Oh You Better Watch Out....

Something I've learned to do much better than last year?  Roll with the punches.  Or better yet go with the flow.  Not only is this week the last week of school before Christmas break... but we've had a death of an elder recently, many absences, and changes to the school day schedule.

My kids giggled at me because I had a bit of flour on my nose when we were rolling out our cookies.

Our Christmas plans were as follows...

Wednesday:  Gift Exchange and Cookies
On Wednesday a half hour before school ended Miss Wilson hustled back to her house (which happens to be less than 30 yards away) and brought over gingerbread cookie mix, cookie cutters, and boxes of presents.  When my class began to realize we were doing something out of the ordinary their eyes lit up.  We cut out gingerbread men, stars, hearts, and even reindeer.  After that we read How the Grinch Stole Christmas and they played Grinchical Chairs, an idea I got from Pinterest.  They then got open presents that were donated to my classroom by amazing family friends.


Thursday:  Polar Express Day
Thursday was supposed to be a crazy day anyway, because our school was putting on a Christmas program.  Unfortunately there was an elder who passed away recently, causing our school to get out early for the funeral which changed my Friday plans of having an all day Polar Express party.  So, Miss Wilson pulled on her big girl pants and got over the frustration of changing plans.  My class got to watch the Polar Express, drink hot cocoa, and eat the gingerbread cookies we made from the day before.

Friday:  Christmas Program

Today, was a crazy and fun day that reaffirms why I am a teacher.  I stopped all the students in the hallway and told them I'd gotten tickets in the mail for the Polar Express.  They had to write their names and dates, and then MOST IMPORTANTLY put the ticket in their right hand pocket of their coats.  Then the day went by with the finishing up our Polar Express movie, learning about new holidays such as Kwanza, Hannakuh, and New Years thanks to Brainpop Jr.  Between all of this we put on our Christmas play, which was a readers' theater of the Snowmen at Christmas  We went to lunch and Santa came in and traded out our tickets for bells for "those who truly believe".  I am not sure who created the tickets and tags, but I'm sure I found them on Pinterest somewhere.

Home FREE
 It's officially the end of the semester and the year for me.  See you all sometime over break with an update on how my Indiana Christmas goes.

Let Them Be Little

My original intention with this post was to write about the Christmas season here in my village, but instead I will take a few moments for more important matters.  In light of the tragedy that happened in Connecticut on Friday, I have been reminded how precious life is.  I have been reminded how important my job is with these children. Faced with the decision that some brave men and women faced to save their classes of children, I would have done the same thing.  Because God gave me this job to serve, love, and protect. the little ones and I'd do EVERYTHING in my power to see that it happens.  So with that I will post this song... for parents and teacher alike who love and pray for the innocence of children. 

Here's to Us....

I have the best friends in the world.  Not just in my home state Indiana... (Shout out to Shelly, Rachel, Nate, and the many others that make my life all the more pleasant when I come home.) But seriously... I have amazing friends here in Alaska.  Amazing friends.  I was blessed to spend a 4 day Thanksgiving break in a beautiful ski lodge at the base of a gorgeous mountain with my group of 4 boys and 3 new faces to the crew.  Here's a very short version of my Thanksgiving break.


Wednesday:
The hours in my day have not crept more slowly than it did that day.  It might have been the craziness that 3rd graders exude on a daily basis.  But really,  I'm going to blame it on the excitement I'd been building up in my head for weeks before.  Made it to the airport with my Atmautluak brother Eli, dropped off just in time for his flight to leave for Anchorage.  Due to booking my flight a month later than the rest of the group I was forced to wait another 2 hours in another airport.  Thankfully I met up with fellow 2nd year teachers and was placed next to a very nice 5th year teacher on the plane.  Made it into Anchorage without a hitch and was picked up by half of the group in our rental car.  They were super excited about the trip too.  After a much needed stop for refreshments we went to Walmart.  SIDE NOTE:  Holy cow!  If you've never shopped for Thanksgiving the day before, I don't reccommend it.  Craziness ensued, but goodness prevailed and we made it out of the store to pick up McDonald's delicious fries.  The car counted down the minutes until it was my birthday and "forgot" something at Walmart.  2 of the guys ran back into the store making me wait in the car.  20 mins later a piñata, birthday cake, and 2 giant helium balloon were shoved onto my lap.  Have I mentioned how much I love these guys.  The rest of the night was spent celebrating the beginning of an eventful weekend!


Thursday:

The day was full of games, laughs, and turkey.  There was even a little time for a few photos and cake to be had for my 24th birthday.  Feeling quite old writing that number, so please don't rub it in.

Friday:  BLACK FRIDAY!!! 

If anyone knows me, they know I have a love for shopping.  Not necessarily the buying part, but the scavenging and fun of making new outfits or getting gifts.  This year I had another lady friend to share this experience with.  We made a killing in several stores doing much of my needed Christmas shopping.  We ended the night with delicious food at a local pub and goofing off back at the house.



Saturday:  SKI DAY!  I think I spent more time on my butt than I did on the skis, but boy did I have a good time.   I will definitely be doing that again some time in the future. Here are some great shots of the day.  We ended the weekend with a nice dinner at the ski resort.  Have I mentioned how much I love my group of friends?

Sunday:
Spent 6 hours at the airport due to a "lost/broken/problematic" plane.  For once... my delay wasn't weather related.  Oh well, I got a chance to enjoy more fountain Diet Coke, buy some airport gifts for family and friends, and even got airline miles because of the "inconvenience".

Now... there's only 11 days standing between me and home.  I'm off to listen to Christmas songs with my class and help them decorate the classroom for next week's festivities.  Look out for a Christmas post soon about the classroom.

It's Turkey Lurkey Time....

My thanksgiving update is much delayed but was so great it must be done in 2 separate posts!  Here's how things went at school...

Thanksgiving at School
If you read my blog last year you know that Thanksgiving out at the bush is not the same as it is back home.  Here's my list of 5 things that make it different.  Hope you enjoy.

1.  Teaching your kids about the pilgrims isn't as far fetched as it is out here.  But we put on our big girl pants and taught it anyway.  Maybe next year I'll have them do a reader's theatre complete with pilgrim hats and feathers....
Back home you probably don't have an entire community coming to your school the day before expecting a feast.  The teachers are given a turkey to thaw and cook the day before.  Doesn't mine look tasty?



 2.  How do you teach thankfulness?!!  I know!  Scour the internet and find an awesome mini writing unit where students pick a person, place, and thing they are thankful for.  Have them write a paragraph for each and then color an awesome turkey doodle.

3.   How do you teach How-to-Writing?  Have kids disguise a turkey and write a paragraph about those steps.  Post said disguised turkeys on the gym wall during the Thanksgiving feast.

4.  Remember how much you have to be thankful for.  I am thankful for a classroom full of books, technology, and most importantly kids.  12 kiddos that make me remember why I became a teacher.  I am thankful for my family and friends.  I am thankful for awesome care-packages that make my entire week when I get them.  In the last one I received 2 cute aprons and an outfit for my birthday!  Thanks Ridgway family. ;)