Elbow, knees, dreams

a blog about preschool, public schools, and what it's really like to be a teacher

January 2012 - Posts

joyous news on the Mo Willems front

He has two new books coming out! Listen to My Trumpet! will be released next week, on February 7. The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? will be available on April 3. I’m doing my happy dance! Read More...

I have a daddy but my daddy hates us

Today was our first day learning about our February theme, Families. We talked about different people who are in a family — mommies (I said, “some families have a mommy, but not all”) and daddies (I said the same thing), and sisters, and babies, and brothers, Read More...

what does why mean?

Today Crow hit a little girl at the beginning of the morning, at journal time. It came out of nowhere. I put him in the take-a-break chair. “Crow, did you hit her?” He nodded. “Why did you hit her?” He looked blank and nodded again. I started to think, Read More...

bad guys busting through the windows

I’ve got a new friend in my class. He is very much like one of my other boys, in appearance, behavior, curiosity, and temperament. However, the original boy has a really stable home life, considering that he was once homeless. The new boy….maybe not. Read More...

Spring cleaning, with snow on the ground

It is a classic winter day here, with ice and snow and cold. However, I felt some signs of spring within me — I did a major spring cleaning of the classroom, with the help of my Americorps volunteer. Visual clutter raises my blood pressure. My classroom Read More...