Our Week or Two

  

I introduced the kindergarteners to Wikki Stix in the library.  Great fine motor skills tool.  I did have a couple ask for a hand wipe afterwards, though.  These are brand new, so maybe they won't be quite so sticky after repeated playings.  

One of my boys got to go somewhere where they could see the Northern Lights, and sent me this cool picture.  

More books.  We pick up lots of little piles, and suddenly we have lots and lots of books here that need to go back.  

A rare moment where Grumman graced me with his presence.  He's so not a lap kitty that it's a treat when he chooses to snuggle a bit.  

We've been having the kids take notes in church, and then going over them at dinner, usually Monday or Tuesday.  When Paul works on Sundays, this gives him a chance to hear what the message was about (especially nice when he misses one in the middle of a series).  When he's home, it gives him a chance to assess the kids' notetaking and retention skills.  

All that to say, this is why there are a pile of church bulletins on the table.  Which apparently someone used to make a card structure.  

In the school library, we used markers to color coffee filters, then sprayed them with water to blend the colors a bit.  

The following week, the students mounted them on black paper and used paint markers to embellish their space scene with stars, planets, even some astronauts and spaceships from some students.  

Lots of space books on display right now.  

The second graders got to make constellation viewing tubes.  

This actually went well, and if I'd had more TP tubes saved up, I would have done it with another class.  

Hannah has also been reading the Mrs. Pollifax books that I'm rereading, so we "fight" (teasingly) over who gets them first.  

Also, the Michigan books were a result of me planning a trip there with the girls this summer.  Adding a new state to my list, and it will be the farthest east the girls have been in the US.  

Speaking of Hannah, little miss played piano in church again.  

More books.

One of my space dresses to go with our space theme in the library.  

I should probably stop calling her little miss at some point, since she's now **15**.  :mind blown:

I think this is the only picture I took during the Fine Arts Fundraiser.  Katie is in the pink shirt & gray hoodie.  She was in a skit; Hannah played 2 piano pieces.  This was the first production in which Jack did not die on stage.  Although he was fencing with another cast member, and leapt onto a table during their joust, so it wasn't outside the realm of possibility.  

The middle schoolers are learning about the solar system, so I had them help me with this display.

So... I booked a little trip.  I saved all the money I earned sewing masks, and most of my paychecks this school year, and now I'm ready to travel again.  My thought process was a bit convoluted, but the whole thing started as, "I want to take a cruise."  The cruise I finally settled on is to France and Spain, departing from Southampton, England.  Well, if I'm going to be across the pond anyway, I might as well take a few days to see LONDON, right?  I'm crazy excited.  

Katie decided to do this puzzle from Christmas, and then almost immediately decided it was "too hard" and that she "couldn't" do it.  I reminded her that we can do hard things, and she kept chipping away at it.  I got her solar system kit (a school project that's due tomorrow) and told her she needed to finish the puzzle before she could start the project, so she'd have somewhere to work on it.  She grumbled, but she got it done.  

Since the Wikki Stix went over so well with the kindergarten class, I decided to try asking the middle school students to build dinosaurs with them.  

Which went well for about 7 minutes, and then there were balls of Wikki stuck to the ceiling.  :sigh:  

Grammy sent the girls a package!

It's an herb garden!  If all goes well, we'll plant it next weekend, and then the girls can show off their ready to harvest plants when I get back from Europe.  

It's Teacher Appreciation Week.  The doors at school got decorated.  We had a catered taco bar in the staff lunchroom yesterday.  And one of the students brought me a little candle.