Category: Grade One

Grade One

Mission Possible – Reports

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Mission 1- Brain Drain

I am on a Mission. At times, this mission seems impossible. I need to complete this mission by a set deadline. I work through the pain in my neck, literally. I work on this mission after a busy day of teaching. I share positive thoughts about the work completed by my students. I feel confident that I will complete my mission. Yes, I, the teacher extraordinaire, will write 24 to 36 report cards. Well, that is what I hope for, but right now I am daydreaming and typing at the same time.  I only have to complete 24 different comments for Language, Math, Science, Social Studies, and… Drats, now I am feeling overwhelmed.

Fortunately, the library is not terribly busy so there are few distractions.  The air is calm, I am calm and I am focused on my mission. I turn my head to look at my classroom. I can see through the glass wall that the students located in the open concept classroom are working well. They are with Ms. Phelps their Physical Education teacher.  For some reason they are not in the gym today, but I can see that they are active. I bring my thoughts back to the task at hand and focus on clearly articulating the strengths and needs of each student. I toy with the idea that I may be able to get some fresh air on the weekend. I mentally negotiate how I can avoid doggedly sitting at the computer all weekend long. Once again, I am somehow typing and thinking thoughts like: if I get to this point, then I will only have to do this much. I am thinking too much and retyping the same sentence over and over again.  Should I take a break and go for a walk? Maybe I will take a break on the weekend, even if I’m not done.

I suddenly notice Nelson. He is a grade one student from my class. He is waving at me through the glass wall. I wave at him and he continues to walk down the corridor. I talk to myself. “ Focus, focus, you have to get this done.” Type, type, type, type, erase, erase, erase, erase, type the same sentence, erase the same sentence.  What do I really want to say? Hum, it finally comes to me and I am once again focused on my task and typing like a hurricane hitting the shore of South Carolina. This aerobic brain to hand workout will surely help me lose 3-5 pounds. However, I am taking additional supplements. These supplements are vegetables covered in fat with lots of salt. I need these supplements to complete the mission Yes, I need these chips.  

Mission 2- The Awakening

Suddenly, I am brought back to the world of the library by a tap on the glass wall. I imagine the needle on the record player scratching to a sudden stop. What is that sound? It is the voice of Ms. Phelps. “Ms. Dancing Shoes, Ms. Dancing Shoes. Can you come here for a minute?” My calm bubble has just been burst. I look up confused and foggy. “ Huh?”  I get up and leave my papers by the computer. I walk to the doorway and say, “ Do you need me?” Ms. Phelps nods and then says, “ I think you are going to have to log off the computer because this is going to take awhile.” My mind races with what the issue could be and I realize that my weekend is going to be blessed with brain fogging report cards. I log off the computer then I walk to Ms. Phelps and now I see that Nelson is standing beside her. Ms. Phelps points to the class and says, “I have to get back.”  She points at Nelson to indicate that he needs help. I look at Nelson and see that he is smiling, so I wonder what the issue could be. My brain is suddenly snapped into a state of shock. Standing in front of me is Nelson. He is the child who just waved at me as he walked down the corridor. But why is Nelson is standing in front of me with no shoes, no socks, and no pants? Nelson is holding the bottom edge of his hoodie to cover his lower extremities. Okay teacher, what are you going to do about this situation?  No, I’m not really asking myself this question. I have become use to the daily surprises and treats that take place in elementary school. I am actually asking you, the reader, What are you going to do? No, screaming, crying, pointing your finger or laughing are not okay. If you thought, ask questions, then you are absolutely correct. At least that is what I did.

“Nelson, where are your socks and shoes?”

“I left them in the bathroom.”

I consider the next question which relates to his missing pants.

“Oh, okay. Nelson, where are your pants?”

“I left them in them in the bathroom too.”

Let me clarify that there is no free laundry service in our school.  However, our caretaking staff are amazingly caring and hardworking people who go above and beyond. Now I need to know the reason why this has happened, so I ask.

“Why did you leave your socks, shoes and pants in the bathroom?”

“Because.”

I remember answering like that when I was a kid too. Because is a word that says so much, but so little. The investigation continues.

“Because why?”

“Because they are dirty.”

Mission 3- It’s A Total Cover Up

I consider that we better walk away from where we are standing and get Nelson covered up. Now my teacher mission is to shield him from embarrassment. I happen to be wearing a jacket so I place it over his shoulders like a cape, just in case his hoodie doesn’t completely cover him.  We walk down the hall and around the corner. The entire time we are walking I am scoping out the passageway for bystanders.

“Roger we are walking down the hallway, and the coast is clear. Oh no, wait, no false alarm. Everything is fine.”


Around the corner we finally make are destination and move into the Vice Principal’s office to take cover. She is presently talking on the phone, so she raises her hand to indicate that we need to avoid talking. When she observes the situation, she tells the contact that she will have to get back to them and hangs up the phone. I relay what I know to her and she calls the caretaker to inform him of the situation.  

The new mission is to get Nelson covered and recovered. I ask Nelson. “Do you have any extra clothes in your backpack?” He nods so I go get his backpack from the hooks and return to the office. You are probably wondering, how I know which backpack belongs to Nelson? If I told you that, I would have to call Interpol. Okay, okay, there is a numbering system on the wall. I have located number 21’s backpack and now I have quickly returned to Nelson and the scene of the mission. I tell him to go change into his clean clothes. I also give him a plastic bag and tell him to put the items that are dirty in the bag. The last reminder is to tell him to make sure that he washes his hands with soap and water.  I wait outside of the washroom until he is done. He exits the washroom with a big smile on his face. I smile back at him and then I ask him. “ Nelson where did you put the bag with the dirty clothes?” His expression changes and he tells me that he left it on the floor in the washroom. I send him back in to the washroom to retrieve the bag. When he comes back out, his eyes are welling up with tears. I take a deep breath and say, “ Nelson, you know that it’s okay to have accidents. You were very brave and I will talk to your mom about what happened. Please don’t be afraid. “ We walk back to class and the rest of the day moves along with other events, episodes, daily experiences and learning. At the end of the day, I dismiss the children by the school doorway and when I see Nelson’s mom, I wave for her to come into the school.

Mission 4- Mom
Mom seems displeased and demands to know why I have asked her to come into the school.
She looks at Nelson and angrily say,“ What did you do Nelson? I keep telling you to behave.” I calmly ask her to sit down and say that Nelson hasn’t done anything wrong.  Nelson seems relieved to hear me say that, but I can tell he is worried about what will happen when his mom hears about his accident. I calmly talk to his mom to let her know about the wonderful things he has done throughout the day.

“ Nelson had a great day today. He was sharing information during math and he read aloud in class. Unfortunately, he had an accident during gym class.  He went to the washroom, but couldn’t get his pants down in time. We solved the issue and now everything is fine. I hope you understand how brave he was today.”

Nelson’s mom appears annoyed, but understands that the accident wasn’t his fault. It was just an accident. They leave together and Nelson waves goodbye.

Mission 1 – Back to the Future

I walk back to my desk and remember that Mission 1 has not been completed. Here we go again. Ahhh, does anyone have a bag of chips?

The valuable thing you can make is a mistake.- You can’t learn anything from being perfect. Adam Osborne.

Grade One

Hockey=Cake

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I love the innocence of children. I love how they speak their mind. I love how they innocently manipulate a situation for their own interest. Let’s face it, they are adorable.

In one of my grade one classes, There was a student who played hockey. This story could be repeated throughout my career, but this particular moment was memorable.

It’s a cloudy fall Saturday. I am up early, as usual.  Today, I am going to watch a student play hockey at the local arena.  He has invited me and has talked about the event repeatedly for a week. I have dressed myself to bare the cold air that circulates throughout most arenas and I’m fully aware that I’m likely going to “freeze my butt off” for the next hour.  I pick up a coffee and drive to the arena. When I walk in the door you can literally feel the excitement. You can smell the sweat and of course you can feel the blast of cold air. As I walk around the perimeter of the arena, I look at the people in the stands to see if I can recognize Beaudry’s mom.  Mrs. Chandler called me two weeks ago to ask if I would consider watching Beaudry play hockey. I was surprised and thrilled to have the opportunity to connect with people in the community outside of the school. I see Mrs. Chandler waving at me in the stands, so I walk over to sit with her. As I’m walking, I can hear multiple students from the school yelling ,”Hi Ms….” “ Do you remember me?” “Hi Ms..” You would think I was a celebrity. Ego check, full stop, they are the celebrities.  Before I get to the seats, I stand by the glass to watch some of the players. They are so eager to skate around the ice. Some children are so engaged with the game and they diligently chase the puck. I mean altogether they chase the puck. They are not playing positions. It is similar to watching a three ring circus. Some are rubbing ice off their skate blades, while players race around them to catch the puck. Some are licking ice off of their glove, some are making snow angels on the ice, and some are skating around oblivious to the puck.  One particular student is skating around the ice and every time he passes me he yells out , “ Hi, Ms. ….! Look at me!” It is so sweet I have to hold back my laughter. The game continues and I go to sit with Mrs. Chandler. We talk about general things happening in the news and fortunately she doesn’t ask me questions related to school. Phew. When the game is over, Mrs. Chandler says Beaudry has something he wants to give to you to say thank you for coming to watch him play hockey. So I say, “ Oh, you didn’t have to do anything like that, it was so much fun to have the opportunity to watch him play.” I wait by the main door and they soon come to see me. Then I ask Beaudry about the game.

Beaudry, you are such a good hockey player. Did you have fun today?

Yes, I love playing hockey. I get to see all of my friends and now we can go eat cake.

Oh? Is that what happens when you play hockey?

Yes, everytime I play hockey, we go home and then we get to have a cake or a different kind of treat.

Mrs. Chandler then says, “ That’s the gift Beaudry wants you to have.  He told me that you want carrot cake. He told me that I had to give you a piece of carrot cake.”

I think about it and then I ask Beaudry, “ How do you know I like carrot cake?”

Beaudry smiles and says, “I don’t know you like carrot cake.”

Well, then why did you tell your mom that I like carrot cake?

I know that I like carrot cake, so that’s the cake I wanted to have today.

Mrs. Chandler’s eyes go wide with surprise, we both look at each other and smile and laugh. I then say, “ Beaudry, I know you are going to be successful in life because you know what you like and you know how to get it.”  Beaudry smiles at me and say, “ I love carrot cake.” So just like that we walked to eat the cake, chit chat, and laugh and then I left to spend the rest of the day in my warm house. When I see Beaudry the following Monday morning, I tell him that I had a nice time watching him play hockey and eating carrot cake.  He smiles and says “ Yep, I knew you would. What could be better than hockey and carrot cake?”


I wish I knew where he was living today, because I would share this story with him.  I bet you a piece of carrot cake that I was correct. He was successful.

Grade One

Liar, Liar….

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Do you remember the phrase, “Liar, liar pants on fire….” ?  Words chanted using a sing song sounding voice made to warn you and to make one feel the wrath of shame. Well, there will be students who lie.  There will be students in your class who are chronic liars, and unfortunately, there may be students who lie in ways that blow your mind. Brainy Quotes list a variety of quotes about lies.  Some are funny, such as Lucille Balls,” The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.” While other quotes paint the clear message of how lies negatively affect our lives. “ Violence can only be concealed by a lie, and the lie can only be maintained by violence.” Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Yet, we have all lied about something at some point in time. According to Psychology Today, there are 6 reasons why people lie. As I am not creating a thesis paper, I will precise it to one word. CONTROL. The individual who lies, feels like they have no control and want to gain control, or they feel the need to be recognized and therefore take control of the situation to weave it in their favour. Today, I will share two stories of students who felt the need to gain control through lying.

Master of the Circle

Blue Jay is a student who loves to embellish stories he shares during our Monday sharing circle.  This is a small special ed class with 10 male students. Every Monday, we begin the morning sharing information about the weekend.  Did we have a good time? Did we do something different? Did we go anywhere interesting? At times, it was interesting to notice how some children spent their entire weekend, according to them, playing video games. Other students enjoyed going to a friend’s house to play, or going to the arena to play hockey.  Blue Jay seemed to think that it was his job to surpass his classmates comments and would share interesting tales which became more embellished when his friends realized that he was lying.

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Does anyone have anything to share? I scan the room to see who would like to start sharing first. Stable seems to be very eager, so I pick him first. Stable what would you like to share?

I am so excited because my mom told me that my dad is going to take me to Florida for a week in February.  We are going to go to Disney and we are going to go swim with the dolphins and…

Blue Jay interrupts.

I went to Florida on the weekend to see the baseball team playing.  We had popcorn and…

Blue Jay, you know you shouldn’t interrupt.  It is Stable’s turn right now, you will have your turn in a minute. Stable looks at Blue Jay with a disappointed look.  It is very similar to the look that teachers and parents give to children when they have done something they were told they should not do.

Stable looks at Blue Jay and says,

As I was saying, we are going to have a great time, and I plan to bring home a souvenir for everyone.

Blue Jay interrupts once more.

I did buy a souvenir for everyone, but I forgot it at home.  I met all of the baseball players and they signed my hat.

Stable is now standing in front of Blue Jay with his arms crossed.

Why do you keep interrupting me?  It is very rude. Anyway, we all know that you are lying.  I know that you did not go to Florida on the weekend because I saw you at Costco shopping with your mom.

A few of the boys are shaking their head in a agreement.  I notice that Blue Jay is looking uncomfortable, but I am more concerned that his discomfort has the potential to change to anger.  I ask Blue Jay, “ Do you want to go for a walk and you can finish telling us about your time in Florida when you get back?” Blue Jay nods his head and leaves the room. The second that he leaves the room, three boys are talking about why Blue Jay lies. I encourage them to be understanding and suggest that they leave it to me to talk with Blue Jay. We continue our sharing circle and then Blue Jay returns to the room.

I thought about my time in Florida and now I want to talk about it more.

All of the boys groan and yell, “ Stop lying!”

Blue Jay storms out of the room and I spend a great deal of time calming him down.  

Later that same day, I see his brother in the hallway and approach him to talk about the situation.

“ Hi Simon, I heard from Blue Jay that you all went to Florida on the weekend and met the baseball players.” Simon laughs and says, “ We can’t afford to go to Florida. The only thing we did this weekend was go to Costco.” He walks away with his books in his hands and shakes his head about what his brother has said.  I smile and walk to my next class.

Blue Jay continued to lie about events in his life and on many occasions his peers would point out his false statements/fake news. Blue Jay would defend his stories and often left the room in anger.  Some teachers suggested that I discontinue using the sharing circle. However, I felt that it was an opportunity for all of the students to learn about talking, honesty, social skills and active listening. The sharing continued and I continued to work with Blue Jay to help him realize that his truthful stories were more interesting. I would like to say that it worked, but that would be a lie.  He is still telling lies today.

Melting Ice Cream

During my second year of teaching, I booked a trip for my grade one class at the Ontario Science Centre.  The children in my class were very excited and fortunately, lots of parents volunteered to help, so the ratio of adults to children was 5: 1. We went on the trip and had a wonderful day.  Following the trip, I was sitting in my classroom, feeling exhausted, but satisfied that everything went smoothly and everyone seemed happy. Suddenly, the floor fell out beneath me.

“ Ms. I need to talk with you right now about something that you did during the trip!” This sentence should be typed in CAPS because she was yelling, big time yelling.  I look up in shock, to see that Mrs. Petals standing at the doorway. Her nostrils are flaring and she looks like she wants to rip me to pieces. I am honestly confused, so my mind is swirling with what I should say. I then notice that her daughter, Siren, is with her and she is standing at her moms side.  She looks like she would love to put her hands on her hips and stick out her tongue at me, but she is not at the present time. I take a deep breath and ask her mom to come sit in the room.

“ Mrs Petals, please come have a seat at the table, let’s talk about what has upset you.” She paces back and forth, as I walk to sit at the conference table. She continues to rant.

Siren came home from the trip and the moment she walked into the house, she started crying.  I tried to get her to tell me what was upsetting her and she just kept screaming. Finally, I got her to calm down and then she told me that you bought ice cream for everyone in the class, but you did not buy any ice cream for her.  

I put my hand up and say,

What in the world are you talking about? WOW!

While I do not recall the exact words I said to Mrs. Petal, I do know that I was really taken aback and surprised that a child could be so vindictive. I had experienced one challenging event with Siren, at the beginning of the school year, which I will share at another time. However, I personally thought she was a great kid.  I also think that I surprised Mrs. Petal with my response.

Hold on a second,Mrs. Petal. You are telling me that Siren came home and told you that I bought ice cream for everyone, but I did not buy ice cream for her? Mrs. Petal, I cannot believe that you would think that I would ever consider doing something so mean to a student in my class.  I love the children I teach and I want their experience in grade one to be positive. I did not buy ice cream today. I did not have Siren in my group with me today. I did not spend two minutes of my time talking directly to Siren today. She was in a group with Mrs. Founder and I know that Mrs. Founder did not buy ice cream either.  There was a private school in the cafeteria and their teacher bought ice cream for 10 students. I am disappointed that you came here was the assumption that I could ever do something like that. Siren has obviously lied to you.

Mrs. Petal’s face gradually changes as I share my information about the situation and Siren’s composure changes to fear.  She realizes that her mother is now angry with her for lying.

Mrs. Petal then turns her anger towards her daughter.

Siren, how could you do such a thing?  I believed you and you lied to me. Why did you say that about your teacher? You are going to be grounded for a week and we are not going to go to the park tonight.  What you did is unforgivable!

At this point in time, I feel sorry for Siren, because it becomes apparent to me that she is looking for attention. Be it negative or positive, she wants attention. Mrs. Petal looks at me and shakes her head with disbelief. I consider how to resolve the situation in a positive manner.

Mrs. Petal, I do not think that Siren wanted to harm anyone.  I think she probably wanted an ice cream and was disappointed when she saw it in the cafeteria, but could not have any.  I also think that Siren has a knack for stretching the truth, so I would suggest that in the future, you research the situation further before taking action. I think you should talk with Siren further when you get home and decide how to solve the problem. I do not think that grounding her for the week is necessary.  I’m just glad that everything is okay. I would like Siren to apologize when she is ready to find the words.

Mrs. Petal then starts to push Siren towards me and forcefully tells her to apologize.  

You heard your teacher, Siren, APOLOGIZE RIGHT NOW ! You heard me Siren, APOLOGIZE RIGHT NOW !  But, Siren is not ready to apologize so Siren shakes her head to say no.

I can see that this is going to take a negative turn, so I suggest it would be best if we left the apology for a time when Siren is ready to say it on her own. Mrs. Petal seems flustered and looks like she is lost for words. They gradually move toward the classroom door and into the hallway. I wish them a goodnight and go back to my desk.  As they walk down the hallway, Mrs. Petal continues to shout, “ I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT YOU DID THAT!I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT YOU DID THAT! WHY DID YOU DO THAT?”

After they left, I sat at my desk and was perplexed with the whole situation. If anything, it taught me to “Cover my ass” and make sure that I documented events. For future trips, I would always have a trusting parent teamed with me for support.   Today, I would probably look up lying on Youtube to see if there was information to clarify Siren’s intentions. I would also check Google to reference Behaviour Modification Strategies. In 1989, the source of information I used was talking and sharing with my colleagues.  These were the comments and suggestions they gave me:

1. Siren wanted ice cream.

2. Siren wanted attention and got attention.  

3. Siren needs support in the school to help her understand the impact of her actions.

4. Mrs. Petal loves her daughter.

5. Mrs. Petal is embarrassed with her daughter.

6. Mrs. Petal should be invited to join the class on the next trip.

7. Siren has an active imagination.

8. Do not buy ice cream for your class on a trip.  It causes problems for other schools.

9. Siren needs a friend at school and at home.

10. Mrs. Petal seems to get angry very quickly, but there may be a reason for this.

11. Don’t put Siren in my grade 2 class.

12. Don’t take Siren on the next trip.

13. Why didn’t you buy all the kids ice cream?

14. Mrs. Petal needs help.

15. I’m glad I’m not you.

What is the main message?

Lying is going to happen.  Sometimes it is not for personal reasons. Sometimes it is a cry for help.

Just like lying, some advice is not beneficial.

Grade One

Angel’s Protector

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As a teacher, you build connections with the students in your class. Sometimes you are very protective of them and resent other staff members who just do not get them.  They do not have that connection. I have had students tell me that they wish I was their mom. There have also been students who would have preferred to be in the “ fun class” down the hall.  However, some of these students would come back to tell me how they enjoyed this or that. We are generally only a passing thought in most of their lives, and it is hoped that their memories are positive.

When I was in my third year of teaching, I had a grade 1 and 2 class which was packed to the max.  There were a total of 33 students in the class. The principal advocated on my behalf to get additional support but the superintendent said, “ Oh, she, meaning me, can handle it.” I did try my best, but eventually the school board realized that I needed an Educational Assistant.  What I was not aware of was the fact that I had a little girl in my class who was living in a highly toxic environment. She was waive like, quiet and shy. She had a brother in grade 5 and a sister in grade 3.

Angel

We have started our school day with the usual routines, attendance, Oh Canada and morning greetings. The class is working at different activity centres, when Angel arrives at the classroom door.  She is holding her brother’s hand and seems attached to him. I greet them and he quickly waves to travel down the hallway to his classroom. Angel comes in and plays quietly with her close friends.  I haven’t noticed that she is not herself today. She is not feeling good and she is very tired. We then move to the carpet, during which time Angel falls asleep. Francis, and I decide that we should just let her sleep and we ask the other children to just let her rest. The day continues as usual. During recess the principal asks to see me and tells me that Children’s Aid will be coming to pick up Angel and her siblings.  The principal tells me that the older brother never went to class and reported to the principal what had happened at their house. The three kids had been through a scary evening as their dad had consumed too much alcohol and was hitting their mom. Angel’s brother had tried to fight off his father, but his mom told him to run. They went to a 24 hours McDonalds and sat there until it was time to go to school. I’m kind of surprised that the staff in McDonald’s didn’t ask them why they were not at home. Maybe they did and the brother had a good answer.  Angel was exhausted and scared. Her sister was trying to be brave and her brother was protecting all three of them. As I reflect on the situation, I am odds with the fact that I did not see that something wasn’t right. Why did I miss it?

The Children’s Aid Society arrived, talked with the principal, called a family member and Angel and her siblings left the school.  At 12:30 Angel, her sister and her brother left, and they never returned. I was shocked and had to muster up a story to let the kids in the class know that she said goodbye. We didn’t even have time to make a card.

Grade One

Little Girls Do

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It is not my intention to offend anyone. If you do not like reading about bodily functions, then you may want to pass on this story. Notwithstanding, it does have a positive message.

I mentioned before that children are amused with the human body, and bodily functions.  They are curious and ask lots of questions related to why the body does certain things. On one occasion they were not curious and I really had to hold myself together.  Why? You ask. Because I am a professional. Well, I tried my best.

It is a typical day in grade one.  I am reading a story called, “ The New Baby Calf.” I am sitting on the rocking chair, the children are sitting on the carpet with their legs crossed, facing me.  Well, most of them are. I am holding the book so that the pictures are facing the children and I am looking at the words and reading the story aloud. Jessica puts her hand up and asks,

“ Why is the baby calf having a hard time?”  

I stop reading and answer her.

“ The baby calf is new and is learning how to use his legs. Everything is new to him, so it is sometimes difficult.  Remember when we were learning how to plant the seeds in the pots for the first time and some of us had a hard time?”  

The students nod their head, so I continue to read.  Suddenly, there is a very loud sound, but I do not really think too much about it.

( It’s natural gas from a child) Okay, someone has farted. This is not a laughing matter. For teachers, we are expected to take the high road and continue acting like nothing has happened.  At times, it takes a great deal of control because the children will often start rolling on the floor. No, Not because they are passing out! It’s not a first aid issue, they are rolling around on the carpet because they are laughing. As the teacher, you say things like, “ Okay, let’s settle down now.” Sometime, we ask the student if they are okay. That is if we know which kid farted, and most of the time we do. How do you know? We know because  every kid is holding their nose with one hand and pointing at the kid with the other hand. Well, the reason I’m telling this story is because what happened was not the predictable routine for farting in school. This group of students changed the code of conduct. ( In case, you don’t know, there is no code of conduct for farting.)

Back to the story:

There’s a loud sound. I continue reading the book to the children, but they have all quickly got up and have moved to the other side of the carpet.  They sit back down cross their legs and look like they are listening to the story again. With the precision and the ease of a spy they have moved in unison. Similar to some recent children’s movies, the next words they could say may be,” Smile and wave boys,” or “ You didn’t see anything.”  Mission accomplished! When I look away from the book, and look to see what has happened I’m in shock. Everyone except one girl has moved to the other side of the carpet. This little girl is all alone sitting on the other side of the carpet. The sweet darling is wearing a lovely pink dress looking at me with tears in her eyes.  Her face is red and I can tell that she is overwhelmed with embarrassment. I think carefully about my next decision. Should I just continue reading? Should I make a joke of it? With some kids, they may work, but not with this angel. No, I grab a piece of paper and write a note to the secretary. The note basically is telling the secretary to pretend that the note is very important and special. I also ask her if she can help our friend in pink feel better.  Then I say, “ Sweety, can you take this note to the secretary?” She stands up, takes the note from me and leaves the room. Just in case you are wondering, the office was right next to my classroom. All of the grade one students know how to locate it, so they do not require a friend to help them walk there. I finish reading the book and the kids spread out across the carpet. Once again, they have not fainted. Although they have made a few comments about the smell. Thankfully, they do not tease the little girl when she returns from the office. I made a point of giving them some centre time when we finished the story. This meant that the little girl could return without too much attention or comments about her fart.

Future story times brought different events with different students.  Today, I can’t read that particular book without having a little chuckle, and I can still visualize the students fluidly moving across the carpet.  

Grade One

ARTFUL DODGER

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I have always loved Charles Dickens books: Great Expectations, A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, to mention of few of my favourites. The gravity of the protagonist, be it Pip or Oliver, had to overcome many trials and tribulations.  As a reader, I would imagine myself being sent through a time tunnel to better understand their tragic circumstances. They impressed me with their resiliency and desire to overcome the injustices they endured. My friends and I would dance and sing in our basement pretending we were the characters from the 1968 version Oliver Twist.  I think I had a crush on both Mark Lester, who played Oliver, and Jack Wild who played the Artful Dodger. If we saw the movie, Oliver Twist, listed in the TV guide, we would make plans to meet to re-enact our favourite scenes. This was the pre-YOUTube, and pre-Internet time and it would be 8 years before most people had a VCR. VCR’s were so wonderful! We were impressed that we could replay a section over and over, and over and over and over again, and so we did! Our parents had to hear these songs, wonder what we were doing to the furniture and listen to us try to sing and dance. You thought the movie Frozen was bad? Sorry, I have to say it. “LET IT GO!”

ARTFUL DODGER

In my first year of teaching I had an ARTFUL DODGER in my class. Although Artful was born and raised in Canada, he had a thick accent.  It was a cross between someone from the Bronx and some from East London. Artful was inquisitive,eager to make friends,loved animals, and his hair often covered his eyes. I enjoyed teaching him and learned many valuable lessons from working with him. Teachers soon discover that children are often a mirror image of their parents.  It’s the DNA. This was very much the case when I met Artful Dodger’s dad. He taught me a memorable lesson that I must share with you.

Ignorance Is Not Blissful

It is a beautiful day in October, however, the Indian Summer heat is making everyone, including myself, feel drained.  I decide to take the kids to play in the forest behind the school yard. The children are investigating the grounds, climbing over rocks and logs and building leaf homes. We play outside until they start to ask about water breaks and then head back into the classroom.  This school has exit doors that leave directly from the classroom, so I left this door ajar with a chair to enter and exit. The children walk into the room and walk to the hallway to get a drink. I then notice that there is a man standing near my desk. He is about 6.2, with blue eyes, brown hair, and looks a little rough around the edges. (Okay, I’m judging, but safety is my first consideration.)

I approach him and say,

“ May I help you?”

He looks at me and says,

“You know, you really shouldn’t leave your purse out like that.”

He points at my bag which is not on top of my desk, but hidden in the dark corner underneath. Or so I thought. He continues to comment on my ignorance,

“ You are asking from trouble. If somebody took your purse, it would be your own fault.”  

I look under my desk and pull out my purse.  I notice that it is still closed, so I do not jump to conclusions, but I’m worried.  I want to check if everything is in my wallet, but instead I reply,

“ You know, you are right.  I will make sure that I do not do that again.”

He nods his head and introduces himself.

Yup, I’m Art’s dad and believe me I know what I’m talking about. I just got out of Kingston Pen about 2 weeks ago. There are crooks all over the place. So I just wanted to introduce myself, give Art a hug, and let you know that if you ever have trouble with Artful, just tell him SIZE 12.

He then calls to Artful, who is presently sharing a picture book about animals with his friends.  Artful hesitantly walks over and looks way up at his dad. To be honest my memory of what he said to his son is too vague to share.  I’m still standing there in a bit of a daze wondering what he really means and praying that my wallet is intact. After he talks to Artful, he puts his hand out for a polite handshake and I cautiously shake his hand. As he goes out the door he turns and repeats his comment. Remember, SIZE 12.

Once he leaves the room, I run over to check my wallet and everything is there.  

I call Artful over to talk with him.  I talk about how nice it was that his dad came to visit.  I then tell him that we are going to get along and I will tell his dad all of the wonderful things he is doing in grade one.  If he makes a mistake, we will fix it together. I then say, “ okay?” Artful nods, but I don’t think he really knows what I’m talking about. In my head I’m also thinking, “ Bloody hell, I’m not ever going to let your dad kick you with his SIZE 12 feet.”

Museum Trip

I believe I was extra protective of Artful, even when he had willful moments. He certainly left an impression on my sister.  She joined us on a trip to the museum and they became best buddies. Before we left,he walked up to her and said, “ You are my teacher’s sister, my name is ARTFUL Dodger, what’s your name?

When they were walking around the reptile exhibit, he looked at a large snake on display and said,“ That’s a cobra.”

My sister said, “No, it’s not.”

He said, “No, it’s a cobra.”

She said, “No, it’s not.”

He crossed his arms and looked at her and said, “ How do you know?”

She calmly looked at him, pointed to the sign and said, “ I can read and the sign says that it is a Python.”

Artful responded with a long, “ Oh!”  This made him super excited and he shared this with many of his classmates.  That’s a Python because it says that on the sign. What did he do next? He asked her to read every name plate for the remainder of the trip. Then he would report what it said to his friends.  When we got back to the school, I asked my sister if she wanted to stay and help. She looked at me and laughed. She quickly told me that she was going home because she was exhausted. It may have been the constant need to check and make sure that we had all of the students. Count 2,4,6,8…. 28, 30. Where’s Henry? Oh, there he is.  It may have been the constant repetition of children telling her that she and I are sisters. Grade one children find it hard to believe that their teacher is a human being living in the real world. What? You do not sleep in the cupboard? Don’t you love it when you see your students at the grocery store and they look at you like they have seen a ghost?  Ultimately, I know that my sister had a great time, and she has shared many memories from this day. She certainly made Artful’s day special. Thanks Scissy! Yes, that’s teaching, super exhausting.

What’s the Lesson?

Lock up your belongings.  I started locking up my purse in the trunk of my car.  Great idea? Not really. One staff member had their car stolen from the parking lot.  Great! She lost both her purse and her car.

If you do not have a place to lock your items, ask your administrator for a place to keep your belongings safe. Remember to keep track of your keys. ( See earlier blog)

Take care of the people in your room.  Learn the protocol for reporting abuse to the Children’s Aid Society.  In most cases you can make an anonymous report. I believe that Artful’s dad loved him and actually never hit his kid.  I did let him know at another meeting that threatening to kick your child is not a good idea.

When the days get hot, it is not a crime to take a break.  The Ministry of Education Police, just in case you do not know, do not exist.  Keep your students motivated to learn by giving them fun breaks. They will learn more and make many happy memories.  

Try to reflect on a daily basis to consider whether you are harboring biases or prejudices.  Sometimes we are unaware of the message we are sending via our body language, let alone the words we speak. When you make a mistake,( and you will because no one is perfect) apologize and learn from the experience.

Grade One

Belly Button Love

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Children are naturally curious about their bodies.  They ask innocent questions and sometimes share information that makes us giggle. Yes, there are also times when they tell us too much information and make us cringe.  When I worked in the daycare centre, the children often talked about their bodies without reservation or embarrassment. One boy in my grade one class boldly shared that boys have penises and girls have reginas. No, I did not spell it wrong, that is what he said.  I did not correct him, but I thought it was a great opportunity for a geography lesson. Only kidding.

I believe that we should encourage children to learn about their body and be proud of who they are. When I was a little girl, yes, back in the dinosaur days, my sister, brother, a few kids from the neighbourhood, and I were talking about our belly buttons. We were lifting up our t-shirts and showing our bellies with happy curiosity.   Suddenly our babysitter, who was a dinosaur, for real, marched into the room and told us, “ Oh no, my dear children, we do not use that word. We looked at her dumbfoundedly and said, “ What word?” As kids, we thought that it was weird that she did not like the word belly button. Later that same day, we shared this information with our mom, who basically told us not to worry about what our sitter had said.

Our world is diverse in so many ways.  Diversity extends to the world of belly buttons. Google states that there are six types of belly buttons.  The protruding navel, aka. outie, the vertical, the oblong, the horizontal, the oval, and the off centre. Have you ever wondered why there is a variation in the shape and the size of belly buttons?  Omphalomancy is known as the study of navel shapes. Different sources share different information about Omphalomancy. One source claims that it is a divination meant to determine how many children a mother may have during her lifetime. While another source claims that the different shape is indicative of personality.  For example, a person with an ‘Outty’ belly button is generally an extrovert. If that is the case, then it is definitely a flawed study. The truth is your belly button is just a scar left over after your umbilical cord was removed.  Whether it’s an Inny or an ‘Outty’, it’s just a scar.

Belly Button Story

It is a very hot day in June and fortunately I am working in an air conditioned school. This split grade 1 and 2 class have had a very productive year. It has been wonderful working with my teaching partner. We have collaborated in our open concept area to make a vibrant learning environment. At this time in the day, we are talking about the calendar and completing different tasks together. I notice that a few students are lifting up their tops and looking very intently at each other’s belly.  You can hear them gasping and whispering to each other. Eventually, I decide to stop and ask them what is so interesting. I move closer to see that they are poking and talking about Jeannette’s belly button. When I see her belly button it is different and juts out about 10 centimetres. The children are not making fun of Jeanette and she is quite happy to share the beauty of her belly button. One little girl, who I will call Einstein, asks me, “ Why does her belly button stick out so far?” I do not want to say anything to make Jeannette feel like there is something wrong with her. So I ask the class, “ Why do we have belly buttons?”  Some of their answers are as follows: 1.To keep our top half attached to our bottom half. 2. Because of my mommy. 3. So the doctor can open us up and look inside. 4. For the baby. 5. To give us food. I smile and say, “ Wow, you are so smart because your answers are correct.” I continue to share how the umbilical cord was attached to their mommy when they were inside their mother. The umbilical cord gets cut either by the doctor or someone in the family when they are born. Einstein then states, “ That still doesn’t tell us why her belly button is so big.” There is a pause while I consider how I am going to answer her question. I look at them, they look at me.  I consider telling them to ask their parents, or think of what the best answer would be. You can literally hear the crickets in the room and outside. What should I say? Why is it bigger? They did not teach me this at Teachers College. ( LOL) Just as the sweat begins to form on my forehead, Jeannette stands up excitedly and says, “ I know why, I know why, I know why my belly button is bigger. It’s bigger, because I was not born in Canada, I was born in Nigeria and I have a Nigerian belly button.” She is so proud of her belly button so we all clap and cheer for her. I think to myself, wow that’s a simple answer, let’s hope we can move on. Jeannette sits down, the children seem ready to start something else when Einstein jumps up.  She lifts up her top to expose her belly and shouts out, “ I have a Canadian belly button!” So once again everyone claps and cheers. Can you guess what happens next? Come on, obviously other children jump up and show belly button and shout out the name. We start clapping and cheering for each other. Please do not worry, I did not jump up and show them my belly button.

What is the message?  

In our diverse world we need to focus more on celebrating our differences. Our family experiences, our likes and our dislikes, amongst other things, can be very different.  I would not want to live in a world where everything is the same. I would not want to live in a world where everyone looks and talks to same. Diversity is a gift to our world. Let’s celebrate who we are in a positive manner.  Who are we? We are human beings in need of love, compassion, kindness, empathy, hope, joy and strength. Stay positive and remember the human connection of the umbilical cord and a belly button indicative of our prenatal pilgrimage. Belly Button Love!

Grade One

LORD OF THE RING

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Humans are prone to make mistakes.  Sometimes we learn from our good experiences, and sometime we learn from our bad experiences.  Sometimes it takes repeat offences before we learn. According to the Little Rascals show, there are some people who ,” Will never learn.” Yes, I watched those black and white tv shows.

Common advice for young and old drivers sounds like,”Don’t drive too fast, you will get a speeding ticket.”
During the winter season the advice may sound like, “Don’t  touch metal objects with your tongue or it will get stuck.” There are also the lovely myths that we may have been told such as,” If you swallow orange seeds or watermelon seeds, they will grow in your stomach and you will explode.”

I had the pleasure of teaching students who liked to discover life their way. Most of them learned from their experiences, while some of them just lived life on the edge.

Lord of the Ring.

Lord of the Ring was a 6 year old in grade one who was given a great deal of support to help him avoid hitting other students.  I personally believe that he was trying to make friends, but because he was rough with other kids, they did not like to play with him.  His parents were often at odds about what measures would best support him. Mom thought that he needed more time outs and dad wanted to be informed so that he could be disciplined at home.  I was at odds with both of these, so I often talked to Lord of the Ring to see what was really upsetting him. One day Lord of the Ring was thrilled to show me a gift he got from his dad. It was a gold ring and he was excited because  his dad let him wear it to school. He showed it to the class, the secretary and the principal. He was amazed by this gold ring and played with it for most of the morning. As the day progressed, I noticed that he was putting the ring in his mouth.  I watched this a few times and then I said, “ Lord of the Ring, don’t put the ring in your mouth because you may choke on it.” He looked at me with his blue eyes, nodded his head and got back to work. During our show and tell circle, Lord of the Ring let every student in the class touch the ring.  He shared how the ring had belonged to his grandfather, had been given to his dad and now it belonged to him. It was a nice time because everyone was sharing and communicating in a positive manner with a student who often experienced negative vibes from his peers. Shortly after this, the secretary called me on the P.A.  “ Ms. Dancing Shoes can you please send Lord of the Ring down to the office?” He left to go to the office. Shortly after this time, the kids all went to the gym with the P.E. teacher and I went to do some work in the library. As I walked down the hall I saw Lord of the Ring standing outside of the office and I asked him why he was there. He said something about talking to the principal. I also noticed that he was putting the ring into his mouth.  I reminded him, “ If you are not careful, you are going to choke on that ring, and your dad will be upset with you. Perhaps you should put it somewhere safe until you go home?” He said, “ NO! I promise I will not put it in my mouth again.” I walked down the hall and continued working while the students were in the gym. Eventually, I began to return to the classroom, only to see Lord of the Ring holding his throat because he was choking and his eyes were bulging out of his head..  I ran down the hall and the secretary came out the office. We began to help him, and then he very suddenly gulped to swallow the ring. As tears streamed down his face he smiled and said,” I’m okay now.” We were all relieved and a few minutes later were back in the classroom. The secretary told me that she would let the parents know about the incident and would get back to me. At the end of the day, Lord of the Ring put on his coat and backpack and lined up to go home. His mom was there and was relieved that he was okay.  She did not appear to be upset with him. I told her that I had warned him about putting the ring in his mouth. I stopped myself from saying,” I told you so.” After all of the students were gone, I wrote about the incident in my daily journal and was thankful that we didn’t have to call 911.

Three days later, I was sitting at my desk before the school day started.  I walked down to the staff room to get myself a cup of coffee and when I returned to my room, I noticed that Lord of the Ring and his parents were standing beside my desk.  When I looked at my desk I noticed a shiny gold ring sitting on top of my binder. This was the same shiny gold ring that had been ingested. Miraculously it had come out and Lord of the Ring had begged his parents to bring the ring back to school. While this was happening I was thinking, what is my face saying right now.  Is it a grimace because it seems yucky or disbelief. Is it the crazy laughing face or is it deadpan. I tried very hard to keep my disdain for the ring from them, but my head was yelling GROSS! Now some of you may say, “ Oh come on, you know that they cleaned it before they brought it to school.” My response to you is, “ You do not have this item sitting on your binder that you write on.”  Yes, it was clean and yes, he wanted to show it to everyone. I considered how some of the parents might respond if they heard about the incident and because I didn’t want to spend hours on the phone, I said that I thought it would be better if he kept his “Precious” in his bag.

Lesson

What did I tell you in one of my earlier blogs?  WASH YOUR HANDS.

Do not assume that every child is going to listen to your words of wisdom.

Do not assume that all parents have the same behavioural management beliefs. Ultimately, you can help the children in your class when you listen to their wants and needs, but sometimes they can not have everything the way they want… SAFETY FIRST!

Do not assume that you are going to handle every situation perfectly.  That is okay. I did many things in my career that I would not repeat. BE a LIFE-LONG LEARNER.
All kidding aside. I wonder if Lord of the Ring is presently working in the jewelry industry. You never know.  He would be approximately 30 years old now.

Grade One

What Just Happened?

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It is a wonderful day for a trip to the farm.  The grade one students are excitedly walking with their bus buddy to the bus. I am reviewing my checklist to make sure that I have medications, permission forms, extra lunches, bandages, IV bottles, and other emergency items.  I added the IV bottle just to keep you on your toes. I have counted and recounted the students and I know that I will spend most of the day checking to make sure that we have everyone. There are enough parents joining us on the trip to make the group ratio 6:1.   

Once the students are seated on the bus, the driver stands up and gets our attention by blowing a whistle through her two fingers. Some of the children think that is really cool so they try to do the same thing.  The driver then tells them to stop because she wants to say something. As I am sitting on the right, front seat, I stand up and turn to the class. “ Let’s all listen to what the bus driver has to say.” The driver proceeds to say the following, “ When you are on the bus, you are not allowed to sing, eat, dance, throws things or put your hands out of the window.” “ I do not want to have any trouble from any of you, did I make myself clear? “ I state, “ Yes, they know the rules for the bus, thank you.”  There are a few parents who are looking at me wide eyed and I am unsure of the reason behind her comment. She sits down, we all settle and the bus begins to move.

When we arrive at the farm, we get off and have a wonderful time. The children see a variety of farm animals.  Pick eggs out of the hen house, touch sheeps wool, run after farm cats and much, much more. Fortunately, there have not been any accidents and everyone has had sufficient food during our lunch break.  While we wait for the bus to return, the children play at the playground and run around.

After about 15 minutes, the bus driver arrives and the children get on to the bus.  The driver is shouting out questions to the children, “ Did you have a nice day?” “ What did you see?” I’m thinking to myself, “Wow, she’s in a much better mood than she was this morning.” Suddenly, I’m thinking more than that. I’m thinking, “ What in the World Just Happened?” The bus driver is now dancing in the aisle, clapping her hands and singing.  Some children are not sure how to react, so they are looking at her like she’s a crazy person. But some children are in the aisle, dancing and singing with her. I’m shaking my head because I’m confused. The parents are looking at me and I’m looking at them. Then just like the record album stopping with a loud skid, the driver stops and shouts at the kids to sit down and shut up. Crickets chirping.  Then one of the little boy, God bless him, says, “ You just said a bad word. “

The bus driver drives the bus and we sit in our seats. The air in the bus is thick with the question,“ What in the world just happened?” We return to the school safely and all of the children happily go home.

Believe it or not, no parents called to ask about the driver and none of the children talked about calling a lawyer.  Today, if this same incident happened, there would be several posts on social media and a news team would be waiting outside of the school the next day.  I do not know what caused the driver to have such extreme behaviour, but I will assume that it was a mental health issue.
One final note:I loved taking all of my classes on trips and I truly believe that everyone learns more from these experiences than they would in the class.

Red Dress Wows
Grade One

Red Dress Wows

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Over my 31 years of teaching, the dress code for teachers has changed with the fashions. I have a vivid memory of a grade six boy telling me that I was ready for football practice. Funny and true because back in the eighties, every outfit had its own set of shoulder pads.  I had unwittingly put a dress on with shoulder pads followed by a jacket with shoulder pads. Yes, I was ready for the field. I had a good laugh with the student and then made a mental note and did not wear those two items together again. I was never really good at dressing fashionably, and I often chose clothing that made me look frumpy.  Over time, my sister and my husband have helped me move away from the old lady walking through an English field look.

Today, you may see teachers wearing yoga pants at school.  I’m not going to debate the issue of what you should be wearing to school with anyone, as I truly believe that when you are teaching, you are basically going into the trenches of anything can happen.  Yes, anything can happen and it generally does. Today’s story has a lesson. You can decide for yourself what the lesson would be.

First contract

I am so excited that I have my first contract position teaching a grade one class. It has worked out nicely for me because I have my daycare experience to help me with songs, activities, and some of the curriculum.  One thing that is making me anxious is the fact that children are expected to learn to read during grade one. Today, children are expected to be reading at a certain level by the end of grade one. If you haven’t met that expectation you sometimes feel like the walk of doom and shame are going to come and drag you out of the building to the tarmac. Wa ha ha ha.  All kidding aside, I decided to take several professional development courses offered through the board and I also signed up for an Additional Qualification Course called Reading Part 1. To clarify further, when I went to teacher’s college the focus for reading instruction was called Whole Language. Teachers were not supposed to focus on the use of phonetics to help students understand how to look at text and without getting too technical, instruction for new teachers was abysmal. On several occasions there were discussions that sounded something like this.” We know we are not permitted to use phonic charts to teach reading, but how should we teach reading?” Answer: you teach them to look at the whole words and text.”  While there is a wealth of information in this statement for me now, it meant nothing to me at that moment. I felt like I had little to no clue how to teach my new class of wide eyed angels, how to read.

Professional Development

Today, I am going to one of the professional development sessions after work.  For anyone who thinks we work from the moment students enter and exit the building, this is where you will see that you are incorrect. The session will be at another school in the area from 4:00 – 6:00 pm. I decide that I may not have enough time to change and look professional for the meeting, so I wear my red dress to school.  I like this dress because it is bright, has an A-line skirt and I think it looks nice.

I begin the day greeting the children at the door, they walk into the room and go sit at the carpet.  If you picture them going directly to the carpet and sitting down, you would be incorrect once again. Several of them like to run around the room and pretend they’re Ninja Turtles.  Yes, Ninja Turtles were very popular at this time. So, once I get them settled at the carpet, I take attendance, we sing a few short songs with actions and then I begin to read them a story.

While I’m reading the story, I notice that one student is not looking well.  Barfonu is sweating and pale. I put the book on the rocking chair and walk over to Barfonu and ask him to come over to the sink.  He begins to walk towards me and while he is walking, he says two words, “ I feel… and then he is violently ill. I would like to say that I was out of the directional flow, but that would be a gigantic lie.  My dress is literally covered, but rather than worry about myself. I have helped maneuver Barfonu to the sink. The rest of the class is doing a combination of screaming oooohhhh!, holding their noses with their hands, wrestling on the carpet, which fortunately did not get blessed, or jumping up and down.  I’m trying to calmly get Barfonu to the sink, tell the kids to stay away from the mess and pretend that my body is not soaked in vomit. Today, some schools have walkie talkies, at this time we used a button on the wall that went directly to the secretary. In the chaos of the moment, I have somehow managed to call to the office and let them know that we need a clean up in Aisle Everywhere.  The caretaker eventually comes to the room to see me helping Barfonu at the sink and then he calls for backup. The secretary leaves her desk to take Barfonu to the office while I try to wipe off my dress with paper towels.

I do not have a change of clothes and unfortunately for me there is no other staff to help cover my class. I have done my best to clean off the mess on my dress, the caretaker has cleaned the mess on the floor and I have to get back to teaching. I am doing my best to be optimistic about this situation, but the truth is I STINK!  So I apologize to the class. Some students want to give me a hug to make me feel better, but I say, “Let’s just High 5.” One student asks me if Barfonu is going to be okay. I confirm that he will be better in a few days. Then the children want to share their personal stories of when they were sick. Finally, a student puts his hand up and says I have something nice to say.  What do you think he said? Could it be, “Don’t worry Miss, tomorrow will be a better day?” Or maybe he said, “Miss, you smell beautiful.” No, the dear little soul said, “ Don’t worry about your dress, it was ugly anyway.” Stop laughing! At that particular moment, I heard the words my mother often said, “ Out of the mouths of babes comes truth or wisdom.”

After this blissful day,  I always made sure that I had a change of clothes which included socks, underwear, top, pants, shoes and my hazmat suit. I made it to the professional development session after work,and yes, I rushed home to change out of my lovely red dress .

As for the lovely red dress, it went in the garbage because after all, it was ugly.