Emptyknitster

First year of school:  Last year of school: Great times!

I was pleased with my photo for the annual this school year..... The day we had photos taken the principal asked if I'd worn my lab coat. Yes, Mr. B. Yes, indeed!

  When I moved into the new science classroom it was a blank slate. I enjoyed putting it together and hope these photos give you a taste of what my new home away from home looks like.

Monday started with a fire and Friday ended with one - just in another direction! It is a repeat of Monday. As I was driving home I looked into the horizon and there was a plume of smoke, just in another direction, north of Billings. It quickly exploded into 2,000 acres. The Chick is there now and it is Hubby's destination tomorrow. The skies have been smoky all week. The poor ranchers and farmers. PS. On a lighter note, I love my new assignment as science teacher - I have been dubbed "Professor" and the kiddos love my sidekick Morty McMasters!

Next year I will be teaching science to third and fourth graders. I really didn't want to spend the summer thinking about what I will be doing and not producing anything concrete, so I spent the first week of my summer vacation lesson planning for fall. Scientific Method, ecology and worm farms are some of the things happening in the fall. The principal also encouraged me "to just have fun." No more needed to be said! The "geek" glasses and science tees have been ordered, and a lab coat will be on hand by fall. I'm still looking for a pocket protector but think I should be able to find one soon. A real favorite of mine arrived yesterday:  "Morti" McMasters My 7th grade math teacher Thanks to DeeAnn, our primary secretary, for the great idea! Morti will be our class mascot - taking tests for the students, giving out rewards (candy in his cranium) and keeping an eye on the kiddos. The grandkiddos aren't to sure of Morti. The Pirate ...

I have always loved Halloween. When I was in school at good old Gatewood Elementary, in West Seattle, we would get dressed up over lunch hour and parade through all the classrooms. The kindergartners would go to the first grade classrooms and parade through, then upstairs to the second grade with the first graders jumping on board behind them. Next, the second graders would attach themselves on to the end of the line and this would continue on through the sixth grade and the third floor. Finally, the little guys would get back to their classroom and sit down, eat their treats and watch the older kiddos march through. Each class while sitting would eat their treats and when the entire school had paraded through it was time to go home. It wasn't until I was a teacher that I realized the beauty of this plan! These days the kiddos aren't allowed to dress up at our school. We have a party but no costumes. This weekend I wanted to plan a costume and dress up but it just wasn...

I've only had my third graders for a week and a half but I've fallen in love! It's been a few years since I've had little third graders. For the last several years they have been 8 years old going on 16! Last week I wore a dress three times and Friday when I wore pants one of the little darling girls told me, "You didn't wear a dress today. You look like a princess when you do." I'm wearing a dress tomorrow!

Just a quick photo of the happy little mother to be! It's a girl!

When the buses roll up to the front door at school during the day, you know it's field trip time. And when its field trip time, teachers know that summer is near! We've been on two jaunts in the last few school days... The first was a tour of historic Billings. I wish I'd taken more pictures but I did take several pictures inside of the cabin where J. K. Ralston painted for many years. The cabin sits in front of the Western Heritage Center. It is always locked up and not open for public viewing, however, the morning we were taking our tour we were asked if we'd like to take a peek inside - yes, YES! The unfinished canvas was a painting that J.K. had been working on the twelve years before his death. His wife died 13 years before J.K. and he only finished one painting during that time. This painting would have been his second. His wife did the research for his paintings, without her was he not provided the material, was she the motivator, or was he just sick at heart ...

We had a great lunch! But it's never quite enough time, when you're with friends!

When I was a very young girl, and there were only black and white tvs, there was a man named Art Linkletter who had a variety show during the day called "House Party". My mom would often watch it and I remember enjoying the section called, Kids Say the Darndest Things.  Because I'm a teacher I often get a chuckle at school over the things I'm told. The latest story reminded me of Mr. Linkletter and his kids. This week a boy in my class was relaying to me the sad death of his friend's dog as we were going to lunch: "Mrs. G. my friend's dog died a few days ago. He had two dogs, Sunny and Joan. Sunny died and they took it to the vet. They disintegrated him...." The little guy was struggling here, using his hands to show me the small size that Sunny had shrunk to, and saying the word disintegrate over and over looking up at me not quite sure I was understanding the information he was relaying to me. I put a two and two together and gently said, ...

Years ago friend and fellow teacher, Kathy W., sang the praises of this mustard plaster recipe. I was ill several times with a chest cold before she could persuade me to give it a try. Perhaps it was the Vicks Rub or just the comfort of the heating pad but I think it works! Today one of our first year teachers came to work with a horrible chest cold. I promised to give him the recipe but I wonder how many times he will get sick before he tries it! Mustard Plaster 1 part baking soda 2 parts dry mustard 3 parts flour................................mix these three things with water to make a paste Layer on chest: Vicks, then the plaster that is sandwiched between a tea towel, and on top of it all a heating pad. Check every 5 - 10 minutes, as it could burn your chest. Stay out of drafts. (the combination really heats things up and your chest pressure is eased)

Oh my Gosh! Without even watching the weatherman on TV I know that the air pressure is changing. I know this to be true because of the behavior of my students today! It was one heck of a day - proof, I'm having a beer as I'm writing! Damn those Californians, why can't they just buck up and take all the weather? H 2 O and all! There's supposed to be a major snowstorm arriving tomorrow. Just like hospitals know when a full moon arrives there are babies to deliver, a teacher knows that when air pressure changes and a storm is coming the students go crazy! I had a student in at lunch recess burst into tears ( blubber ) because he had to finish ( START ) his morning assignments.  I told him that he had made the choice to play earlier and so now had to do his work while the others were enjoying their recess. He told me he wasn't playing...Okay, to clarify son, if you choose to sit there and do nothing you will do work when others are playing. AND by the way, don't...

What a strange day from start to finish. It's cold, I mean really cold today, we woke to the weatherman telling us that it was 22 degrees below zero . But when hubby looked at our thermometer at our house, it was 5 below, hmm...As I drove down the hill into town, the thermometer in the car began to drop, -10, -16, -20, and finally upon my arrive at school, -23 degrees. What an interesting lesson on: "What an Inversion Can Do"! Once at school, I was met with the announcement that 5 of the 12 buses were not running! As teachers began arriving they all had different stories, buses stranded at the side of the highway, in parking lots and one bus was even stalled in the middle of the busiest street in town. For you California or Oregon people, diesel doesn't like the cold - it turns to jelly. However, within about twenty minutes things got better and all but one bus was up and running They were able to make a run though their routes and pick up any stray kiddos. Interes...

Last Friday there was a friendly wager made between two friends. Tim and I agreed that the losing fan would wear a tattoo of the winning team. Thankfully, I didn't have to wear the bobcat tattoo! By the end of the day Tim and Monte were becoming fast friends. Monte even gave Tim a pointer or two about betting on the game of football - NEVER bet against the Griz!

Yesterday, my third graders had a group of student nurses come into the classroom and talk to them about the benefits of proper tooth brushing. GREAT timing, as it was the week after Halloween. The students did an outstanding job and the kiddos were very well behaved. As the nursing students were preparing to leave one of the young ladies came over and said. " I was in your second grade class in Shepard." WOW, a blast from the past! Emily Barnes was a student in the first class that I ever taught! I was so tickled that I introduced her to my class and explained exactly who she was - then another little nursing student, Aimee Percell, came over and said that she had been in one of my sixth grade math classes. Now this makes teaching rewarding!

My third graders read a story every year called The Keeping Quilt . It is about a family that immigrates to the United States from Russia. As most people of past generations, this family was very frugal and when their clothes wore out they still found uses for the remaining sturdy bits and pieces. The family in the story makes a quilt from the old clothing, and the quilt is passed down from one generation to the next. I love this story, it allows me to bring and share the baby quilt that my Great-grandmother made for my mother when she was born. This quilt was made from pieces of clothes that I'm sure had seen better days. I like to believe that some were from my Great-grandfather's "Sunday go to meeting shirt" or my Great-grandmother's dress, and maybe even her mother's dress. My Great-grandmother and Great-grandfather, Catherine Hedges Jamison and Alfred Jamison, were pioneers who settled in Kansas and later in Estes Park Colorado. They raised a large fa...

PIR Days: One of the things we love about going to school three days before the kiddos is that we can all go out and have lunch together! There was a lot of catching up on what we had been doing.

Well, the kiddos have been sent off for the summer and it's now turned into Margaritaville here at home! These are the best Margaritas ever! Jo, MVBF, modified this recipe from one on the web. It's a little bit more in calories but the flavor is out of this world... Mondo Margaritas Serves 5 12 oz diet Mountain Dew 12 oz Rose’s sweetened lime juice 6 oz tequila 5 oz triple sec 1 1/2 tablespoons splenda 5 oz water 1 drop green food coloring Mix together and freeze until slushy or frozen solid. Scoop frozen slush into serving glasses dipped in salt. Garnish with lime wedge. Single batch makes 5 cups – 335 calories per serving. Don't waste your time, just start with a double batch. We've even started buying extra Rose's lime so as to not run out.

You know that summer is near when all the teacher's toes are in order... Much of the school day was spent placing students into classrooms for the next school year. It is always a fun day spent on the reflection of students and enjoying little stories about their adventures through the third grade. BUT at the same time, we want all involved to have a great school year next year and so it is also a monumental task! I think that we did an outstanding job, which was made a little easier because we had six regular ed. teachers instead of five to place the students with. (What a difference that would have made in our year!) After getting all students in just the right classroom, it was time for lunch and a little sun. Carol, Heather, Whitney, Marie, Kim, and me up top!