Chocolate for Teachers

The Food Chain.

2012-01-26T18:30:00.000-08:00

We were celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Junior's birthday, so our question during community circle time was "What do you do to make the world a better place?"

I heard the following:

"I pick up trash when I see it on the ground."

"I'm nice to my friends."

"I always do my best."

And...

"Well, I take good care of my pets at home so they don't die and break the food chain."

The Exercise Channel.

2012-01-26T18:27:00.000-08:00

So I'm 25 weeks pregnant with our second baby.

Yay!

In the three years it's been since I was last pregnant, apparently the doctors at my practice have adopted a new, rigid, horrific weight-gain policy for us all during this time of our lives. My family and I are quite healthy; we exercise every day, play outside, and eat all the fruits and veggies we're supposed to.

Anyway, the fact that they harp on me about being careful about my weight gain during my pregnancy doesn't make me a happy girl since it's something I'm always careful with.

I asked our school nurse, who is a saint and has many children of her own, to please check my blood pressure...she knows I get all excited at the doctor's office and it gets them all worked up. If she checks it, it's usually fine.

Anyway, I was in her office Tuesday, complaining about how they're not going to believe my weight gain is water retention, blah, blah, blah, when a little first grader walks in. The rest is history.

Me: Pam, I just know they're not going to love my weight gain. I seriously have no idea how to fix it.

Stinkin' first grader: You know, you could just turn on the exercise channel on your TV once in awhile.

It's a good thing he was sitting across the room from this pregnant girl.

Venison.

2011-11-03T17:56:00.000-07:00

I have this kid in my class that looks like he fell out of the movie Goonies.

Seriously.

He is, unintentionally and hysterically, hilarious. His biggest flaw is also his biggest strength: he is so very easygoing he's almost lazy. And, as I mentioned, it is absolutely hysterical.

Not a single day goes by when I say, "Bodie, GET TO WORK NOW...PLEASE!" I tell him over and over and over...typically by the third time he starts moving in the general direction of his work. Many times he is the very last child to still be sitting on the rug after everyone else is knee-deep in their work around the room, and he'll say to me, "Okay, I'll work, but Mrs. Overman? I have to tell you something."

This happens nearly every single day. No kidding. He then proceeds to tell me something like, "Trish isn't working" or something similar to what he is also not doing.

So today, this whole shindig happened again...same bat time, same bat channel. "Bodie, get to work," I said. "Okay," he agreed. "But Mrs. Overman? I have to tell you something."

*sigh* "All right, Bodie. What do I need to know now?"

"Well, Mrs. Overman...I don't know if you noticed this, but it smells like deer meat in here."

Oh sweet heavens.

Oh.My.Word.

2011-10-14T12:18:00.000-07:00

We had a Walk-A-Thon today. You know the kind--the kids raised money for new playground equipment by getting pledges, then we all walked and walked and walked and walked some more.

A good time was had by all.

We came in and waited with baited breath to hear the winners of the fundraising contest.

All of a sudden, one little guy goes,

"Umm, Mrs. Overman? So when are we going to do the Walk-A-Thon?"

Oh, for pete's sake.

2011-08-18T18:30:00.001-07:00

One of my girls smacked me on the rear end today.

The end.

Lakes and Alligators.

2011-08-16T19:21:00.000-07:00

I have a new little kiddo from Florida. I asked her today what she liked about Indiana, and she said, "Well, I've never seen snow...and did you know I have my own lake here? It's so fun. I can swim in it every day. And I really like how they cleaned out all the alligators so we can swim."

Thanks for the reminder.

2011-08-15T20:16:00.001-07:00

Picture meet-your-teacher night.

Or in the case of this little girl, meet-your-sister's-teacher night.

Here's how it went:

Little girl: Oh, Mrs. Overman! Me and you have the same kind of arms!
Me: Oh really? (thinking, I know EXACTLY where this is going)...you mean hairy?
Little girl: Yeah!

Yes, as you can imagine, her parents were mortified. Little did they know this was not the first time someone under four feet tall had told me I have hairy arms.

*sigh*

Oh, the last day of school.

2011-06-07T19:23:00.001-07:00

Here's what I heard today:

"Oh, Mrs. Overman, can't you just tape me to the wall or something? I really just don't want to leave."

Sea Turtle bites make you brave.

2011-05-25T18:42:00.000-07:00

So I'm not really MIA in the world of blogging...I'm actually just the opposite: posting like crazy to my classroom blog and writing a book. (check us out: superkiddos)

Oh, and I have a two-year-old, but hey, we're all busy.

Anyway, here's my conversation with a little guy (okay, my fave little guy) yesterday:

____________________________________________________

Bode: Are you going to read the other Harry Potters to us when we finish the first one?

Me: Well, we won't have time because school is almost out, but you can have your mom check them out for you. Plus, after the second or third one, they get kind of scary and really are pretty much for grown-ups.

Bode: Why?

Me: Well, they're kind of violent and not really appropriate for all kids.

Bode: Like really violent and scary? Because I've been bitten by a sea turtle before, so I don't get scared easy. It really hurt.

A Love Note.

2011-02-15T11:54:00.000-08:00

Little kids writing love notes crack me up.

I found one today.

It said, "BG, when I look at you, you look so handsome and cute."

Of course, we live to tattle, so someone brought it to me and said, "I think this love note is from DT!"

"I think so too," I said. "Hey, DT! Come here, please."

DT: Yeah?

Me: We found your love note.

DT: That's not mine.

Me: Oh really? Then why does it say "From DT" on the back?

DT: Oh yeah. That's mine.

Seriously? Wow.

Marrying your babysitter.

2011-02-15T11:51:00.000-08:00

And so went the conversation amongst a few sweet little seven-year-olds:

BG: My parents are having a date night this weekend.

MH: Oh, really? Aren't they married?

BG: Yeah.

MH: Then why are they having a date night?

BG: I dunno. But we have to have a babysitter. She's from my mom's work at the YMCA and my four-year-old brother thinks he's gonna marry her, but I think that's gonna be a problem since she's got a boyfriend. Plus, her boyfriend is going to come over too when she babysits us. I don't think that'll go over very well.

Another girl: Ugh! Teenagers!

Playing House.

2010-12-03T16:45:00.001-08:00

We were having recess inside today and some of the kids were playing "house." The dad of the house, Bode, came running up to me and said,

"Mrs. Overman, I am soooo not ready to have kids yet."

I was already cracking up.

"Why's that, Bode?"

"Well, see my kids over there? [points to a group of kids sitting in the corner] They're not going to bed like I said, so they're just going to have to sleep in their pretend puke. I wish they'd just go to bed. I think I might just never have kids."

"Bode, you know, it doesn't get any easier when you're a grown up. Good luck."

This is just too cute not to post.

2010-11-19T16:58:00.001-08:00

Ah, finally something funny.

2010-11-18T17:49:00.000-08:00

I love my class this year. They rock. But they're just not...umm...hilarious. Usually.

Today one little guy, B, was late because he went to the dentist. It kinda just wrenched his whole day, really. He's a perfectionist and hates messing things up; he especially hates when I circle incorrect answers on his math papers for him to correct.

"I think you just like circling things today, Mrs. Overman!" he'll say. "Those aren't really wrong!"

Today he missed a lot on his math facts paper, so I circled them to be corrected. He went back to his seat and cried. Poor kiddo. I finally had the sense to lighten his situation with some humor, but he ended up lightening it for me instead:

Me: B, what happened to you at the dentist? Did they clean out the math part of your brain in addition to your teeth and that's why you missed all your facts?

B: Well...you know, I did feel something tingly up toward my brain after they cleaned this tooth [points at molar]. And you know what else happened there? I got ceilings on my teeth so I don't get cavities! Guys, did you hear me! I got ceilings! Yeah!

Yeah...you mean sealants. But whatever.

SMART Board.

2010-11-08T18:29:00.000-08:00

I have a SMART Board, a.k.a. God's greatest gift to teachers in the digital age.

A.k.a. an "interactive whiteboard."  

 Just picture a giant computer screen that you use digital markers with.

Well, much to our disappointment, our SMART Board isn't interacting with us.  *sniff*

 The tech people were in my room making a last-ditch effort to fix it before they called the SMART company people, and one of my boys goes, 

"You know, for being a SMART Board, it's really not so smart!"

Sometimes we wish we didn't have our own bathrooms.

2010-09-17T08:56:00.000-07:00

Don't read this if you think bathroom stories are inappropriate--or you're opposed to the word "butt."

My colleague in first grade shared this with me today. She has a squirrley class, to put it mildly. She'd finally gotten them calmed down and working quietly on their math papers when one little boy asked to use the bathroom. He went in and apparently was in there for a very, very long time. She finally heard a little voice in there saying:

"I'm wiping my butt now!!!!"

Sometimes you have to laugh or you'll just cry.

2010-09-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

My wonderful colleague has a doozy of a class this year. This is what she told me today:

"Oh my goodness...today has been really stressful...so I decided to put on some soothing music for the kids when they came in from recess. Totally didn't work. One kid was under his desk playing, another girl that never is quiet was screaming that he was under his desk playing, another kid was trying his darndest to dance to the soothing music...then I look back, and guess what Glue Eater's Friend is doing? Oh yes...she is cutting up paper towels and her math paper that has yet to be completed and is glueing them to another paper. So I asked what she was doing, and she said, 'I'm glueing because my friend Glue Eater likes to eat glue so I'm making her something to eat.'"

We had to stop our converstation because two boys were trying to kill each other before our very eyes. Repeat after me: "I will get through this day, I will get through this day..."

Bearded lady.

2010-09-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

We were sharing our work from Writing Workshop today.

You know from some past posts like this one about a dead cat in a dryer that this can get really...interesting.

Here is what T said today:

"Okay, guys. This is a map of my house. Oh...I think I forgot to draw the other bathroom...oh well. Okay, so here's my dad. Here's me. Here's my sister. She has a moustache because I don't like her."

Of course, the other boys thought this was the most ingenious idea they'd ever heard and suddenly were begging for more work time to add moustaches to their own much-despised sisters.

I congratulated myself on teaching drawing detail and writing how you really feel after this lesson. I see the glass half-full, don't you think?

*wink*

We have a bathroom in our classroom.

2010-08-28T16:39:00.000-07:00

So you can only imagine some of the adventures, both good and bad, that occur in there. But I won't tell you all of them in one post.

I will, however, tell you the most recent bathroom adventure in our second-grade room. Ahem.

Little guy I'll call Loudie (he's just kinda loud all the time...and it's hysterical) went into the bathroom and was in there for a long time. Like a really long time. He finally came out, went over to the sink, and washed his hands. Meanwhile, a little girl I'll call Cutie entered the bathroom after a long wait. Like a really long wait. All of a sudden, she came out yelling, "Ew! It stinks in there!"

You should know by now that second graders can't just leave well enough alone.

I mean, hello, the first week of school Loudie farted twice during the same Community Circle session. (May I just add that he wasn't embarrassed AT ALL and said "excuse me" like he just sneezed or something normal.)

Anyway...if you and I are warned that something stinks, we'd get far away from said stink, right? Not true of second graders. Cutie kept yelling, "Oh, Loudie, that's nasty! You stink!" to which Loudie replied, "Hey, whatever! I had to make a poo." Then Cutie's friend came over, apparently to smell the stink for herself and said, "Oh, man, Loudie, you're sick! Whoa!" More people started joining all the stink-smelling until yours truly broke up the celebration and rained on their stinky parade.

If you like this bathroom story, you will find many other related bodily stories on this lovely blog. If you don't, well...you might have to find another blog to entertain you.

Driving Age.

2010-08-28T16:30:00.000-07:00

Picture this: we are taking a spelling test. I say, "Your next word is car. When you're 16 you get to drive a car."

Then I hear this from one little guy:
"Well, guys, I hope you know you better grow up faster because they're changing the driving age to 18."

Holy moly, how old is this kid?

I'm bleeding.

2010-08-24T20:03:00.000-07:00

Fresh second-graders are great about letting you know they're bleeding. Here is my conversation that led me to think I would make a great nurse.

W: Mrs. Overman, I'm bleeding.

Me: Oh no! Where?

W: Here, on my ankle. See?

Me: Mmm hmm...it is kind of bleeding! Do you want a band aid?

W: Nah. I can live with it.

Me: Well, I'm glad you're so tough.

See? I could be a nurse.

Writing Ideas.

2010-08-24T20:00:00.000-07:00

Today were were listing possible writing ideas and Mrs. Ayres (my wonderfully dear friend and colleague...what a great combo, btw) was having the kids list ideas that were good for writing at school and ones that were better saved for home. She said, "So what are some ideas that are better to write about at home?"

Here are some of the answers:

gory things
violence
bad stuff...like shooting people in the head or kissing

Yeah...kissing is just the worst.

Recess.

2010-08-24T19:56:00.000-07:00

One of my kids came running up to me this morning and said,

"Mrs. Overman!  Did some girls come over here and tell you I was cussing?  Because I wasn't.  You know, just in case."

I wasn't suspicious until now...

What would you say?

2010-06-01T08:59:00.001-07:00

This is what was tattled to me today:

"Mrs. Overman, Z called me a TOILET!"

I just bit my lip while Z apologized.

What a Weird Day.

2010-05-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

My kids were in a crazy mood yesterday, which I secretly enjoyed.

Here are three fabulous quotes I heard:

"Hey Mrs. Overman, I won the hearing test this morning! Yep, I had to take the hearing test--and I won!"

"I had to go to the doctor, so that's why I was late. I have this skin that keeps coming off behind my ear, you know? And it itches. So the doctor had to write me a new permission slip for more cream."

"I agree with Junie B. Jones. Kindergarten should be called something less than first grade, like half grade, because you learn in Kindergarten. But preschool--it should be called zero grade because you learn NOTHING there."

Danger.

2010-05-03T11:58:00.000-07:00

Ah, Writing Workshop. Again. We love it.

During the precious, quiet (ha!), time for hard work, one of my kids yells, "Hey, does anybody know how to spell danger?"

Then this other kid yells her own name back: "L-I-L-L-Y!"

Wedgie.

2010-04-23T07:55:00.000-07:00

One of my little guys got 100% of his timed math facts correct for the first time in like 160 days this morning. As he got up from his chair, he said,

"Wow, I have a huge wedgie! Hmm. I guess wedgies must make me work hard!"

Guinea Pigs.

2010-04-20T06:36:00.000-07:00

My kids are so much more mature this year than in years past, but every once in awhile--thank goodness--they forget about being cool and are just their vulnerable selves.

Yesterday I had some paper pattern blocks I wanted the kids to punch out for a math lesson. This was the first time I'd done the lesson this way, so I said, "Okay guys, I'm not sure if this will work or not, but you can be my guinea pigs and try it."

"Okay!" They all said.

We tried it...the blocks were the wrong size and didn't work, so I said, "You guys can just play with them or take them home or whatever when your math is finished."

So a few minutes later, a little girl, L, came up to the table for me to check her math work. She looked at the paper pattern blocks beside me and said, "So when I'm done I can do this guinea pig thing?"

Me: "No, there is no guinea pig. That's just a saying. If you're a guinea pig for someone, it means you test things out for them to see if things work."

L: "Oh. Hmmm...so we'll just do the guinea pig thing tomorrow, then?"

Me: "No, dear. There is no guinea pig thing. You can play with these blocks if you want and test them out like a guinea pig."

L: "Hmm. So I guess we're just not going to do the guinea pig activity at all today? Okay. You'll just bring the guinea pig tomorrow, right?"

Me: *sigh* "Sure."

Guess what? It's tomorrow and the guinea pig has successfully been forgotten.

Easter.

2010-04-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

I'll try to remember this the best that I can.

We were having a discussion about Easter and why we celebrate it. Okay, we weren't because I teach in a public school; my kids were having a discussion about Easter.

These are their takes on Easter:

"Well, basically, the pilot (Pilate) wanted Jesus to die so he killed him."

"God and Mary got married and then they had Baby Jesus."

"Jesus could have escaped all the beatings if he wanted to but he was just too tired because they were bad."

Ah, Writing Workshop.

2010-04-16T07:56:00.000-07:00

When you let kids have free choice during Writing Workshop, sometimes you have no where to go but down.

But you have to go down laughing.

This is what one of my kids wrote for his Slice of Life story yesterday:

"I was at home. My dog puked on the couch. Then my mom and dad came home. It smelled like crap. We cleaned it up. Then my dog went into my room and puked on my bed. It smelled like crap."

At least he's using repetitive phrases.

Sweating my leg.

2010-04-16T07:53:00.000-07:00

It was hot yesterday.
It was Spring Picture Day yesterday.
Our pictures were at the end of the day.

You do the math.

Anyway, one of my little guys was wearing dress pants, a long-sleeved button-down shirt, and a clip-on necktie.

And it was 80 degrees.

So he put the necktie in his pocket during recess. I saw him running around without it and said, "Hey M, where's your tie?"

M yelled, "Oh, it's in my pocket, but it's sweating my leg now so I'm just gonna leave it right here on the bench."

Carp. Yeah, like the fish.

2010-04-16T07:51:00.001-07:00

One of my little guys is wearing my favorite shirt of his today. It's from some kind of restaurant in Florida or something with lots of seafood and the back says

"What a bunch of carp."

A Cool Breeze.

2010-03-22T11:46:00.000-07:00

Ah, my darling Wheels.

She is currently crafting a fantabulous poem called "Wind" that goes like this:

The wind
Reminds me of
A fan
A cool fan
And a strong breeze.

We were conferring about exact language so she chose to use the words "strong breeze" in her poem. Apparently it stuck because a little while later I said, "You all need jackets to go outside today" to which Wheels replied, "Look, Mrs. Overman, see my jacket? Now I'm totally ready for a strong breeze!"

She's so poetic.

The Scariest Thing You've Ever Lived Through.

2010-03-17T09:00:00.001-07:00

My question for our community circle yesterday was "What is the scariest thing you've lived through?"

I got the following answers:

"I was in a car wreck."
"When I broke my leg."
"When my grandma died of cancer."
"When I was sick."

and...
"Well...I'd have to say that I'm the only girl with three brothers and that is very scary."

Spelling Test and a Movie.

2010-03-09T08:05:00.000-08:00

One of my little girls came up to me and said this:

"Oh, Mrs. Overman, I'm so worried about my spelling test! If I miss more than one my mom said I won't be seeing that new movie for seven years! That means I won't get to see it until I'm fifteen!"

Then I heard her telling her spelling test partner who was helping her study:

"Listen, I have to really practice hard right now because seven years is a long time and I need to see that movie! I'll be old by then!"

Science Fair.

2010-03-09T08:02:00.000-08:00

We recently concluded our science fair and one of my girls was quite distressed that her mother just didn't seem to have time to help with her science project and therefore she didn't get to do one. She, however, bounced back with her plan for next year:

"Mrs. Overman, you know what I'm going to do my science project about next year? Bunnies. I'm going to see how fat they can get in a day."

Girlfriends.

2010-02-25T06:28:00.000-08:00

Don't get me started on girlfriends in second grade because I just won't have it.

Anyway, we are doing strategies for "attacking" nonfiction...we made our plan for "attacking" the origami directions...the kids had to follow directions independently for making origami (whew...)...and hey, presto!...they did it!

Okay, I would be lying to say they all did it.

Most of them got it.

Then there were the few (aren't there always a few?) who were like, "But I don't know how! What do I do now?!?!"

To which my reply was, "What are you going to do someday when you can't figure out how to put your new TV stand together? I won't be around to help you then. What do you think would help you figure this out?"

To which he smartly replied, "Well, by then I'll have a girlfriend and she can help me."

Fine, you win.

Being an Astronaut.

2010-02-11T08:56:00.000-08:00

I love spying on my kids' conversations.

T: You know, when I grow up, I'm gonna be one of those guys that flies into space. I'm gonna go to Jupiter.

J: No, T! You can't go there! Don't you remember? Boys go to Jupiter to get more stupid-er!

T: Oh, you're right...I guess I'll just have to go to Mars then.

Improvement.

2010-01-28T12:19:00.001-08:00

One of my little boys has had a terrible time with his math facts and it's mostly because he doesn't want to take the time to do them. He'll bring me a paper with 25 of 50 facts incorrect because after the 25th one he just writes the numbers 13 or 11 for the rest.

You get the gist.

So today he brought me his page of 100 facts and only three were wrong.

Me: Oh, C, you are doing so much better at this now!

C: Yeah, I know. I used to suck at this, but now I'm better.

Classy.

Betcha didn't know this.

2010-01-26T10:46:00.000-08:00

You know the old eighties saying, Girls go to college to get more knowledge, boys go to Jupiter to get more stupid-er?

This is Wheels' take on that:

"Hey, did you know this saying? Girls go to home to get more smarter. Boys go to school to get more sillier."

Ah, Wheels.

2010-01-25T11:52:00.000-08:00

Well, our dear Wheels is certainly coming out of her shell as of late. Here are two really good episodes from her today:

Wheels: Mrs. Overman, did you know that the speed of things is like four billion million eight ninety sixty trillion?

Me: The speed of what now?

Wheels: The speed of anything with wheels and gas. Except for alien vehicles. They use sugar for their gas fuel, so their speed is different. I saw that on TV once.

If you're confused, join the club. I'm confused and I was there!

___________________________________________________________________

Wheels: Oh, Mrs. Overman, E is having such a problem! Her chest hurts. She had a heart attack yesterday and I think she's having another one right now!

Me: Honey, kids like E can't have heart attacks. They're too young and E is very healthy, so she is just fine. Thanks for telling me, though.

Champion

2010-01-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

Today Wheels (remember her from the last couple of posts?) came up to my desk and said, "Hey, Mrs. Overman, I'm going to do this dot-to-dot now."

Me: Oh, wonderful...but I should warn you, that dot-to-dot is kind of hard. But I think since you're so smart you'll do just fine.

Wheels: Mrs. Overman, it won't be hard for me. You know why? Because I am the CHAMPION of dot-to-dots. I am VERY good at them.

Nasty.

2010-01-19T08:45:00.000-08:00

Let me preface this post by saying that I HATE feet.

Except for my son's because they are awesome.

But he's eight months old, so he has supercute feet.

Anyway...

At the end of each day, the kids and I clean up our floor. I'll say something like, "Please pick eight things up and put them where they go."

Then they have to show the things to me because, let's face it, we don't live in a perfect world and some of them lie.

So they all were cleaning and bringing me their collected items:

E: Two crayons, a marker, an eraser, and some paper scraps.
L: Three pillows, some paper, a tissue, a pencil.
I: A paperclip, some homework, and an eraser.

Then the nastiest one of all:
R: Some paper, a pencil, some trash, and a toenail.

Ugh...get that away from me.

What I Want To Be When I Grow Up.

2010-01-19T08:35:00.000-08:00

I have a very mature class this year (read: they don't do goofy stuff too much...boo!). However, I do have one little stinker that keeps me hoppin' to my blog.

We'll call her Wheels.

That's just a personal nickname I have for her, and unfortunately, I can't give you the background info on it.

Anyway, we were sitting in community circle the other day, sharing what we wanted to be when we grow up. It went like this:

R: A teacher.
B: A scientist.
E: A doctor or a vet.
T: A teacher.

You know, normal things. And a lot of teachers.

Then we got to Wheels:

"Well, I want to be one of those people who goes around the whole world and just picks up everyone's litter. You know, trash? I won't be charging very much, though. I mean, if you litter like nine pieces of trash, you will only have to pay me like one dollar. But if you litter like ninety pieces of litter, you'll have to pay me like one hundred dollars."

Excellent. We'll keep that in mind.

New Year's Eve.

2010-01-07T06:37:00.000-08:00

I overheard this discussion between three of my kids yesterday:

C: Hey! Why is the year 2010? I thought it was 2009.

E: Don't you remember, C? On New Year's Eve the year changed. We moved ahead another year.

C: Oh yeah...I stayed up really late that night and watched this shiny ball fall and then I saw lights that said 2010...then all these people were kissing! Ugh!

R: You know, C, you're really not supposed to be watching that kind of stuff. It's not good for you.

I'm back.

2009-11-06T08:06:00.000-08:00

As good teacher-mothers do, I put some absolutely adorable pictures of my son up on my bulletin board behind my desk.

Here is the conversation that resulted from that with a little girl named J:

J: Mrs. Overman, my cousin looked like me when I was a baby and my other cousin looked like your son.

Me: Oh...what?

J: My cousin...she looked like your son when she was a baby. You know...chunky.

MIA

2009-09-20T19:27:00.001-07:00

So I've been MIA for awhile obviously...had a baby, been a little busy with that...I'll be back to school in November. Thanks for reading!

Paper jam.

2009-04-30T12:21:00.000-07:00

I know, I know...it's been like 30 days and no post. Not gonna lie...my almost-third-graders are VERY careful about what they say. In first grade, it was all or nothing, say anything, etc.

We are SO over being "little" kids. We're smart, big kids...or so we think.

However, leave it to my wonderful Little J to break the mold and not care what others think.

We have been laboriously researching and typing our findings in the computer lab (did you know it takes an average eight-year-old approximately three hours to type a paragraph?).

Anyway, Little J finished his typing today. I promptly sent the document to the printer which promptly sent back the message "paper jam: document failed to print."

Me: "Ugh. Another paper jam!"

Little J: "Oh no! Paper jam! Who would put jam in that printer? Is there jam on my paper? How did this happen?"

Oh my.

2009-04-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was not a great day teaching-wise. I feel like they nearly killed each other; spring break is STILL two more days away.

I hope we can make it.

But that's our own personal problem.

So one little girl, T, was quite naughty yesterday. Apparently she was even naughtier than I thought she was because I only knew about the top part of the note. Here it is in its entirety (I totally wish I still had my scanner...you would love to see it):

"Dear Mrs. Overman,

I am sorry it slipt out of my mowth. Will you forgive me for a bad talk? Srcll (circle) yes or no.
_____________________________

J,

I am sorry for me saing I should have my dog poop on your head. Will you forgive me? It was mean. Srcll yes or no. Sorry.

My mom is yelling"

Honey, would your mom want your teacher to know this?

2009-03-25T06:23:00.000-07:00

Remember B from the last post with the goofy comment about the fact that he was wearing cartoon underwear?

He had another whopper comment yesterday:

"Mrs. Overman, you know how I was supposed to get my new video game yesterday? Well, I'm getting it today instead. We couldn't get it yesterday because my mom had diarrhea and couldn't get herself off the toilet."

Underwear

2009-02-25T09:12:00.000-08:00

I'll assume you're familiar with the character "Dash" from the Incredibles (I think...it's been awhile) for this story.

One of my kids today was supercharged--talked non-stop, hyper, etc. They were all working at their seats, talking amongst themselves, when I said, "Please find the word dash and glue it in the right place."

All of the sudden, Hyperkid yelled, "HEY! I'm wearing Dash underwear!"

DEAD

SILENCE.

The entire class (seriously, even my kids with ADHD) turned around to look at Hyperkid. No one knew what to say, but finally one managed to say,

"B, you really shouldn't say that to girls. Or your teacher."

Valentine's Day

2009-02-17T08:53:00.000-08:00

One of the other teachers told me that she sent her list of students' names for Valentine's Day home as a letter that ended with "Sincerely, Mrs. M." The day of the Valentine's party one of her boys (who, BTW, addressed his own cards) handed her a card because he couldn't figure out who it belonged to. It was addressed as follows:

To: Sincerely

From: Eric

Bribes.

2009-02-10T12:13:00.000-08:00

Apparently Little J said a really bad word on the playground yesterday over and over and over again like he does with everything. This of course got him a swift ticket to the office. The recess teacher told me it went like this:

Teacher: Little J, you're going to the office for saying that.

J: No! Please don't send me there. Please! I'll do anything! What if I give you money?

Seriously? Does that work at home?

Watermelon Seeds

2009-01-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

Ah, the age old question of little kids: Will you grow a watermelon in your belly if you accidentally swallow the seed?

We read a book this morning about a mouse who swallowed a watermelon seed by accident and was scared he'd grow a watermelon in his tummy, so his best friend swallowed one too to make him feel better.

One of the kids said, "Yeah, you won't grow a watermelon in your belly if you just swallow one seed!"

They all agreed until G said, "Yeah, but if you swallow a whole bunch of them, then drink a lot of water and open up your mouth every time the sun is out you will!"

I thought for sure they'd all say, "No you won't." But instead I heard a chorus of, "Oh yeah, that is true!"

Bad Weather

2009-01-14T06:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we left school in the early afternoon because of some nasty "blizzard-like" weather. One of my more nervous, high-strung little girls said, "Mrs. Overman, I sure hope the roads aren't too bad because my gloves are so thick I can't cross my fingers!"

Turds.

2008-12-18T07:40:00.001-08:00

You know you want to read this...even if you think the word "turds" is inappropriate.

Plus, the star of the show is none other than Little J.

Ah, Little J...haven't heard from him in awhile, huh?

I'm reading the book "The Willoughbys" by Lois Lowry to the kids. They are LOVING it...it's just hysterical...about these kids who are trying to get rid of their parents and the parents are trying to get rid of their kids.

So yesterday in the book the parents went on vacation and hired a nanny, who talks about the kids eating raisins in their oatmeal. The oldest child says, "Raisins are turds!"

Little J came up to me privately after we finished reading it and said, "You know Mrs. Overman, I always thought meatballs were turds."

Reese Cups

2008-12-16T06:30:00.000-08:00

Here's a snippet of lunch conversation I had with a little girl the other day while she finished off a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup:

K: You know, my sister thinks these are gross.

(Sister is four, BTW)

Me: Oh yeah? Why?

K: Well, she had her first one last night and she ate the entire thing with the brown wrapper on. Then she felt sick. So she doesn't like them anymore.

Birthdays.

2008-12-08T09:07:00.000-08:00

I SO miss blogging. Actually, that's not true...I miss the funny things my kids say that I blog. They're so much more mature this year; their little filters are on almost all the time. Heaven forbid they say ANYTHING that might make them look uncool or immature.

I really hate that.

I managed to catch a little something Friday, though. We're learning how to write dates with digits, such as 12-8-08.

Here's how our conversation turned quickly from amazingly knowledgeable to (whoops!) we're still not TOTALLY mature yet:

Me: Okay, so M, when was your original birthday? Like the year you were born, too? Let's write it up here on the board.

M: January 25, 2001. So 1-25-01.

Me: Good! D, how about you?

D: October 21, 2000. 10-21-00.

Me: Good. What will we write for the date of your next birthday?

D: 10-21-09.

Me: Yep. That's right. A, what will we write for the date of your next birthday, next year?

A: Um, 4-13-01.

Me: Almost. Next year will be 2009, so what will we put for the year?

A: We'll write 4-13-01.

Me: No, honey; you're having a birthday next year, right? Who else is having a birthday next year?

And here's the kicker: probably only half the class raised their hands.

Dum dum dum...

Me: Only HALF of you are having birthdays next year? Okay, so who's planning on being alive next year?

*all hands go up*

Me: Great! So then you'll all have birthdays, right?

I'm having a baby...lizard.

2008-11-14T08:58:00.001-08:00

Here's a good conversation for you:

Me: Hi, Z, how are you?

Z: Good. How's the baby? Can you feel it kicking yet?

Me: Nope, not yet. It's still too small.

Z: Yeah, and you can't feel it kicking right now because it's a lizard.

Me: Huh? A lizard? Are you being silly or serious?

Z: I'm serious! My stepmom is pregnant and I looked at her books and when the baby is too small to kick you it's because it's a lizard.

I always thought those pictures of 6-week-old babies in the womb looked familiar.

Politics for the Little Guys.

2008-11-05T06:32:00.000-08:00

We had our own election yesterday at school for President and Governor, so the buzz all day was "Who are you voting for?"

I wore my "Duck for President" button...you know, the book by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin? But I digress.

We had WAY too many theories in our room about who to vote for and you could tell on this one that moms and dads had superstrong opinions this time around. Perhaps you'll learn some things about our candidates today as you read (I should have posted them yesterday...they might have impacted your votes! Hee hee...):

John McCain will make us have no more guns. That means we will have no more meat because we won't be able to kill animals anymore.
Barak Obama is going to make the gas prices go down and John McCain will make them go up.
If we elect John McCain and he dies, Sarah Palin will be working in Washington. Then who will be taking care of the Polar Bears in Alaska?

Betcha didn't know all that, huh?

Not what a pregnant lady should see at lunch. Or what ANYONE should see at lunch.

2008-11-05T06:25:00.001-08:00

I am a sympathy puker, meaning, NORMALLY, if someone throws up within earshot, the very least I do is gag really hard.

My skyrocketed hormone levels have changed this a little, I think; or God has blessed me with the ability to hold in my sympathy sickness since I teach little ones.

Anyone else out there who teaches: don't you find the cafeteria to be a vomit-magnet? It's like a kid can be fine all day and then WHAM--there it is, all over the place, right where you're trying to eat your enchiladas. Ugh.

So yesterday my little guy G and I are having another lovely conversation about Harry Potter and why Voldemort is so evil when mid sentence he burps and proceeds to throw up all over the front of his shirt.

He looks at me in complete shock, only to find the same reaction on my face.

Me: "What in the world just happened?!?!?!"

G: "Beats me! I guess I just threw up in my mouth a little bit."

And wouldn't you know it, this kid didn't even get up...just took a swig of milk and kept right on talking.

Yep.

2008-10-22T12:15:00.000-07:00

I have chewed gum almost non-stop lately to fight my morning sickness (which, BTW, should actually be called "all-day sickness"). My kids have noticed the chewing and have asked, but apparently today it became more bothersome to them...which is how the following came about:

Little J (you know it...all good conversations start with him): Guys, that is the third piece of gum Mrs. Overman has spit out this morning!

K: I know. She chews gum now.

[more chatter and speculation about why I've been chewing gum and snacking all day]

Me: Okay, okay, would you like to know why I've been chewing gum?

All: YEAH! (they are so nibby...always wanting to know more...I'm sure they think I live in a box in the cafeteria)

Me: Okay, I'm pregnant. Do you know what that means?

All: YEAH! YOU ARE?!?! WHY? WHERE IS THE BABY?

Me: I haven't had the baby yet.

D: Why?

Me: Because it hasn't been born yet.

T: When will you have it? Soon?

Me: No, not until the end of the year...close to my birthday.

N: Why does it take so long to have a baby?

Me: Good question.

Relationships.

2008-10-22T12:12:00.000-07:00

One of my little girls gave me a whole lot of insight into her family today.

"Mrs. Overman, you know about my stepdad? Well, he was actually just my mom's boyfriend. They broke up, though, because she was just his moneymaker. Did you know he was giving all my mom's money to his girlfriend?"

What did I say, you wonder? It was something like, "Oh, okay..."

Toenails.

2008-10-17T05:12:00.000-07:00

For the record, you must know: I HATE feet. Hate them.

My friend's mom was a sub next door to me this week and she came down and said, "Hey, I don't know if I should send this kid to the nurse or not. Do you have a minute?"

I said, "Sure. Tell me."

"Well, they are changing their shoes for P.E. and he can't get his socks on because his toenails are too long."

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!

I wanted to throw up right there. Ugh.

Fireflies.

2008-10-17T05:10:00.000-07:00

Somehow we ended up headfirst in a discussion about fireflies and how in the world their "butts light up."

Here's Little J's theory (who else?):

"Well, it's just like farting. They make their butt go and then it lights up. When they're done farting, the light goes off."

See if this makes sense to you.

2008-09-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

Because it doesn't make sense to me!

Little J said, "Mrs. Overman, you know, if your brain was a sink, you couldn't figure out what
2 +4 is."

Sure.

Writing Honestly.

2008-09-12T18:58:00.000-07:00

One of my colleagues and I have been teaching writing together and starting something about writing honestly. You know, secrets, stuff you don't want anyone to see, maybe you want to padlock this stuff, embarrassing stuff, etc.

Here's what came out of that:

"I wonder why my mom and dad fight. Then why do they kiss after that?"

"I really miss my grandpa because he died. And I love him so much."

"This morning at breakfast I burped and then farted. Then I got to school and I had to again, so I went in the bathroom and farted some more. Then I burped and it was funny. And it just kept going on and on and on."

You know we were all laughing...

Writers write things they want to remember.

2008-09-08T12:45:00.000-07:00

That was my mini-lesson main idea for writing workshop today and apparently I didn't do the most fabulous job of conveying my expectations for this project...which actually turned out to be pretty hilarious.

Here are a couple of the things they wrote:

"I have to remember my birthday or I'll just have to stay seven again. And I have to remember Halloween or I'll have to wait another whole year for it."
"Make sure you always spray your lizard or its tail will fall off. [note picture of lizard with brown tail]. If his tail falls off, it doesn't grow back as nice as the first one."

Rain.

2008-09-08T12:43:00.000-07:00

Today it started raining while we were outside for recess and one little girl started yelling,

"Hey everybody! Now we won't have to take a shower tonight!"

Umm, yes you do.

Lunch conversations are always the best.

2008-09-03T04:38:00.000-07:00

Remember I eat lunch with my kids? I almost always get more information than I need there.

So yesterday a little girl said to me, "Mrs. Overman, my mom has a new boyfriend. He is WAAAY handsomer than the old one. And he doesn't drink beer either really. AND my dad has a new girlfriend. She's trying to quit smoking but she ran out of gum. I think the dog ate it. And the gum didn't work."

Well, this way I'll have things to talk about at conferences.

BTW--if you're a parent, I am SO just kidding.

;)

You just never know where we'll end up.

2008-08-29T12:38:00.000-07:00

Somehow the conversation today turned to your parents borrowing your money when you're a kid.

Remember, my kids are seven.

"Mrs. Overman, my parents borrowed my entire life savings to pay a bill! A whole plastic egg filled with my money...my whole life savings!"

Pet names

2008-08-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

My friend and colleague Ruth was in my room today for awhile--great time in there, btw--and told me this story:

"B says he has a cat but won't tell me the name because its name has a bad word in it."

Shortly after that M came to me and said, "Mrs. Overman, this picture looks like my dog, Buttmunch."

Poor dog.

Kids having kids.

2008-08-27T12:44:00.000-07:00

You know my Little J? Today we were working on a very important project which required lots of moving around and things and therefore came with lots of noise.

Some days noise bothers Little J, but it's rather unpredictable if it will or not.

Apparently today it did because he turned to me and said, "I think when I have kids they'll just drive me crazy."

Not exactly an advertisement for Applebee's...

2008-08-27T04:48:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I asked my kids to share what they had/did for dinner the night before. Then of course, it was my turn, and "Mrs. Overman, what did you do?"

Me: I had dinner with my two favorite teachers at Applebee's.

M: Oh yeah. I threw up Applebee's before. Mini-cheeseburgers.

Me: Ugh.

Ahh, writing conferences.

2008-08-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

There is literally nothing I love more about my job than have conversations with my kids.

And this is why.

Today I did my usual conferring with kids. I am trying to get around to my newbies first (the ones I didn't have last year) in order to know them a little better and give them the extra little ummph they need in writing. "A" was first on my list to meet with today.

A is as young as she is quiet in comparison to the rest of my kiddos. I said, "Would you read your story to me or would you like me to read it myself?"

"I'll read it to you. 'My mom, my dad, and my brother. I love my family. My mom cleans. My brother likes video games. My dad is a lazy bum.'"

The minnow is still alive.

2008-08-26T08:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday during Writing Workshop one of my little guys had a picture of a fish and some too-small-to-read words in a bubble next to it.

Me: E, will you tell me about your fish?

E: Oh yeah. This is my fish. My uncle gave him to me and I was going to feed him to my cat. But then I realized he wasn't dead. So I just put him in a bowl and started feeding him. Sometimes the food falls all the way to the bottom of the bowl, though.

Morbid.

2008-08-22T12:15:00.000-07:00

Right in the middle of lunch today, one of my little ones looked at me and said,

"Mrs. Overman, are you just gonna teach here 'till you're dead?"

Satellite Dish

2008-08-21T07:55:00.000-07:00

I start my mornings with community time where kids share lots of different things. I have the same kiddos this year, so I wanted to know what they spent their summer doing. I got the typical answers:

"I went swimming in the lake."
"I played with my sister."
"We went camping."

Then G shared, "I was helping my sister build a treehouse and look at my thumb!" [holds up thumb with a seriously nasty blood blister] "Then look what happened!" [holds up finger with a big scrape]

"G, what happened there?"

He replied, "Well, after we worked on the treehouse, we rode bikes. I rode right into the satellite dish."

Seriously...who does that?!

Pony

2008-08-09T08:35:00.001-07:00

School doesn't start for another week, but I have a good one for you. Hopefully I'll get all the details right (if not, Ruth, feel free to leave a comment and correct me!).

My friend Ruth has a friend whose daughter we'll call "A". She's four and apparently has spent LOTS of time praying (as do most little girls) for a pony. Her parents decided not to tell her she wasn't going to get a pony, but instead just let her pray what she wanted.

After MANY days and nights of praying for the pony, the family awoke to find a pony in front of their house. Of course, A wasn't surprised; she had been expecting it!

The parents desperately tried to find the pony's owner...no luck.

Lucky they live in the country....

Are you there?

2008-06-16T20:14:00.000-07:00

Well, if you're here with me, yay! I know I said I wouldn't be back until fall, but something funny happened and I'd like to remember it here.

This story was told at a family gathering this past weekend.

When my cousin Jennifer was little she had an imaginary friend. Said friend went everywhere with her...and went with my aunt and uncle as well since she, of course, was always with them. Apparently they left Imaginary Friend at a rest stop one day.

You read it right: THEY LEFT IMAGINARY FRIEND AT A REST STOP.

How?

Like this:

They stopped at the rest stop, did their thing, got back in the van, started to pull away...then Jennifer screamed, cried, and demanded they go back because--

Imaginary Friend was still on the bench at the rest stop.

I'm not a parent, and when I am someday I'm sure I'll change my tune, but I wouldn't have gone back. No thanks, we will get over this by driving and doing something else.

My uncle, being the wonderful guy he is, pulled over, opened the door, and made SURE Imaginary Friend was back in the car again. His comment:

"People watching were probably like, 'What an idiot. This guy's opening and closing the door for nothing.'"

Summer!

2008-05-30T11:47:00.000-07:00

Hi all! I'm taking a blogging break because, let's face it, I rarely catch stories in the summer since my own "children" are four-legged, chase bunnies, and bark. We'll catch up in the fall.

And FYI, you'll hopefully read more about the same characters since I get to keep my class next year (mostly). Yay!

Kuh-lone.

2008-05-28T12:14:00.000-07:00

I have to squeeze out all the Little J stories I can since we only have 2 days to go...here's a good one for you.

Little J: Mrs. Overman, I wish I had a kuh-lone.

Me: What? Cologne?

Little J: NO! No, kuh-lone.

Me: Cologne...why, do you think you stink?

Little J: NO! NO! NO! Kuh-lone! A kuh-lone is somebody who looks just like me!

[I'm thinking, honey, you're a twin, you have that already]

Me: Oh, clone. Why?

Little J: Then I could sit at home all day and do nothin' while he does all the work.

It's field day.

2008-05-27T12:18:00.001-07:00

It was field day today.

Two quick stories for you:

1. We were playing a game where if you were wearing green you had to run. One of my little girls said, "Mrs. Overman, I don't think I should run because I only have green on my panties and that doesn't really count, right?"

No.

2. One little guy from another team fell really hard during a game and said, "Mrs. Minear, my head's pretty hard, but that one really hurt."

Eyeball

2008-05-23T08:35:00.000-07:00

Little J often kinda "hooks" into one thing each day. Some days it's Velcro. Some days it's lamps.

Today it is a plastic googly eyeball.

You know the kind--you buy them to make eyes for creatures you make.

That eyeball has been EVERYWHERE today.

In fact, he can't be without it. So you can image the trauma when it got lost this morning:

[running around room, screaming] "I LOST MY EYEBALL! I LOST MY EYEBALL! PLEASE, I CAN'T FIND MY EYEBALL!"

Fortunately for us all, we found it.

____________________________________________________________

The kids are outside right now and the eyeball is on the sink.

Maybe I'll just throw it away and be done with it...but I have this feeling that if I do, I'll be dumpster diving by 2:00.

The Seventies and Eighties

2008-05-20T08:32:00.000-07:00

Here is the conversation I had with a little girl at lunch today:

"Mrs. Overman, did you know my mom was born at the seventies? Or maybe the eighties. But she's been to both. Did you know the seventies and eighties are places? And they don't have TV there. And lots of things are black and white. Plus their toys are different at the eighties too. My grandpa died at the eighties. Have you been there?"

When I was there I wore legwarmers with my side-ponytail.

Manners.

2008-05-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

We had to have a good, healthy talk about manners the other day because we've just forgotten all about them. I made a quick little sign with our most popular manner words:

*Please
*Thank you
*You're welcome
*Excuse me
*I'm sorry

One of my little ones said "please" this morning and I made a big stink about how nice that was, what a great idea it was, etc.

Shortly after that, another little girl came up and said, "Mrs. Overman! I farted during circle time and remembered to say excuse me!"

Excellent. Now let's work on not doing that at all, please.

Barnyard Animals

2008-05-14T08:48:00.001-07:00

I have a little one who lives on a farm and recently got some baby chicks. M, we'll call her. Other names have been changed.

So M updates us on her new chicks a lot. Today was no different...well, that's not really true:

"Well, guys, you know my baby chicks? They're named after some of our kids in here--Chelsea, Holly, and Nikki. Sorry to say this, Chelsea, but the one named after you died last night."

Thanks for sharing....Meanwhile, I'm thinking up new rules for sharing time:
1. No sharing about death.
2. No sharing about body parts or functions of those parts.
3. No theorizing about what your parents do when you can't seem to get their bedroom door open. Just go play, okay?

Animal Names

2008-05-13T10:26:00.000-07:00

Twice today I've had something come up with pets' names:

1. One of my little girls wrote the names of her puppies. One was Virginia. Did you know Virginia sounds really bad when you say it with a long i? Vir-jine-ya. But hey, when you often sound out words, sometimes they come out funny.

2. "Mrs. Overman, did you know I have a cat named Lucifer? Because he always scratches you all the time."

No, I'm not telling my kids they were right.

2008-05-10T18:20:00.000-07:00

We are turning into second graders in my room. That means a lot of things, but lately it's meant that lots of things are much more dramatic because we make them that way.

Ugh.

So...the other day, I see about four of my kiddos crouched in a corner, murmuring something and motioning others to come over too.

"Mrs. Overman, there's a dead frog over here!"

Recalling some earlier drama, I say, "I'm sure it's not a dead frog. That is just so silly; no frogs would come in here. Now enough. Get back to work right now, please."

Later in the day, more kids, more drama...more dead-frog-in-the-corner conversations...more "Enough, please!" from me.

I finally cave and go see said frog.

I don't have the eyes of a seven year old, so all I see is a chunk of something and I report to them:

"That is not a frog. It's nothing. Keep reading."

Now, I secretly know it is something...and I'm not touching it. Therefore I make the executive decision: we're done with working on the floor today.

After school, I mention to our custodian that there's something under the cabinets and I don't want to touch it, will you please take care of it? The kids are sure it's a frog, but please just get rid of it.

He does, and says,

"Don't tell your kids...it is a dead frog."

*groan*

God

2008-05-09T12:03:00.000-07:00

Check out the OTHER conversation that happened at my back table today.

Same kids.

Little J: Mrs. Overman, I've been wondering since kindergarten: how did all this stuff get made?

Me: What stuff?

J: You know, STUFF! STUFF! All the stuff everywhere in here. EVERYTHING!

Me: Like...paper? Pictures? Books?

J: NO!!!!!! EVERYTHING!

[somebody help me...]

Me: Like...in the world? Like outside?

J: YES. Yes, like everything outside. How did God make all that? Where did he get the stuff to make all the stuff?

[we wish we knew!]

A: You can pray and ask Him and He'll tell you.

J: Oh my gosh! WHAT?!?! Oh my!

Fingernails.

2008-05-09T12:01:00.001-07:00

Check out the conversation that went on at my back table today.

A: Mrs. Overman, is it just me, or are your fingernails growing before my eyes?

Me: What?!?! Umm, it's just you.

Little J: Hey! I thought girls only cut their toenails!

Worms

2008-05-07T12:28:00.000-07:00

There's a supercute picture book called Diary of a Worm that's written from a worm's perspective. He tries new things, has friends, etc. He mentions in the book that one of the sad things about being a worm is that you can't chew gum.

One of my little guys today wrote this response in his reading notebook:

Name: N.
Title: Diary of a Worm
The big idea is you may think that worms have better lives than yours but his is worser.

Does that make you feel better or what?

Good At Drawing

2008-05-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

Little J, Little J.

Today he was BEYOND fascinated that I had two copies of the same book AND that everything was exactly the same in them.

He checked out all the pages. "Read me the part when she says PU again! I'm going to find it in the other book now."

"Look, that's a picture like in this one!"

And then, a lightbulb clicked on in his brain...a different-colored lightbulb, but a lightbulb nonetheless:

"Mrs. Overman! This author must be really good at drawing. She copied the same EXACT picture on this book! And it looks the same as this one in the other book!"

Yep.

Golfing

2008-05-06T17:10:00.000-07:00

Quote of the day:

"Mrs. Overman, you know what? My brother and I played some golf yesterday and I hit him right in the head. But he didn't die or anything."

Big Idea.

2008-05-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

My kids have said the FUNNIEST things lately...I wish I could remember them all.

Here's a little background on how I teach reading that is pertinent to this story:
My kids have learned (yay!) to identify the "Big Idea" of each story. The big idea is what you think the author is trying to teach everyone.

More additional info:
My students LOVE Dr. Seuss books...especially Hop On Pop, which is all about words that rhyme (like "Ed, Red, and Ted are in Bed").

One of my little guys placed his reading notebook on my desk (I write in them and give them back the next day). This is what it said:

Name: N.
Title: Hop On Pop
The big idea is don't hop on your Pop when your Pop is sleeping.

Don't you think that's a good lesson for everyone?

Conversations

2008-05-02T18:04:00.000-07:00

Some of the conversations kids have with one another just crack me up. There have been A LOT of them lately. Really too many to write down--but I'll try to get in a couple.

Conversation one (told to me by a friend):

A: Did you know that the word phone starts with a p?

K: I know! It's so weird.

Conversation two (in my classroom today):

T: I am sooo sick today. AND I threw up last night.

M: Yeah, well, I have sinus problems. And that is MUCH worse than throwing up because you have to sneeze ALL DAY.

Conversation three (at lunch the other day):

N: Mrs. Overman, how do they get chicken nuggets?

Me: How do you think they make them?

N: Well, they probably kill the chicken, cut it into circles and then cook it.

Me: Yeah, you're right! How do they get milk?

N: [pretends to milk cow] Or sometimes they use robots to milk them too.

Unhooking Your Eyes.

2008-04-23T19:18:00.000-07:00

Little J said to me today, "Mrs. Overman, I really wish I could make those things that hook my eyes forward unhook so I could see my brain."

Me: What?

J: Yeah, I saw on SpongeBob how he unhooked his eyes and they rolled around in there and he saw his brain. But it was only dark in there. I could see my brain if I looked. Plus, the smarter you are, the more gigantic your brain is!

Me: Oh really?

J: Yeah, but I don't think my brain is going to be that gigantic when I see it.

Me: Why not? You're really smart.

J: Yeah, but I just think it's kinda medium-size.

Bumblebees

2008-04-23T19:14:00.000-07:00

Today we had a special program about bumblebees.

Did you know when you're seven and you learn a lot about bumblebees three things happen?

1. EVERYTHING looks like/might just be a bumblebee, so WATCH OUT!

2. You don't want to play outside anymore on account of the fact that you will probably get stung.

3. You find yourself running in circles from things that might be a bumblebee (see point 1) and refuse to leave your teacher's side for your entire recess and cry when she reminds you to "enjoy the day and play".

Pregnant Mommy

2008-04-22T17:49:00.000-07:00

I heard this story today...thought I'd pass it along to you all.

Someone said recently a little girl (probably less than four years old, she guessed) came into her shop with her pregnant mommy. Amanda talked with the little girl about her mom's growing tummy and the little girl responded, "Yeah, I really hope it's a puppy."

Bones, Bones, and More Bones

2008-04-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

We're doing a mini-unit on the human body. Learning facts. Cutting out organs. Reading stuff. Checking out pictures. Doing experiments.

We're pretty cool in here what with all our body knowledge.

Now--remember the kid who had a mini-breakdown over eating chicken drumsticks at lunch? (see previous post titled "Chicken Drumsticks")

On the way out the door today, he stopped me and said, "Mrs. Overman, I really think all this body stuff is just gross."

I said, "Well, knowing how much you hated chicken bones at lunch, I don't think you're gonna like what we're putting on our paper bodies tomorrow."

N: "WHAT?!"

Me: "Tomorrow we're adding the bones!"

N: "OH NOOOOO! EWWW!"

Five bucks says he's absent tomorrow.

;o)