L is for Landfills and Ladybugs

Yes, I realize that those two things don't really make sense together. I'm sure some ladybugs can be found in a landfill, but I will attempt to further connect the two by the end of this post.

Landfills are on all of my student's minds. First of all, I will start with the conversation we had during our reading lesson this morning. We have been discussing natural resources, endangered/extinct animals and ways humans change the earth.  This week's story is "How to Help Planet Earth" and is set up like a magazine article with many facts and pictures. This being said, we have become OBSESSED with recycling. The students all decided to save and bring in their paper/soda bottles to school if they didn't recycle at home. (By the way, we decided we should not bring in any beer bottles/can...)

We read a caption that was saying how kids may not be able to help the whole world's problems, but they can do a small part by recycling. This lead to: "We can't save the polar bears, but we can recycle!"
Here's the conversation between myself and the famous Mr. T.V. (aka Dr. Seuss Jr.):

Me: You guys must be talking about the commercials/news stories that says the polar bears' homes are being destroyed...There's not much that we can do to help in that situation, but I'm sure some scientists are working on it. (Really eloquent, I know.) What is a small thing we can do to help the earth?

Mr. T.V.: BUT MS. BUCKLER! WE CAN SAVE THE POLAR BEARS! WE CAN!

Me: What can we do, Mr. T.V.?

Mr. T.V.: WE CAN BRING THEM BASKETS OF FISH!

Me: Where are we going to get baskets of fish?!

MR. T.V.: THE LAKE! WE'LL CATCH THEM AND PUT THEM IN BASKETS WITH ICE!

Me: Okay, so how would we get the baskets of fish to the polar bears? (I pulled down the map and showed them where polar bears live and where we live.)

MR. T.V.: WE FLY THEM IN AN AIRPLANE!

Me: Where would we get an airplane?

MR. T.V.: AT THE AIRPORT! (Duh.)

Me: Where would we get money to buy tickets for the airplane ride?

MR. T.V.: FROM THE PRESIDENT! (We have been learning about the presidents this week, too.)

Me: Alright Mr. T.V., you write a letter to the president and ask for money to save the polar bears and we'll send it. But, I don't think I'm ready to go on a field trip to where polar bears live with second graders yet...I'm thinking that to start, we can recycle. That would be pretty easy. What are some ways we can be better at recycling?

MR. T.V.: MS. BUCKLER! WE SHOULD PROBABLY E-MAIL THE PRESIDENT...IT'S WAY FASTER.!

During this time, the rest of the students' heads are going back and forth between me and MR. T.V. like they are watching a tennis match. And, their little faces were changing from "great idea" when looking at MR. T.V. to "what is wrong with you Ms. Buckler? Why don't you want to help the poor polar bears?" when looking at me...Take a minute to imagine that.

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Ladybugs are things that I love. I blame my grandmother and Aunt for starting the obsession. I've collected ladybug things for a while now, and each year, my students add to the collection. For Valentine's day, I got five (yes, five!) ladybug-shaped boxes full of chocolate covered animal crackers. I've also gotten ladybug earrings, bracelets, pencils, tattoos (fake) and erasers. Oh, and a used nail file. If it's got a ladybug on it, I've probably gotten it from a student. (There was that one guy I dated in college that made me a ladybug fishing lure, but that's another story.) I've even dressed up as Ladybug Girl by Jacky Davis (given to me by a fellow ladybug lover) for Halloween.

 So, when the Time unit in math rolls around, I've always read The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle. This year, we have extra days to learn about time, so I got to pull out the extras that go with it. I was  very excited.

We made ladybug clocks, which I think turned out ADORABLE!

And Mr. T.V. read the story aloud with all the appropriate voices and dramatic inflection while the rest of us showed the times on the clock. We recorded his reading. I wish I was smart enough to be able to post it on here. I have it if you'd like to hear all seven minutes of fabulousness (especially when the snake says "If you insis-s-s-s-t! Right after LUNCH!")

We, and by that I mean mostly me and the girls and Mr. T.V., have been having a blast with the ladybug stuff.  To relate it to landfills...I know that a few of those ladybug clocks will end up there. It's just a part of life. I shall keep you posted on the polar bear project.

R is for Revolving

I’m thinking of changing the title of my blog to “The Year of Mr. TV.” If I were to take the time, I’m sure I could find the percentage of blog posts that include a Mr. TV story. I think it’s somewhere around 80%. If you don’t find Mr. TV entertaining, then do not read on because this one revolves around him. And it’s a long one. Just like my day.

In fact, I think it’s safe to say that 80% of my school day revolves around him. The other 20% being this:

5% -- Mr. TV is in the computer lab (not because he needs it, because I NEED IT!)
5% -- Mr. TV is at lunch
5% -- Mr. TV is in his gifted group
5% -- Mr. TV is in Specials

But oh, that for that other 80% he is RIGHT THERE with me. If you know of him, you know he has a few ‘quirks’.  Anyone who works with him should get an extra pat on the back. His last year teacher tried to warn me by telling me that some days she locked herself in the bathroom and cried. I will say he’s come a LONG way and the other students (for the most part) can tune him out. Actually, some of them help me give him reminders to follow the rules. He’s one of those kids that the whole day seems different when he’s absent.

As many of you know, this week is FCAT week. For us in the Second Grade this means:
*Our Specials time switches from “last thing of the day” to the “first thing of the day”
*Our school is a “Quiet Campus” which means we are supposed to be SILENT in the hallways as we pass the intermediate classrooms.
*Computer labs are closed (see 5% at top)
*We spend 3 uninterrupted hours in the classroom after lunch (Even a first year teacher can tell you that the focus of kids goes down after lunch.)
*Our whole daily schedule is wickety-wack.

To Mr. TV this means:
* HIS WHOLE LIFE HAS BEEN TURNED UPSIDE DOWN AND INSIDE OUT!

These are some highlights of the day:

First thing this morning…

Like I mentioned, it’s FCAT week. We are supposed to be quiet in the hallways. When we are leaving first thing in the morning to get to specials. Mr. TV made it to Music kinda-sorta quiet. On the way back? Not so much. He just couldn’t do his pelvis thrust/skip/ dance moves quietly (AKA the way he walks). Not to mention he was tripping on his untied shoelaces. My solution? I removed the shoes and he pelvic-thrusted/skipped/danced in his socks right on down the hallway. At least his voice was quiet. And I have to pick my battles…

Before lunch...

I was answering questions about Native Americans and how they used natural resources to meet their everyday needs. (Some of you may remember that when I asked them who they first Americans were last week I got “Charlie Daniels” as an answer…So, we’re spending some extra time to clear up some misconceptions.)

Ms. Giggly: Ms. Buckler? How did the Native Americans use the bathroom?
Me: Well, I’m pretty sure their bodies worked like ours do now…
Ms. Giggly: Yeah, but where? (giggles from them all)
Me: Maybe they used the woods, or had a certain place just for that reason…
Mr. TV: THE BOYS AND GIRLS WENT TO THE BATHROOM IN FRONT OF EACH OTHER?! THAT’S IS JUST SOOOOOO WRONG! MAYBE THEY HAD A ‘BOYS’ TREE AND A ‘GIRLS’ BUSH!”

I lost them to the hilarity of that image and his tone. I even had to take a minute to hide behind the easel and take a few deep breaths. I may or may not have laughed a little.

Going to recess after lunch...After his time-out in another room #1…

Me: Mr. TV, have you been making good-choices so far today?
Him: ACTUALLY, NO.
Me: How many interruption tallies do you think are in your planner?
Him: LESS THAN INFINITY?
Me: Maybe. Where would you like to spend your time-out? On the playground or in another teacher’s room?

(Now I know what you’re thinking…this kid needs recess! But I tell you that all the walking around my classroom and pelvic-thrust/skip/dancing he does is plenty of physical activity. I COULD NOT let the other students see him getting recess when they would NEVER get recess if they did what he does. It’s the principle of it.)

Him: UM, C…NONE OF THE ABOVE?
Me: I’m sorry, Buddy. But there is only a choice A and a choice B. Make one quickly.
Him (screaming down the hallway): I DON’T LIKE EITHER OF THOSE CHOICES! YOU MAKE MY LIFE SO BORING!!!!!! (Then horrible Sponge-Bob sounding cries echo through the halls)

Note: He made it to the playground five minutes later and lay down in the grass and read his book silently.  It was Captain Underpants so that was to be expected.

At the end of the day, when adding up his interruption tallies and discussing his goals for tomorrow…After time-out in another room #2…(Love you Mrs. Rood!)

Me: Mr. TV, do you think I would look good bald? Because you just might make me pull all my hair out if you have this many interruption tallies again. Maybe we can see if you can meet the goal of “Get fewer tallies than yesterday” and then how many days you can hold that record.
Him: Yeah, you’d look funny bald. But then it would be easy to grow it back as a mohawk.

To ease your mind about the loss of recess thing…He got to be Saturn at the end of the day when we were demonstrating how the planets rotate while they revolve around the sun. He did it happily while the whole time yelling, “LOOK AT ME! I’M SATURN! I HAVE RINGS!”

Now I know that you guys are probably looking at the things I say and can come up with a whole list of suggestions. Depending on my mood I may thank you for it. But, I’ll just bet you…whatever you suggest, I’ve tried it.  We just take one day at a time in my classroom. And laugh most of it off. Is it wrong if I ask God to give me an extra rung on my ladder to heaven if I make it through this year?

And on and unrelated to Mr. TV note, I got this envelope in my mailbox. It is from one of my darlings who was absent today.

It clearly says:

To Elementary School
To Ms. Buckler

It was a picture of Leprechaun Boy in a tree. Warning: Leprechaun Trap post to come!

C is for Canned Food

I have to start this story back in November. We had a canned food drive for Thanksgiving. Mr. TV brought a can of peas. In January. I was moving it closer and closer to the trash can until about a week ago when I finally threw it away. Mr. TV notices big changes, so I've been sneaky.

Today, "Mrs. Wilkingson" (Mr. TV's name for Cammie) announced that there will be a canned food drive to support "Stamp Out Hunger" Mail Carriers' Food Drive.

Mr. TV: "UH OH! WHERE ARE MY PEAS?!"
Me: OH NO! The peas are missing! (Dang...)
Mr. TV: I GUESS I'LL BE GOING TO THE PANTRY FOR SOME PEAS TONIGHT! DON'T WORRY, WE'VE GOT PLENTY. I NEED TO WRITE THIS DOWN!
Me: Why do you always bring peas Mr. TV?
Mr. TV: CAUSE THE POOR PEOPLE WILL EAT THEM!

Mr. TV loves food drives so he can get rid of all those nasty peas. He doesn't have a dog to feed them to and his cats won't eat them either.

F is for FINAL Field Trip

Well, final field trip of this school year that is. If there was an award for "Best Field Trip Location Ever", it would be Crystal Springs Preserve. There are many reasons why. Here are some:

1. It is cheap. (free!)
2. It is very close. (5 minutes away!)
3. It is always run by very nice, knowledgeable, great-with-kids people.
4. The kids LOVE it.
5. It is BEEE-YOOO-TIFUL. (More on this coming.)
6. It goes right along with what we are learning in class. (Animals)
7. It is cheap. (did I already mention that?)

What more can a teacher ask for? Not much as far as field trips go.

The very nice, knowledgeable, great-with-kids ladies split us into three groups. My class went inside first.

We learned about reptiles and even got to see some up close.

I took picture of live snakes too, but I prefer my snakes pickled and in jars. The live ones give me the heebie-jeebies. I blame it on my brother.

Copyright Mr. TV Photography

My favorite was Tebow the Gator. Only because he was being securely held. He splashed us when he was taken out of his tank and got my camera wet. I'll let him get away with it because of his name...

After he was put away, Tebow kept his eye on us. We were informed that when he is too big for the tank, he will be taken to the alligator farm and replaced with a newer, younger, version. I wonder what the next one will be named. (I wonder if there was ever a Wuerffel...)

We were very interested in Slim.

This is a summary of Slim's life: Slim was hungry. Crazy people fed him. He ate a family dog. He was punished and now hangs on a wall.

We had lots of questions for one of the nice, knowledgeable, great-with-kids ladies. She was very patient and answered the questions quite well. Ms. Giggles wanted to know the fate of all the animals that lined the walls..."Did all the animals get runned over by a car or something? Cause they're all flat." I don't recall the answer because I was too busy laughing.

So the second adventure was going on a hike around the springs. Mr. T.V. loved this part. He said it was BEEE-YOOOOO-TIFUL. And it was. We were asked what kind of "domestic" animals we might see. Mr. TV's answer was...TIGERS! I'm sure his first grade teacher taught him that...

Mr. TV got to use my new ladybug magnifying glass. It was renamed "magniflier" because of it being a ladybug and all. He held it up to me and said, "MS. BUCKLER! YOU HAVE A HUGE...A HUGE...PONYTAIL." Yes, I thought it would be much worse than that. The best part was that he had to stop and INVESTIGATE! everything. And I mean stop. A dead stop. As I was walking. My shoulder hurts from all the times he stopped. Did I mention he held my hand for almost the ENTIRE time?

Notice the tight hand grasp. That was him. Not me.









Here is a random Preggo Lady picture:

Here is a random fellow Longoria Lovers picture:

Here is a random Leopard Toad picture. He is sitting close to one of the spring vents. (I think that's what it was called, I was busy getting my arm ripped off...):

My fellow team mate (and one of my "goodest friends") did not have a fudge pop, but seemed to be enjoying herself.

We learned about cypress trees and how tall they can grow. We also learned about cypress knees. Mr. TV carefully guided me around these so I would not fall and be unable to complete the hike.

We saw some wild animals on the hike, too:

This snail was happily attached to the rail. Before we got to him that is. We left him on top of the rail.

At least he didn't fall in the water. Mr. TV named him "Brownie".

Cute Sandhill Crane family. We were so very quiet so that they could pass by.

Scariest wild animal of all. Oh wait. That's just my sister. Nevermind.

The last rotation was learning about watersheds. It was really fun.

Braids was stressed that we had to answer a "TEN POINT QUESTION"..."But we haven't even learned about them yet!" She's concerned like that. I love her.

We got to make our own watersheds (according to directions) and name our town. It was an....interesting creation.

It had the "World's Largest Animals". Please notice the combination of animals. Lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my!

It ended up with a crazy amount of bridges so we named it Bridgington (aka Bridge Town).

If I had a choice, I would go on this field trip every single time. No wonder they fill up a year in advance! Guess what Labs. I'm going to find a day to sign up for next year. I don't care if it conflicts with the Master Schedule. (Just kidding, I do care. Joanie scares me.)

When we returned to school we got to use my brand new, given to me by one of my "goodest friends" ladybug kite. It took a few times, but we got it.

The Kindergartners were quite impressed.

It was a fabulous day. I'm tired now. Goodnight. (I apologize in advance for any grammatical/spelling answers. I am THAT tired.)

B is for Bowling

I am sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've been a little busy. As well as lacking in funny blog material.

But I'm back. With a story of bowling.

We took our annual bowling field trip today. Guess who I chose to be my bowling buddy. Yes. You're right. Mr. TV. It was actually quite fun.

There were three rules:
1. Behave.
2. Don't bowl better than Ms. Buckler
3. When you do, be very nice to her. Your grades depend on it.
4. I DO NOT LEAVE MY CAMERA ON THIS FIELD TRIP!

Here is the class showing me their Strike Getting Technique.

Guess who I chose to sit with me on the bus. Yes. You're right. Mr. TV. I learned that we are supposed to say "JUMP BUMP" and pop up like a weasel whenever the bus drives over a bump. The 5 minute ride to the bowling alley wasn't really the fun part.

Mr. TV was very serious about guarding my field trip bag. He watched it like a hawk. He also deemed himself "picture taker of the day." I choose my battles.

Here are some pictures he took of me:

Cheese.

Check out that skill.

The flying hair capture was exceedingly funny to him. I'm surprised he didn't yell, "Work it girl!"







He also took pictures of my backside, but I will not be posting those.

Mr. TV insisted on delivering the ball to me. At first I thought it was because he was worried about my strength. I think it may have actually been to speed me up since he went right after me...

So I grabbed the camera:

He had the craziest side ways throw that resulted in a snail-paced roll.

Covering his eyes and waiting. He got a spare.

Which resulted in this celebration.








After all the high-fives, he informed me that he accidentally farted when he did that move. Thanks Mr. TV, for the info.

Freckles had an accident. It looked like this:

He got up, dusted off, and picked up a spare.

He beat me in Game One. Him: 104  Me: 99

Hey, quit laughing. I rolled a strike as soon as it was time to leave.

Freckles and I were also interviewed by a newspaper reporter. That should be an interesting blog post.

Despite the million "I'm hungry!"/"I'm tired!"/"I'm beating you!"s  and the three crying students, we had fun.

When we returned to school, we celebrated Earth Day with Earth cakes.

The marshmallows on toothpicks were the moons. Our story this week is "The Moon". I know. It required imagination.

I told them I wasn't sure which one Paisley licked.

She got her first taste when my back was turned this morning. At least it was the experiment one.

I cut it in half, she helped herself to the side.

Happy Earth Day!

E is for Embarrassing

Embarrassing for me. Embarrassing for the boys.

I had to have THE TALK today. No, not that THE TALK you crazy people, they're just 8 year olds. Geez.

It was THE APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR IN THE RESTROOM TALK.

For those of you who have never been inside our Boys' restrooms in the hallway, you need to know that there are urinals. Just like a public restroom, but slightly shorter. You may even find a dirty word or two. Not sure if there are any girls' phone numbers scratched into the doors since I don't really spend more than .0002 seconds in the place.

The point is that it is hard to get any privacy in there, but I hear that boys don't care so much about that kind of thing. Most of them anyway.

Well, Mr. TV has been known to just drop his drawers and take care of business, but the boys just come out rolling their eyes. I yell in from the doorway, "Mr. TV be appropriate, do your business, and GET OUT!"

I guess it was a little crazier in there today. Mr. Responsible felt that it was his duty to let me know that another dude (NOT Mr. TV) was in there being "unappropriate" (FYI, that's the opposite of appropriate).

It was kind of like this:

Mr. R: Um, Ms. Buckler, um, so-and-so is in there showing his...(points towards his pants)

Me: What do you mean? His what?

Mr. R: Um, you know! His...um...thing...

Mr. Jokester: Ms. Buckler! Mr. Responsible is trying to say that so-and-so is showing his privates to everyone and it's just rude and gross.

Me: Oh! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOhhhhh! I get it....BOYS GET OVER HERE NOW!
       Um girls, you go over there and talk amongst yourselves.

The lecture went something like this:

Me: Okay guys, this is going to be embarrassing for all of us. I'm a girl and I do not like having to tell boys how to behave in the restrooms. I've heard that someone was being rude and inappropriate in the restroom. You need to go in there, do your business as quickly as possible, wash your hands, and GET OUT! I expect that you will keep your privates to yourself...That's why they're called PRIVATES! If I hear of anyone else being inappropriate with their body, he will go to Ms. Keene and explain why he now has to use the clinic restroom. Get it? Got it? Good!


Rico Suave: Man, that WAS embarrassing...

Mr. TV: BUT MS. BUCKLER! WE'RE ALL BOYS AND WE HAVE THE SAME PARTS!

Me: Dude! Just get in line and put a bubble in your mouth!

(That's an issue for the third grade teachers...)

I is for Invisible and Innocent

Invisible things can be fun. Invisible friends are very common for young kids to have. This requires imagination, though. And as I've already proven, my class has a little bit of a problem with using their imaginations.

So, me being the person I am, I found a way to encourage a little creative, imaginative thinking. In my W is for Wildlife post I discussed the various critters we've had and explained that my class has been asking for a pet. Are they happy with those critters? No! They've wanted a REAL class pet since the second week of school and we read a story about a class with a pet. We voted on what kind, wrote ways we would take care of a pet (not me!), discussed who would take it home on weekends and holidays (definitely not me!) and if anyone was allergic. Did I get a class pet for them? Nope.

That is, until a few weekends ago. 

It was on sale at 70% off. At $6.99, it is the best class pet you can get. Clean, quiet, well-behaved. 

Perfect!

If you look closely, you will see Rover. Our new class pet!

Rover wears his harness and leash all of the time. He sits quietly while we work.

However, sometimes he needs to "go on a walk" and only the most-behaved, quiet workers get to take Rover on a walk. Do they mind the stares from students in other classes? Nope.

Today, Mr. Jokester was out there for a while. 

Me yelling from the doorway: Mr. Jokester! Bring Rover in, we've got to go to Music!

Mr. Jokester: I can't help it that Rover pooped everywhere! He also needed to sniff every tree!

Me: Well, did you pick it up?!

Mr. Jokester: Pick what up?! 

Me: Rover's poop!

Mr. Jokester: No, but I think I stepped in it...

***LATER****

Mr. T.V. (amazingly) got a chance to walk Rover while waiting for the bell. He had him at about waist high. 

Me: Do you know how long Rover's legs would need to be for him to be that tall?

Mr. T.V.: He's one weird looking dog!

Freckles: Can we get a real class pet?

Mr. T.V.: Rover is real, can't you see him?

I have no words for that.

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Innocent is what some of my little people proclaim they are. But, I know better. I didn't just fall off the turnip truck yesterday...

Either we have a ghost in my room or someone is being really sneaky. After Valentine's Day, we had leftover cookies and a few were mysteriously missing the next day. I shrugged it off thinking maybe it was a fellow teacher after school looking for a snack.

But, the sneakiness has escalated. In my class, students can earn a star punch on their Star Cards if they've had a good day. When they get 8 star punches, they can turn it in for a reward on Friday. They can choose a trip to the treasure box, a no-homework pass, extra computer time, or lunch with me (the coolest). I need to point out that we had a substitute on Friday, and I left instructions that I would do Star Cards on Monday.

Well, I've noticed that one little dude seems to have a full Star Card EVERY Friday.  I may not be a genius, but there are 8 stars on the card and 5 days in a week. Now, even I can do that math. I haven't said anything about this either, because there is no way he's climbing/jumping to the top of the TV cart to get my star puncher. No way, right? Right? And, I'm not the best at keeping track of the actual weeks he really does redeem one. But it's rather fishy...

I just found some, though, that I'm POSITIVE have been counterfeited. As evidence, take a look.

*The names have been blurred to protect the rights of the suspects...

This is a Star Card that has been redeemed. You can see the date (tomorrow since that's when we'll eat lunch together) and the circled L. This stands for 'Lunch'. This student chose lunch with me.

 I especially need you to notice how the punched stars are right on top of the printed star. This will be important later...

I've gotten Star Cards with these corners cut off, but that didn't fool me...


This didn't either...

I looked at this one twice. And I said to myself, "Self, you must have been lazy with this one. You didn't even punch on top of the star.


Then I got this one...

And I said to myself, "Self, you DID NOT DO THIS!" Red alert! Red alert!

I took three suspects outside with me. The two sloppily punched Star Card owners and my dude that has a full Star Card EVERY Friday. And after five years, I'm still not good at conducting an interrogation...

Me: So which of you is responsible?

Them: Not me!

            I didn't do it!

            (Silence)

Me: Oh, so we must have a magical star puncher that felt like punching your Star Cards over the weekend?

Them: Maybe...

           Probably...

           It was HIM! (Pointing at the EVERY Friday dude)

 This went into "did not!" and "did too!" for a few seconds while the third guy started to cry. We all came inside and I addressed the whole class. I told them we weren't going to blame each other. I expected the culprit to be honest and come to me with the truth. I even said they could write it on a note to fess up. I said the person would be in more trouble if I found out on my own because I WILL FIND OUT! Someone suggested we call the Resource Officer and have him dust for fingerprints.

I heard them talking while waiting in the bathroom line..."Just tell her. She'll be REAL mad when she finds out. She's really smart." "Someone needs to tell her, but maybe they'll go to Juvie." "It's not fair, I love eating lunch outside, and we're never going to do that again!"

I got my three suspects alone at random times today and asked, "Why did you get down the star puncher and punch those cards?" Even reverse psychology failed.

I told them there would be no more Star Cards until I get to the bottom of this. I still wait on that confession because those sneaks are good! Real good...

I mean it. I WILL GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS! Wish me luck.

P is for Planning

No, I'm not talking about the planning that we teachers do for hours to get ready for upcoming lessons. I've got SPRING BREAK on my mind and planning for lessons is not on my "to do" list right now.

I'm talking about planning for April Fool's Day. I've never really played any pranks on my past classes (especially not last years...Lord, thank you for getting me through that one!). But this year's class, oh yeah. They can handle it. In fact, they deserve it. They told me that I can't fool them...We shall see. (Need I remind you of the Leprechaun Trap day?)

Mr. TV and I started practicing today. While the rest of the students went to Music, Mr. TV and I worked on his AR goal (computer reading comprehension tests). He's the kind of guy who needs that extra, down-to-crunch-time excitement in order to meet any type of minimum goal. When he was done, we started planning. We put a fake snake in one dude's backpack (don't worry, we put a note). We added "Write your spelling words 100,000,000,000 times EACH!" to some people's homework. And then, we planned out some phone calls to make to various teachers tomorrow. We're ready with the "Is your nose running? Yes? Well you better go catch it!" script. On the way to pick up the class from Music he practiced..."THERE'S AN ELEPHANT IN FRONT OF THE SCHOOL!" to Mr. Ken. He improvised with Mrs. Burns, "THERE IS A SNAKE IN YOUR CLASSROOM!" And then he turned around and yelled "APRIL FOOL'S!" until a smart little classmate told him to say "April Fool's Eve!"

Besides Mr. TV's pranks, I've got a few up my sleeve to pull off. Tomorrow is P.E. Field Day and the kids are crazy excited. So, what do I want to prank them about? Why something about no Field Day of course!

First of all, I'm going to wear a foot cast and my arm in a sling. I'm going to wrap my head in an ace bandage and say I tripped on my dog and got hurt (they'll believe that...they know my dogs are crazy). That means we have to miss Field Day because I have to stay inside.

If that doesn't work, I've asked the Morning Announcement ladies if they will announce some shocking news. They will let the second graders know that, sadly, their SAT tests (standardized tests) were lost. They can't be found! So, the only thing to do is retake them. Today. During the time for Field Day. It can't be helped. If they don't believe me, surely they'll believe the Morning Announcemnt Ladies!

I am also going to have confetti is their Reading books, turn their desks around backwards, hide the chairs out the back door, and mix up their cubbies. It will be insane. Especially to Mr. TV. Don't worry, I'm sending them home for Spring Break with goodie bags and all my love.

By the way, I made the ONLY rule today: NO PRANKING THE TEACHER. It's simply not allowed. Any rule breakers will miss Field Day. No joke. (Insert evil laugh...mwah-ha-haaaaaaaa!)

(P.S. I am aware this graphic needs an apostrophe...)

G is for Growing

I'm am going to start this with sniffles. I am getting a little sad that these little boogers have to leave me. However, I'm sure the whole "outta sight, outta mind" thing will kick in a week into summer vacation.

At the very beginning of the year, we made Time Capsules. We didn't bury them or anything (much to eleven little boys' disappointment), but they might as well have been in a deep dark hole. They totally forgot about them until I pulled the box out from a very visible place in the classroom. (Those of you who have seen my classroom should pipe down! I can find things...most of the time.)

First, we took out our sheets on which we had written various facts about ourselves. One spot was a crystal ball labeled "In the future I see myself..." Mr. TV drew a vampire and sticks with that plan now. Dali, Jr. put a picture of a police officer, but has since changed his future goal to being a spy. They also saw pictures of themselves from the first week. They don't notice how they've changed but I can see it. (sniff, sniff)

We retraced their hands over the one they had done at the beginning of the year. These were very cute.

They also compared their handwritten name to their handwriting now. Big difference!

The best part, though, was the string. The string was powerful. It showed that we really, and truly have grown this year.

For most of them, the string reached right between their eyes. They couldn't believe it!

We decided that it's our heads that have grown in order to accommodate our bigger brains.

While I'm on the topic of growing, Mr. TV had a chair issue. He came in late one day last week and decided that someone had taken "his" chair. I informed him that the chair we had placed at his desk was fine, but he insisted it "didn't feel right." So, after determining it was a brown chair, I asked everyone in a brown chair to stand up. I asked Mr. TV to sit in each brown chair until he found the one his bottom felt "right" in. He found it on the third try. I quickly grabbed the masking tape. Labeled the chair with his name on it and this message: [Mr. TV's] Chair. Please do not take. (His bottom will know the difference.)