The Best Parts of My Week....6/21-6/24

Hi everyone,
Well, it's the last week of school! Every year seems to go faster and faster! Wasn't it just September? Wasn't it just my first day of teaching back in 1984? I went through my school yearbook today and I counted 19 of my students whose parents I had as students too! You would think that after all this time I would be counting the days to retirement.....but just the opposite is true! I am more and more energized as the years go by. Sure, my bones and joints hurt more and this job is sometimes physically challenging, but I am only looking toward retirement in the sense that I am counting how much time I have left to accomplish my goals. There is so much more that I want to do! I love my job and the following are some reasons why!

.....While talking to one of my fourth graders on the last day of PE, he shared with me that he now has his own pedometer and will be wearing it all summer to see how many steps he moves each week just like I do!


.....I watched in pride as our 5th grade students "Moved Up" during the ceremonies and celebrations of this week! It seems like yesterday that they arrived as kindergarten students!


.....As I was saying good-bye to students on the last day of school during dismissal, I was suddenly wrapped in a hug by one of my students. While many students give hugs on the way out, this one was special on many levels. It's hard to describe why, but if you are a teacher, you know the kind of student I am talking about........the challenging one......the one it was hard to connect with......the one that you were never quite sure if you were giving what the student needed.......the hug told me that I got it right!

Have a great summer everyone! See you in September!

The Best Parts of My Week....6/7-6/11

This week we held our annual Field Days! Field Days were the best parts of my week on so many levels!

.....seeing the excitement on the faces of Kindergarten students as they experienced Field Day for the first time!

.....welcoming the more than 40 volunteers who helped with Field Days which included parents, grandparents, and former students!

.....playing with students during Tug of War, "Clean Up Your Own Backyard", Beach Ball Volleyball, Water Balloon Toss, "Spaghetti and Meatballs Relay", and more!

.....watching with pride as fifth grade students cooperate, problem-solve, and work together during our adventure-style fifth grade Field Day!

.....listening to the excitement on the fields while students participated in the many Field Day activities!

.....answering a Kindergarten student the day after Field Day who asked if we were going to have Field Day again!

.....reading a booklet made by Kindergarten students who wrote about and drew a picture of their favorite Field Day activity as a way to thank me for providing them with a terrific Field Day experience!

.....feeling the excitement in the air each day that a Field Day was scheduled!

.....being grateful for terrific weather on each of three Field Days even the weather forecast indicated otherwise!

.....realizing that all of the work that goes into creating successful Field Days is worth every minute!!!!

The Best Parts of My Week....6/1-6/4

As the school year winds down, the events and activities wind up!!!!!!!
Enjoy the best parts of my week!

.....During Kindergarten Orientation, as I was explaining my PE program to a group of parents touring the building, a parent of a current student and an incoming kindergarten student thanked me for teaching her daughter Yoga! She explained that her daughter came home and told her mother that she learned a new way to react to her little brother when he was bothering her! She learned a "Volcano" pose, which helps students get rid of angry or difficult feelings and was going to use it the next time she got upset. The power of Yoga for children continues to amaze me! That made my day!


.....As I was chatting about our upcoming Field Days with a group of students waiting to be picked up by their teacher, one of the students asked if I organized all of the Field Days for all of the students in our school. It was as if she just realized that someone had to be the one to organize the events and that they just don't happen by themselves. I responded that yes, I organize our Field Days each year. She then replied "Doesn't that take a lot of time?" I of course said yes, but that I love Field Day and it is worth all of the work that goes into it so that students can have fun! I then asked all of these students to show their "Attitude of Gratitude" during Field Day so that everyone can enjoy the activities. It was amazing to me that an elementary student could be aware of and appreciate the amount of work that it takes to create a school-wide event!

The Best Parts of My Week....5/24-5/28

Hi everyone,
It never ceases to amaze me that every week can be so different! Each week I am surprised by the events that can emerge as the Best Parts of My Week!

.....After a bus duty conversation with some of my students, I was asked to wear one of the earliest Field Day T-shirts that I had had made for my school Field Days. I had to dig back in the closet, but came up with one from 1996! All of my students were not even born yet, but they were thrilled to see me wearing the shirt!

.....This week my primary students spent time participating in Yoga activities. Two reactions stand out for me. First, when students arrived to the gymnasium and realized we were doing Yoga they smiled and exclaimed YOGA YESSSSS!!! Next, after finishing the activity with a relaxation and breathing activity, a kindergarten student said "This was so relaxing!"

.....During May, we celebrate National Physical Fitness and Sports Month with a project called "Operation Healthy North Park". Students, families, employees, and community members participate by exercising and filling out paper sneakers for activity lasting at least 20 minutes. These sneakers are collected, counted, and displayed on a bulletin board at school. This week, I received a pile of sneakers from a high school PE teacher and his students! This teacher had taught with me in prior years and chose to support the program by including himself and his students in the project! Many of the names on the sneakers were former students of mine who had participated in the project when they were elementary students! That truly made my day!

The Best Parts of My Week....5/10-5/14.....

Hi everyone,
What an exciting week this was! We are so fortunate at North Park! It was a great week to show our "Attitude of Gratitude!"


.....Wednesday our brand new ROCK WALL was installed! We now have a 20' long and 8' high magnetized rock wall! We will be trying it out this coming week! Everyone at school is so excited!!!!!!! (ME TOO!)


.....We have a wonderful PTA at my school! They often fund enrichment programs for our students and this year they offered me the opportunity to choose an enrichment program for funding. I immediately thought of Homespun Dance. This group is made up of Peter, Paul, and George, and they offer a program of live music and traditional American community dancing. I have had the pleasure of working with them in the past and I was excited to invite them to come back to North Park! During Thursday afternoon and all day Friday, Peter, Paul, and George provided an amazing experience for all of our students in grades K-5. The students and adults were engaged and enthusiastic throughout the program and the Family Dance Night on Friday night capped off the experience with a terrific night of dancing with students and families! This group of artists love what they do so much, that it is impossible not to love it too! Check out the pictures and you will see what I mean!

The Best Parts of My Week 5/3-5/7

Hi everyone,
This was Teacher Appreciation Week in my school and I certainly felt appreciated!

....Our PTA encourages our families and students to show appreciation using letters for each day of Teacher Appreciation Week. Our school letter days go from A-F, so for this week students used letters G-K. On "H" day I received "Hugs" candies from students....On "I" day the PTA supplied ice cream for a lunch treat and I received a packet of Impatients flower seeds.....On "J" day a student provided all kinds of "J" treats for the faculty and staff - jawbreaker candies, jelly beans, jolly ranchers, etc....On "K" day several students left Hershey Kisses chocolates...sometimes it's the little things that mean so much! The week ended with a wonderful luncheon provided by our PTA.....we feel so appreciated! Thanks to all!

.....This week our school began "Operation Healthy North Park" This is a program where students, families, employees and community members can turn in paper sneakers representing participation in a variety of exercise. Sneakers are counted and displayed on a bulletin board. Each year we try to break our record from the previous year. The sneakers are coming in! We are off to a great start!

.....It's been a busy week! We ended it with Project ACES - a program launched by Len Saunders to encourage exercise. ACES stands for All Children Exercise Simultaneously. I tried something new this year and I was happy to see students and adults engaged, smiling, and exercising together! It was a great way to cap off a great week!

......Finally, this weekend I was proud to attend the SEZ Elementary/Middle School PE Awards ceremony. Four of our students were among the more than 300 students being honored. The speaker commented that "you can fill up a gymnasium with all that is good about the youth of today". She was right!!!!!

The Best Parts of My Week....4/26-4/30

Hi everyone,
Sometimes it's best to step back and take in the best moments of each day from a short distance......This week, I did just that....


.....I watched a group of students outside at recess from my office window drawing boxes on the blacktop with sidewalk chalk and then playing four square. While that might not seem like a great moment, it was for me because prior to my teaching four square for the first time this year, students in my school did not play four square at recess. That moment showed me that, as teachers, we do make a difference, but we don't always get to experience it first-hand....

.....My younger students have been exploring balance with many different pieces of equipment these last two weeks. We are fortunate to have a variety of interesting equipment that helps students experiment with balance in safe and fun ways. One of the objects we use are foam noodles. Students try to balance their noodle in different ways. Some students balance it on their head, feet, fingers, shoulders, knees, etc. As I was observing one of the groups, I could not help but smile at the pure joy that showed on one particular student's face as he balanced his noodle on the bottom of his foot while laying on the floor on his back. His giggles were infectious! What a fun way to learn!