  It's truly humbling :)

Here's my stash:

I love the hand written notes and all the creative ways the kids tried to spell "Rist."  There's "Reses", "Wrist", "Reist" and a few others. One of my favorites was a paper plate with glitter all over it and a foam "R" glued on. Another favorite is Elise's...it's the photo card towards the bottom right of the pic. So creative! We always tell them to try their best, and I'm glad they did!  What a fun day!

Today's Lesson: Please, don't drag your friends

I say so many things everyday that I didn't think would ever come out of my mouth.  Things like, "Where did you throw up?" "Why did you call him a trash can?" and, "Get your finger out of your nose!" (all of these said within the last 24 hours).  In the credential program, you learn effective teaching methods, classroom management, and state standards...I think what we really need is a class on "101 ways to get kids to pay attention" or "Yeah, it really is your job to button that kid's pants."  Don't get me wrong, teaching is awesome..it's all the other stuff that you never think about that is so surprising/annoying/sticky!

Anyways, Kindergarten has been really fun lately.  Other then the random situations I encounter (like telling the kids to stop playing "Let's arrest Justin Beiber"), it's been a blast!  On Monday, we celebrated the 100th day of school. Now let me tell you, this is a big deal.  On top of it being the 100th day, it was also the day of my mid-term observation (which went well!).  We made a 100 day snack (10 pieces of 10 goodies like M&Ms, pretzels, and mini marshmallows), 100th day hats, and a 100 day necklace of cheerios and fruit loops.  One of the student's mom's was kind enough to let me post a pic of me and her daughter...THANKS! :) Here is Elise and I:

Next week we'll be celebrating Valentine's Day, and I already got Valentines for my class!  Everyone will get a little card that comes with either a cheeseburger or cupcake eraser (because the last thing they will need is more sugar!).  Next week also means that I will be taking over the class for 100% of the day.  As of right now, I'm doing about 90% of the day so it won't be a total shock....only 2 weeks left of my kinder student teaching experience...it's gone by so quickly!