Wrapping Up Another School Year!

This last week of school surely flew by! You'd think that after sixteen years of teaching, the last day of school wouldn't be emotional for me. Each year, however, it is the sweet little faces looking at me, knowing that today they will have their last lunch as first graders, their last time on the playground together with the friends in our class, and the last time that I will read a story to them as a class. Reflecting on how much they've grown in just one school year-it is truly amazing the knowledge and impact you can imprint on a child! Yes, lots of mixed emotions indeed. The tears started early today when some of my parent volunteers came in to our class and presented me with a special book, "The Many Ways We Love Mrs. Roberts...." The book was filled with handwritten quotes on vellum sheets, with pictures of each of my sweet students. Some of their words are as follows: "I love Mrs. Roberts most because she has the most beautiful heart and she is the nicest teacher," "Mrs. Roberts loves me because I'm a teacher, a child teacher just like her, (this sweet little girl plays school at home, role-plays the lessons from our actual school day-reminds me of myself when I was her age)" and "Mrs. Roberts loves me because I work hard." Yes, watery eyes through the reading of the entire book. How thoughtful of my students and families...a book to surely treasure. For my students, I filled their Reading Bags (they earned the iron-on badges by reading "AR" books)with a special note and other goodies. I also included a DVD of pictures from the school year, set to music. You can't watch a movie without popcorn, so that was included, too! Moreover, I was blessed with another great year with my first grade colleagues. Look at these cute Teacher Organizers I made for my teammates! This one was created for my incredible ELL teaching partner. | I hope all of you have a restful summer! August will be here before we know it! :)

Parent Volunteer Celebration!

The school year is winding down! One more week to go! Classroom Parent Volunteers are such an important part of our class each year. My students and I held a special celebration for all of the parents who were dedicated to working with us each week this school year. The students organized and planned this event with guidance. Each student had a special job to do: speaking, lights, waiters and waitresses, trash pick-up, cards, gifts, etc. We served space-themed cupcakes and punch. The students worked in groups to make each volunteer a thank you card. The volunteers also received a framed picture of their child from the school year with a gift card to a local store. I took pictures of the volunteers working with our class and created a DVD of the school year, which we watched during the celebration, too! With this celebration, the students learn that it is important to thank people that are helpful.

Mother's Day Project

Hopefully your class had fun with a special Mother's Day project. We worked for a couple of days on these sweet Mother's Day cards and flower posters. Take a look! We held a brainstorm session for (Mom) You can..., You have..., and You are..." The students came up with these similies: How cute their writing is at this age! Here are some of their final thoughts: Little hands, construction paper, tissue paper, and glue created bright irises. Here are the finished projects!