Times at School

Mondays are busy, so I can't believe I'm sneaking in a blog post on a Monday!
For the past 5 school days, Braylen's been doing the morning announcements. This involves reading some words of wisdom for the day, along with leading the school in the pledge of allegiance and character pledge. Not only does his voice reach everyone inside the building, but I can hear it outside too. On his first day he asked me to stay and listen in the car while he did his thing. I liked listening to him so much I've stayed all 5 days. :) Next school year he won't be at this school anymore, so I want to soak up all I can with him until then. I've also been blessed with the opportunity to help in his classroom on Fridays. It's so much fun! A few other moms come and help too, and we play math and literature games with the students. I've known these kids for 6 years now and so it feels a bit like a family. :)

Every Monday morning I spend an hour with Kaleb in his classroom. I lead a guided reading group called "The Wacky Khaki Cactus Club." His teacher makes learning so much fun! Besides reading with these 3rd graders, it gives me the chance to see Kaleb in his element. Like Braylen's class, this class has been together since the first day of kindergarten. They are pretty close, and I've loved getting to know these kids over the years. I'm even starting to (finally) tell a set of identical twins apart. :) Kaleb still lights up when I come to his room, and it truly helps us get over our Monday morning grumblings. (Remember, Kaleb and I are not morning people!)

Every Monday afternoon I spend an hour in Aaron's classroom! I've LOVED watching these kindergartners learn to read. I can literally see the lights go on in their eyes when they're sounding out a new word in a story. I'm not a teacher, but I can understand why people want to be teachers! How rewarding! My favorite part of it, of course, is when Aaron comes to the reading table and scoots his chair as close as he can to mine. Then he leans on my shoulder and says, "Hi Mommy." Some days he'll even give me a big hug and a kiss--right there in his classroom! I know from experience that it will not last, so I'm loving it while it does. I've had fun getting to know this new group of kids. Some of them have older siblings in Braylen and Kaleb's classes, but most of them are new to me. It's amazing how much I can learn about these kids by being in the classroom for just one hour per week.

I love being a part of my kids' day at school. :)