Tag Archives: school

God’s Sense of Humor, Part II

Posted on January 14, 2016 | Leave a comment

Good morning Everyone!

As I mentioned yesterday, twice recently I have been reminded that God has a rich sense of humor.  The second time came from a story an out-of-state friend told me and a group of women I was with.

She teaches first grade, and is still trying to figure out how to keep the kids quiet.  (She’s young.)  She told us that during Christmas break, she had been praying for patience.

Every woman over the age of 40 listening groaned; us older women know that if you pray for patience, you get plenty of opportunities to practice it.

When school started after Christmas break, she was called to the office during fourth period to receive a new student.

The student was named Patience.

Have a great day!

Nancy

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Telephone

Posted on February 9, 2015 | 1 comment

Good morning Everyone!

Antique Telephone

How many of you remember the game “telephone”?  Somewhere between 2nd and 6th grade, a teacher, troop leader or other adult in charge of a group of children (because we kids would never have done something like this on our own – we had better games to play!) would have us all either stand or sit in a line.  Then the leader would whisper something to the first child in the line, and that something was whispered all the way down the line to the last child, where the final result was announced.  Usually the message had changed drastically by the time it reached the last person in line.

We had the Middle School version of telephone here the other day.  Kayla called me after school to announce proudly “We were on soft lock down today!”  Apparently, a soft lock down permits the activities of the normal school day to continue with some added locked doors and things.  I asked her if it had been a drill, and she was pleased to tell me that no, the lock down was for real.  She said that at one point, helicopters flying over head shook her school room.

An astute parent such as myself would realize that at this point, Kayla was eager to tell me more, so I made her day by asking about it.  The version at the Middle School was that three men had escaped from prison (and she informed me that escaped prisoners were much worse than men who escaped from jail), and had been seen in one of the lower-income neighborhoods around the school.  However, one of the men had only one leg and he had been captured.

Later on that evening, to help her feel better, I conducted a web search to find out the whole story.  One man had escaped from the Crenshaw County jail on January 2, and someone thought they had seen him in our town walking down a road at 5 a.m. the day of the lock down.  The Middle School got one thing right:  he did have only one leg; the other was a prosthetic.  Three prisoners had escaped from some other jail in Alabama on December 24, but all three of them had been captured quickly.

Have a great day!

Nancy

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The Count Down

Posted on May 19, 2014 | 1 comment

Good morning Everyone!

This week, in my town, teachers, students, parents and  bus drivers are all participating in a count down. The key number today is four.

Jig, Irish, dancing

The teachers are dancing jigs. http://www.clickartonline.com

The students are gleeful about it but oblivious to the idea that the rest of us may be excited too.  When the doors are closed and no students around, the teachers are dancing jigs over it.  Parents can feel a level of stress lifting off of their shoulders as the date approaches, while the bus drivers can’t help but look forward to the chance to sleep in just a little.

Parent, top of the world

Happy Parent
www,clickartonline.com

I am referring, of course, to the last day of school.  While many schools up north and in other parts of the country will continue through most of June, down here in Alabama, most school systems stop the year around Memorial Day.  Our system is no exception.  The last day of school is Thursday, and I think everybody is more than ready for it.  I know Kayla is looking forward to it, and I am excited about the reprieve I’ll receive from being the homework and grade policeman.

What I didn’t realize until I was a teacher for about three years, many years ago, was how much the teachers look forward to the summer break, too.  All during the last week, the expectations build until the day the students are released.  The work days afterward to tidy everything up until next year are anti-climactic; the true start of summer for teachers is the last day the students are there.  I always said that the best part of teaching was the students, and the worst part of teaching was the students.  I can only imagine how much truer that saying is now, over twenty years later!

So here’s to a smooth last week of school, and a happy, restful summer!  We’ll leave the wishes for next year on hold until the school year starts again in August.

Have a great day everyone!

Nancy

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A Capable Child

Posted on April 10, 2014 | Leave a comment

Good morning Everyone!

Yesterday, I showed you what had happened to the connecting road outside our neighborhood on Monday due to the heavy rain.

Road Washout

Width and Depth View of Washout

What I didn’t mention was the havoc the heavy rain caused in the school bus pick-up schedule.  School opened at 10 on Monday due to the rain, so when the bus didn’t pick Kayla up, I didn’t think too much about it.  I just figured it got held up by standing water somewhere, although I did think it a little strange when we pulled up to the school and the bus that should have picked her up was also unloading students.

School Bus

School Bus
Photo Credit: http://www.clickartonline.com

On Tuesday, however, when the bus didn’t show, I told Kayla I would call the transportation office after I finished an appointment I had in a city about an hour away.  Imagine my surprise, then, when I received a call from the Director of Transportation for the school district about an hour later (apparently out of the blue) telling me that he had thought our road was closed for access as well as the road where the culvert was and the bus would be sure to pick Kayla up on Wednesday!

Surprised

Surprised!
Photo Credit: http://www.clickartonline.com

If you have been around offices of any kind, you will know that the person to go to when you want something done is the secretary that has been there the longest.  That person always knows how to go about things.  Apparently my child has figured that out instinctively.

School secretary

The Person Who Gets Things Done!
Photo Credit: http://www.clickartonline.com

Whether she thought I would forget to call due to my absent-mindedness, or she just happened to have the opportunity to stop by the school office that morning, Kayla told the school secretary – the one that checks people in when they’re late – that the bus had not picked her up for the past two days.   The school secretary called the transportation director, who investigated and called me.

The bus was there five minutes early the next day.  Maybe I should have Kayla handle all of my scheduling issues!

Have a great day!

Nancy

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The Art of Absent-Mindedness

Posted on April 4, 2014 | 4 comments

Good morning Everyone!

It is well-known at my household that I have a gift for being absent-minded.  My family is resigned to the fact that I will forget the dinner choice they made in the den after I walk the ten feet or less it takes to reach the kitchen and have to ask again.  Kayla, when she leaves the house to catch the bus, makes sure that she locks the front door to the house so I won’t forget. while Mark is very patient when he asks me for something from the kitchen, I leave, go in there, putter around for a while and then return to the den without his original item. Kayla knows when the two of us are riding around to do something to speak up when I am about to pass the original destination, having already forgotten what that was.

Yesterday, I reached what must be the  pinnacle of absent-mindedness for any mom –  I forgot to pick up Kayla!  She has been riding to and from school on the bus, but on Thursdays I pick her up from the house and take her to art, then pick her up from art at the end of my workday.

Yesterday, although I knew I had to pick Kayla up from art when I left the office, I had forgotten by the time I reached the driveway of our house.  I remembered Kayla just as I pulled up into the driveway, so I immediately left and returned to art to get Kayla.

I called our art teacher, Bonnie, to let her know what I had done and that I was immediately turning around to pick up Kayla.  Bonnie is always a very good sport about things and I was so amused at myself I told her what had happened  When I picked up Kaya, she was outside Bonnie’s The Cottage Gallery, waiting for me with that gleeful l look all children get when their parents manage to mess up on something.

After we got home, Mark told Kayla not to worry; he’d always send me back to get her – we would never want to do that to Ms. Bonnie!

Have a great day!

Nancy

 

 

 

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Posted in Just stuff..., When things don't go as expected, working mom

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First Day of School!

Posted on August 15, 2011 | 14 comments

Good morning Everyone!

As hard as it is to believe, our summer vacation is over, and school started today!  It really does seem like it was only last week that summer vacation was just starting.  See, The First day of Summer Vacation . 

Since it was the first day of school, of course pictures were called for.  Kayla is entering fourth grade this year, and was gracious enough to wear the outfit I bought for her for the first day of school without any fuss. Kayla started our picture-taking session by telling Darwin what to do.

Kayla telling Darwin what to do.

He wasn’t exactly listening.

Darwin wasn't exactly listening.

So we left Darwin out of the next few pictures.  I tried hard to get a good one of her smiling but I’m not sure how well I succeeded. 

What IS it with her and the camera?

This picture I though was a good close-up.

Just playing around

Almost time to go....

Then she realized she really was leaving in just a minute:

I really am going to leave in a minute, aren't I?

 Once Mark came out, Darwin decided to re-enter the picture-taking process.

Daddy and Darwin Make Me Smile!

 Then, a small miracle happened – Darwin stood still long enough for me to get a good shot of all three of them!

As I watched Kayla and Mark walk out the door, ghosts of memory walked out beside them –  each of the little girls that Kayla used to be that also went out that same door for a new school year.  My favorite memory is from kindergarten.  We took pictures that day too.

Mark and Kayla, first day of kindergarten

 

At the door, ready to go, with Tyra

We drove Kayla to school for the first day of Kindergarten, and walked into the school with her to take her to the classroom.  Although she insisted the whole time she wasn’t nervous, of course we knew she was.  Still, we got to the front doors of the school, she took each of our hands, and as we opened the door to go in together, she took a deep breath, and a solidly determined look came over her face – she was going to succeed in entering this new phase of her life, no matter what.  We knew she was going to be okay after that.

Here’s hoping you and yours, whatever grade they may be in, have or had a good first day of school this year!

Have a great day everyone!

Nancy

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Posted in On the Home Front, Reflection, working mom

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