Tuesday, January 30, 2007

The Dog Ate My Homework, Spelling Fun, and a Picture

And here I thought it was just an excuse...


To prove the point, the student brought in his old packet. There was a giant bite mark in it.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The following are some classic examples of sentences written by my students using their spelling words. I made the spelling words bold, so you can appreciate their work even more. Why I never thought to share some of these gems in the past is a mystery. I will not make that mistake in the future.

I like to wiggle my butty.

My little sister wiggle a lot.

My sister skip school.

I was middle in the.

My kind of peopl is smot.

And my personal favorite:

I am low on the flow.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few months back I was given a new student, a kindergartener who was promoted early to first grade. This child is scary-smart - her reading levels are off the charts. However, like most freakishly smart people, she's a bit odd. Her parents, while not wanting to come out and say, "Our kid is a bit odd, we are worried that the first graders won't like her," were concerned about how she would fit in. I was concerned as well. The kids could tell she was different right off the bat - odd ducks are easy to spot. She has a tendency to laugh aloud out of nowhere. She has a way of sing-songing everything she says. If she actually gets something wrong (a rare occurrence), she cries about it, as she isn't used to ever being wrong. We're working on that. I actually spent an entire afternoon that first week purposely making one mistake after another just to make the kids laugh and show her that making mistakes was OK. I think it worked. I'm very good at making mistakes - purposely or not.

I did everything I could to make her feel comfortable and welcome in our classroom and with the kids. I didn't want her to feel like an outcast for the rest of the year. At the end of the first week, she brought me this picture.

On the back she had written: I like you Ms. Woes. And I like first grade too.

First Grade rules!

40 comments:

dizzy von damn! said...

miss woes! i like you too!

matty said...

miss woes totally rocks!!!

Ubermilf said...

Crayon pictures add ten pounds.

You're a good teacher.

Sysm said...

6-year-olds give the best hugs.

Bill said...

My friends keep urging me to send out resumes to jobs I don't want. Can I send a resume to first grade? I wanna go back there.

Bill said...

I neglected to mention that I, too, am low with the flow.

FindingHeart said...

We used to make 'potato fish' in order to show parts of a fish. Kids would bring in a potato and we make it in class. 'Billy' came in all sad because, 'My mom at my homework'. Mom actually ate his potato.

Churlita said...

It's important to have proof when your dog eats your homework. My daughter's friend used to put her homework in her dog's food dish to encourage him to take a bite, but he was never interested.

I don't know how you deal with that many 1st graders every day. You must have the patience of a saint.

FRITZ said...

My dearest, bestest, most wonderful friend is a first grade teacher.

I think you people must be the Universe's most special present to children.

One day, I will post about Liz's 'No Taxation without Representation' day. It involved M&M's, a queen, and a whole bunch of very politically motivated six year olds.

God bless you, Miss Woes. God Bless us, everyone.

FRITZ said...

Also: I just realized on my past comment, apparently, the computer went all on the Fritz and posted it like twenty bazillion times.

I'm way sorry! Duh. I feel stupid.

jamwall said...

i am also "low on the flow" and occasionally a "botty on the potty"

nothing new there..

ChickyBabe said...

I think miss woes... no, miss chickybabe rules! :)

Mone said...

Potatoprints?

flounder said...

I skipped kindergarten and I still feel like an outcast.

Melissa said...

My dog ate a ten-page paper once.

I felt like such a twenty-nine year old horse's ass telling my advisor that.

Anonymous said...

That little girl is obviously not a painting prodigy. The perspective and shadowing are all off in that picture. See. She's a failure at art.

nicalyse said...

I might not be going into elementary education, but stories like yours remind me of why I want to teach. Little kids are absolutely priceless.

egan said...

Brooke, thanks for sharing this stuff. I love your teaching stories. I love what you do for kids.

Sizzle said...

you are a kick ass teacher. :)

yournamehere said...

My karma ran over my dogma.

jiggs said...

Ms wose is the bomb diggity!

I wish I had had someone like you when I was a child that could make me understand that making mistakes isn't so bad.

Tits McGee said...

Ohmigod.

I am so in love with you. And your butty.

Fella said...

Sysm is a dirty old man.

Toby said...

I hate it when my flow is low.

Christina said...

Yea for Miss Woes!!!

Callie said...

You are awesome Brooke!
and those kids...WOW

such joy!
callie

Tim said...

I love when you write about your students.

Ubermilf said...

I wish I was independently wealthy and I could hire you to privately tutor the UberGirls. And then they wouldn't get germs at school and throw up in the middle of the night all over their beds and get chunks in their hair.

Dr. Sardonic said...

My kind of peopl is smot as well. Perfectly cromulent.

Ubermilf said...

Dr. Sardonic! Have you been ingesting your own experiments again?

Spinning Girl said...

Waaah, I want to go back to grade 1 and I want to have you!

G3T Films said...

My kind of peopl is smot-hered in barbeque sauce and tied up in the basement...

Sorry, where am I? Oh right...

Your student stories rock!

Steve said...

I don't get it.

Steve said...

I don't get it.

Steve said...

still don't...

Steve said...

are you a special ed teacher or something?

Hypersonic said...

once again you have reduced me to tears in a public place Brookie-baby.

Damn you !! :o)

Mackenzie said...

In 10 years she will be dating my little brother. Two freakishly smart little kids should get together. It's only natural.

Willie Baronet said...

Those are a riot!

therapydoc said...

She's just a kid fer cryin out loud