Nearly every morning, a small group of students make their way into the art room before the breakfast bell.
It is for a short time, after they have gotten off the bus, in which they are hoping to avoid sitting in the gym for 10-15 minutes before the breakfast bell rings. Sometimes I let them play albums on my record player and we dance around. Other times, I have jobs ready for them like sharpening pencils, unstacking chairs, cutting out circles of cardboard, or passing out papers. In years past, I have dreaded this group because they either haven't been helpful or it is more work to 'watch' them and it is hard to get stuff prepped and ready for the day when they are in there. But every year, a little group forms....most of them ride different buses and are not in the same class. They just gravitate towards my room and drop their backpacks and announce that they just cannot go to the gym. They simply must wander slowly around the room, looking at everything, asking questions, and telling me about their parents, siblings, church, and anything that pops into their minds. In a way, they get the inside scoop. They see the 'behind' the scenes work that goes into prepping, writing stuff on the board, and creating examples for the project. Sometimes I get their input, asking what they think about different things I am considering for the day, and getting suggestions for the sketchbook prompt and other things that need to be decided. Last Friday, the intercom beeped. We all froze. "Hello?!" "Yes." I repeated a few times. No response. "Lord. Is that you?" I said, knowing that no one was listening behind the machine. A 5th grade girl and I burst into hysterical laughter. She got my 'joke' and I told her that I'd always wanted to do that. We belly laughed at the absurdity and the silliness of the whole thing and now it is our 'inside joke'. We have a few other inside jokes, she asked me once where I had gotten my gold handled scissors and I told her they were a gift from the city. I love my little 'morning' group. They make me laugh and cheer me up each day and I am thankful.
3 Comments
Caitlin Bever
3/5/2018 11:51:52 am
I've laughed both times hearing this story! Haha Yesterday at church I was getting someone's attention on the other side of the busy hall. He couldn't find who called his name and looked around saying, "Lord, is that you??" I laughed with the response, "Does my voice really sound like what you expect God's to sound like?" I love having inside jokes with kids, and just people in general.
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Mary Sears
3/5/2018 06:19:20 pm
What a great story! You have to love the kids that get it.
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Julie
3/5/2018 08:27:24 pm
Oh Nellie, your blogs always make me laugh. There is always something funny written in between those lines and I appreciate that very much...I wish I owned a pair of gold handled scissors!!! LOL
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Mrs. Mitchell
This is my 'slice of life' blog. Archives
March 2020
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