Filled With Joy

This week we have read one Dr. Seuss book and completed an activity to go with it. We make creature bookmarks to go with "There's a Wocket in my Pocket;" redesigned Dr. Seuss's hat for "The Cat in the Hat;" and today we had a turtle stacking competition for "Yertle the Turtle." Who would have thought that some index cards and green paper cups could bring so much joy. It was a very loud 15 minutes but it was AWESOME! There were students thinking, rethinking, and rethinking again. Students worked together. Students stood on chairs and tables. The highest stack was 10. I'm sure with more time they would have gotten higher. I love when students explore and experiment.

Oh the joy! There is so much good in this picture. I'll list the good things that I see. 1. SUN! We have had days and days and days of clouds. This evening, while working on homework, I noticed a hint of sun bouncing off the neighbor's house. I had to go outside to see. 2. GRASS! While snapping the picture I noticed that in the last three days, despite the snow falling from the sky, grass has managed to poke its head out in a few select places. Three days ago this was unthinkable. 3. DRIPPING WATER! On Sunday we spent time thinking about what to do with the FEET of snow on our flat roof. Knowing that shoveling would void a warranty, we opted for doing nothing but crossing our fingers. Mother nature is taking care of it for us. A small waterfall is tumbling down. 4. CH RI ST MA S L IG HT S. (Notice the period this time.) Poor Trent would like to take them down with the Christmas decorations. I kind of like them because they add some color to our extremely bland house...

Today I had a terrible headache that wouldn't go away. Basically I did nothing but wallow in self-pity because I had a headache. Trent went to the store and brought home gem of a Coke - Orange Vanilla Coke. Two things happened. 1: My taste buds rejoiced because it is delicious! I am hoping for the willpower to stay away from Maverick on a daily basis. 2: My headache went away. I'm sure that could have something to do with time passing; doing nothing; and ending a very difficult day at school. I'm going to say it was the Coke. Either way, I'm so happy!

Snow day meant a day to catch up. Well, I didn't get much done on the literature review, but I did find a lot of resources to help me get it done. That was helpful because APA is really stretching my brain. I was also able to catch up with my eye doctor. They had an appointment this morning so I could go get my eyes checked. I thought I was seeing fairly clearly currently, but with some adjustments I'm going to be seeing even better. I love choosing new frames. It is so fun. Started out with a pile of about fifteen pairs and whittled it down to three. Tough choice. Ended up going with ones that are very similar as the current pair because I just didn't think I was fashion-forward enough to pull off the modern glasses. Maybe next year. Joy in feeling comfortable!

So.MUCH.Snow!!! It just keep coming and coming. Today the wind came, too. Now, we are out of school tomorrow. I'm not excited about that but I'm not disappointed either. I'll get so much done, I hope. Today I decided to find the beauty in the snow. The Falls River is always beautiful, but it is spectacular right now. (P.S. I'm beginning to worry about our roof. There is practically the same amount of snow on our roof as is on those rocks.)

I try to enjoy snow. I try it find positives with it. With every inch and passing day finding the good becomes more difficult. We have gotten about 12 inches of new snow in the last 24 hours. More is expected to come. I have decided that I will give the snow until Friday, March 1 to stop then I'm going to start complaining to the person in charge. Today, we embraced the snow and went sledding at the Sand Dunes. The snow was falling so heavily we couldn't see where hills, cliffs, or flats were. You just had to take your chances. The powder was incredible. It was a blast. So much joy was found in all that fluff.

STEM rotations. This is my favorite activity on a Friday afternoon. The students in my room love it. They are so excited to explore and play. I try to set up something for each area. Today we didn't do any science because we had been working on that in the last few weeks. I'm grateful my district is willing to support my excitement of STEM and help me acquire the tools I want/need to spark an interest in my students. The excitement on their faces as they walk into the classroom and see all the rotations set up makes me happy and feel like it is probably worth the work it takes to get them ready. (One other note: Rotations take up a lot of time, students are engaged, and I don't have to manage behavior very often. JOY!)