Happy Mother's Day! I hope yours was as enjoyable as mine. I woke up to breakfast and then church. Before the actual service began, they played a video that was really interesting. In the beginning, it was moms talking about what kind of mom they thought they were. Then, the little ones came on and talked about what kind of moms they were. It is funny how we are so critical of our parenting ways and skills. Not once, did the kids ever mention what the moms had said on screen. There are so many times I question myself as a parent and wonder what my kids will grow up to be like. It is even more important that I remember that my kids think I am a great mom and they remember all the little things we do together. What a great message for our special day! Keep being the amazing moms and dads that all of you are!
Baby Egg day was a HUGE success! The kids were so excited and they did such a great job. So many of them really took it seriously. They were rocking their eggs and singing lullabies to them. So dang cute! I had them write letters of empathy at the end of the day. Hopefully, you received those with your cards. So many of them learned just how difficult it is to put another person before yourself. Many little eggs were left alone and were kidnapped. Through this lesson, they learned how responsible parents have to be and how expensive kids are. Some kids totaled out the day around $600 or more. Wow! I asked them how it felt to have to get into their wallet every few minutes. :0) I hope you enjoyed your letters and your "about mom" letters. Hopefully, you also received your flower that they planted and grew in Mrs. Auch's Science class. They took them home last week. If you did see your card/letter, write MOTHER in the planner for $10 on Monday. Below I have a picture of a pretty creative babysitting service at recess. However, it ended up being shut down and all the babies were kidnapped. A lesson on whom to trust was had. :0)
Thank you to everyone for supporting Stripes for Cents for Zoo Montana. Arrowhead raised over $1000 for the new tigers. We will present that to them at the Assembly on Tuesday at 2:00. You are all welcome to join us. All kids that donated were given a ticket for the drawing for the two stuffed tigers.
On Thursday, the school is doing a school wide walk/bike for Healthy Habits week. Unfortunately, this is the day we will be on our field trip to Hardin. So, please ignore any notices sent home about participating in it. Please remember to send a packed lunch with your child on Thursday for the field trip. A BIG thank you to Riley's grandma for agreeing to be our chaperone for the day. We will leave right away in the morning.
On Wednesday, we will attend the 5th grade orchestra/band concert. Seeing how this will be these kiddos next year, it is important that they experience it.
If you have kiddos in the 3rd grade, their music concert is this Friday at 1:30. We may or may not attend the school one in the morning. It depends on the library teacher as that is our library time. However, if you have a sibling in my class and want them to attend, just write me a note in the planner. We already missed library class last week, so it is important that we don't miss again. This is the last week to check out books.
Just a heads up…next year my name will be Mrs. Grewell. Zach and I are getting married this July. There will be notices going home in 3rd grade report cards, like supply lists, and it says that name. It is not a new teacher. It is just me with a different name. :0)
To finish up Teacher's Appreciation Week, Chase's mom organized a little surprise for me. Each kiddo had written a note telling me how I was a super hero. It was fun to go down memory lane. I love how they didn't thank me for teaching them math and reading. I know that is a weird for a teacher to say, but I love that they thanked me for helping them become better people, and how I helped them learn in a fun way. That is what touched my heart. Then, each kiddo decorated a rock for me. They wrote their name and put a symbol of something that would remind me of them on it. Finally, they all placed it in a glass jar for me to keep. It is now on my BELIEVE shelf. I will treasure it forever! A HUGE thank you to Chase's mom for doing this for me. I felt so special all week, but even more on this day! Thank you for that.
To show my appreciation for teachers, I asked my 6th grade teacher to come in and meet the class on Friday. Mrs. Laird (now Mrs. Robinson) was my favorite teacher. She was the one that made me who I am today. She took the time to connect with me and often would let me stay after school or in at recess to just talk to her. My parents were divorced and I had to take on the role of being a mom at an early age. I missed out on my childhood. However, one day, she pulled me aside and she said to me, "Tammie, if you don't want the same life as you have right now then sit down, be quiet, and get to work changing it! " From that day on, I did just that. This amazing lady has been at every single one of my important life events, and she will be at my wedding this summer as well. She is the one I call upon when I need to know what to do when life throws me a curve. She has always made time for me on the phone or to have lunch or coffee. She is and always will be my forever role model of what a teacher is and what a teacher does. I so appreciated her coming in and answering all the kids questions about what I was like as a student. (And yes, it wasn't always good!) I am so very fortunate to have her in my life. Thanks Mrs. Robinson!!! I will forever look up to you!
A HUGE thank you to everyone for making my week special. From the breakfasts, to lunches, to gift cards for dinners and dessert, believe signs, candy and snacks, flowers and plants, jewelry, and all the other fun stuff in between, I felt sooooo appreciated. However, this is nothing new from this group. I feel special every day! You have all allowed me into to your lives and to be a part of your child's life inside our four walls and out. You have welcomed and invited me to be a part of their lives outside of school. In many cards, you have thanked me for going above and beyond, and in a way that makes me sad as a teacher. It seems odd to me that all teachers aren't like that. I am a relationship teacher, and I am not sure how one can connect without connecting. I don't feel like I do anything above my calling, but apparently I do. My only hope is that I get to continue to do so. I hope that when the last bell rings, I still get to be in these 22 lives. Please continue to invite me to their events. I will come! I have always felt there was a higher purpose to teaching. I am happy that I have shown you that and that you have accepted it so willingly. Thank you for trusting me with your most precious gifts.
Spencer was our star of the week last week. He shared many favorites. He loves sports and collecting cards. He also loves to build things with Legos. The helicopter he brought in was awesome! I am sure he sat down and built it from start to finish in one setting. Spencer is so dedicated to a task! What a great kiddo!
During our talks about Mother's Day and Egg Day this week, I shared a bunch of pictures from my past. I also shared a shirt that for some reason I have saved for years. It is my soccer shirt from when I was little. I was number 7! It is pretty little. Adelaide wanted to put it on and see if it would fit. Looks like it fits her perfect! Too funny! Max also talked me into allowing him to try it. He came back out laughing and said nope! :0)
Midterms came home on Friday. Please sign and return the top page. If your child has missing assignments, I stapled them onto the midterm. They need to get those turned in ASAP for a better grade. I am very proud of all kids!
Well, that about covers all our happenings past, present, and future. This week will be a normal week academically. We will have both book and alternate testing this week. The new words are already posted to the right.
Have a wonderful week, and thanks again for everything!
Ms. Erickson
