So Long 1st Grade!!

Cooper's last day of 1st grade was on Tuesday.

Wednesday were Closing Ceremonies for K-2. It's a church service where each class sings a song, the children recite Bible verses and the Pastor blesses the teachers and children. Very sweet, simple and in line with the values of his school. My favorite part is seeing the children sign their school song- I get teary eyed every time I hear their little voices.

Afterwards, they go to the classroom to get their report cards and to give their teacher the class gift. Since I was the room mother this year- it was my responsibility (as a side note- I do not recommend this job to anyone with a full time job outside of the home. It about killed me and I don't even think I was very good at it- adequate, but not great).

While I do pride myself on being a super gift giver, I am not completely skilled at coordinating 21 children and coming up with something creative yet simple at a relatively low cost. Thankfully, the other room mother is an artist (click here to see her wonderful photography) and she had a great idea. She shaped the kids into letters and photographed them on the art room floor (which is white). Then she lifted their images and arranged them to say Mrs. B! for my class and Mrs. W ! for hers. When the whole thing was done, it was an amazing black and white photo on a black background that was framed and ready for presentation. Am I lucky or what?

Here are the kids gathered around her as she opened it (Coopers head is front and center).


She loved it- whew, mission accomplished. Thanks Jackie for saving the day on this one!

Cooper had a fantastic year. Mrs. B is soft spoken and strict, but the children adore her. She's a former reading specialist and her passion is teaching kids to read. Cooper couldn't have had a more perfect match for 1st grade. Here they are, goofy face & all!


We'll miss you Mrs. B!

Another room mom duty is planning the End of Year Party. Hmmm- Jackie and I went with simple and low stress. We headed to a nearby park for playtime and a picnic. I bought balloons and a cake, Jackie brought a cooler of water and we called it done! It was exactly what we needed. The kids played, moms talked and the sun blazed across a playground without an ounce of shade. Mrs. B had given the kids books as an end of year treat and Cooper found a shady spot under the slide and read for 30 minutes. Yup, that's my kid! He does make me laugh- but he knows what he likes and how can I complain about him reading?

At the end of the day he said to me, Momma- you're sure I'm going to 2nd grade??
Yes, sweet thing- you are most definitely going to 2nd grade!!!

I love that little kid-