The Walk of Shame

The kids at the elementary school line the hallways to say good-bye to the fifth graders and any staff who are retiring or moving on. 

It is called the Walk of Fame, but the kids call it the Walk of Shame.  I'm not quite sure why because they really enjoy it.

I went in and stood in the hallway to grab some pictures of my soon-to-be sixth grader. 

I stood with Ms. Shuman's class. 

Ms. Shuman was Aaron's second grade teacher and his first teacher at this school.  She's probably my favorite teacher of Aaron's and she is also a friend.  When she had her baby, I babysat for him when she first returned to work.

The fifth graders were given notecards to write notes to previous teachers.  They passed them out as they processed through the hallway. 

He gave Ms. Shuman a hug.  I told Bekki (Ms. Shuman) that I know Aaron loves her and not to take the lack of a note as a lack of love.  He doesn't like to write.  I saw her after the walk and she told me he did indeed give her a note.  Sweet boy.  He told me he also gave one to Mr. Gentillelo who is a regular substitue and also attends our church. 

This is Mrs. Gentillelo who is the school secretary and married to Mr. Gentillelo.  She sat down to give Aaron a hug.  I think one of my favorite things about this school is that so many of the staff truly love my kids.

This Walk of Fame wasn't as emotional as when Rachel walked.  I think because she is the first and she was more sad to leave.  Aaron is ready to move on.  When Hannah walks, I'm sure tears will be shed.  Not just because she is the baby, but it will be another new season.

I Earned a Medal

Aaron had his Fifth Grade Awards Ceremony this morning.  Like many schools across the country, his school participates in the Accelerated Reader Program.  Each book in the program is awarded a point value based on the difficulty.  After reading a book, a student takes a short test to evaluate comprehension.  Points are then awarded based on the score.

Until Aaron was in third grade, we really struggled with getting him to read.  He knew how to read, he just didn't enjoy it.  I had suggested book after book in an effort to help him find something he might like.  Finally, his Scout leader suggested a series that his boys had read and that is all it took.  Since then, Aaron reads every night.

A few months ago, I challenged Aaron to read the Harry Potter series.  I promised to read them along with him.  I thought it would motivate him a bit and since so many parents have been anti-Harry Potter, I thought I would read along as "Parental Guidance."  He LOVED the series.  He couldn't put them down and scored 100% on EVERY. SINGLE. AR. TEST!  The books are worth a lot of AR points.  After reading the first book, he doubled the points he had already earned.

During the awards ceremony, the Media Specialist awards certificates to the top ten AR points earners.  Once the first five were called and their points announced, I thought Aaron was out of the running.  Names continued to be called.  The top three point earners received a certificate and a medal.  The Media Specialist said, "The third place points earner for fifth grade is Aaron Ray."  YES!!!  That was such a huge accomplishment for him.

Each week Aaron brings home a progress report for the week.  He has to write one thing he thought he did well for the week and one thing he will work on for the next week.  For his thing he did well this week he wrote, "I am proud I earned a medal."

Here he is showing us his medal!

Ms. Jody

I finished up my first year "back to work."  I loved working with those little preschoolers.  They made me laugh.  It was hard adjusting to not being home all the time.  When I was home, I wasn't home.  I was running errands and volunteering at the kids school....A LOT.  I really enjoy being at their school and think it is important to be there.  It allows me to have a closer relationship with the staff at the school and it is always fun to see the kids faces light up when they see me. 

I was the room parent for Aaron's class this year.  Hannah was disappointed that I wasn't her room parent, but I still helped with her class as needed and volunteered in the Media Center.  Shelving books is VERY THERAPEUTIC!!  Parents sign up to be a room parent at the beginning of the year.  Hannah's class already had a volunteer and Aaron's class needed one.  I really didn't want to lead both, so I went with Aaron's.  I know since this is his last year of elementary school, he won't be as excited to have Mom hanging out at his school next year.

Anyway, I guess I did an o.k. job at the preschool as I have officially accepted a new position next year.  The preschool is starting a Transitional Kindergarten class and I will be the lead teacher.

Stinky Boy Scouts

Aaron has gone camping as a Cub Scout many times.  This past weekend was the first time he went as a Boy Scout.  He was a bit nervous, but he had a great time.

He was excited to tell me all about the new knots he learned how to tie, orienteering and cooking in the dutch oven.

As a side not he said, "Oh, there weren't any showers so we didn't shower all weekend and not everyone brushed their teeth."  I just nodded.  What I wanted to say was, "As if I couldn't smell that when you all got out of the cars."

One of the big differences I see between Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts is the amount of leadership skills the older Scouts seem to possess.  I was very impressed with the older Scout who was making sure the younger Scouts had all the proper gear.

Here is a picture of Aaron and his best buddy, Coleman, while they were still clean.

Band Geeks

The band from Rachel's school went to Six Flags and I was able to chaperone.  It was nice to get to know some of Rachel's friends better.  The kids were allowed to split into groups of four.  Rachel has been friends with one of the four since we moved here, but the other two are new friendships she has made in middle school. 

It was also nice to hear how much the band director cares about his students.  Safety was truly his number one priority.  Next year when Rachel is in eighth grade the band makes a trip to Orlando and goes to Disney World.  I don't think PK or I will be able to make that trip and I was really concerned about letting her go.  I still have reservations, but seeing the band director in action away from the school has lessened my fears.

One of her friends won this squid hat.  It was all the rage.

I can't believe that is the only picture I took.  I was trying my best to be reserved and not embarrass the living daylights out of her which isn't hard to do to a middle schooler.

One Is Silver

Rachel is finishing up her eighth year of Girl Scouts.  All six of the girls in her Cadette troop earned the Silver Award this year.  The next big step is the Gold! 

Rachel and Ms. Maria.  Maria has been her leader since we moved to Marietta.  Maria had brain surgery last year so I jumped in to keep her troop going.  I was the co-leader this year, but will be stepping back into just being a parent next year.

Ms. Maria pinning on the Silver Award

All the Cadettes (minus one) and Ms. Maria



Thanks for the Reminder

The kids' elementary school partners with the Kiwanis Club to sponsor a program called "Terrific Kids."  Each month each classroom teacher selects a student who they feel has put for their best effort in an area.  All of our kids have been selected multiple times.

This month was our friendly reminder from our local elementary school and the Kiwanis Club that our kid is TERRIFIC.  Aaron was facing some challenges in reading.  He is a capable reader and exceeded on the standardized test in that area.  He was reading a series of books that was below his reading level and his teacher didn't think it was a very good idea.  I, on the other hand, think that when reading for pleasure one should get to choose the reading material that is fun.  That is another blog post.  Anyway, I told Aaron if he would read the Harry Potter series that I would read along with him.  It became a contest to see who could finish first.  It really doesn't matter who won or how long it took the winner to catch up on chores like the laundry.  Aaron scored a 100 on every AR test he took on the books.

His teacher noticed and chose him to be her Terrific Kid for May.

Our Terrific Kid

All of our terrific kids