The end is here...but it is just the beginning!

The end of an amazing year has come and gone.  We are now into our summer vacation.  Bigger, stronger, smarter, and oh so ready for second grade!  I am so proud of these students!  Second grade does not know how lucky they are to be receiving your children!
Below are scads of photos that I never got around to uploading.  Feel free to download them for yourselves!

N is for New Names:

O is for Outside:  We were sharing.  The question was, "Can we please go back inside and read now?"  Um, let me think abou tit..."YES!!!" :o)

It appears these types of notes HAVE NEVER GONE OUT OF STYLE!!! :O)

P is for Picnic Lunch:

This is Mrs. Zarynski, AKA Mrs. Z.  She came in every Wednesday morning to listen to us read...because she loves children...and knew no one in the class prior...and is a retired first grade teacher herself...and is AMAZING...and is set to work in my class next year too!  YAY for me...and my future students!!!!

Listening to reading and reading to someone.  Love how natural this time became by the end of the year!

Reading the big books.

Writing about Reading, AKA making their own books!

Sharing their books.

Love this one by a student, who took it home to finish.  Yeah, I did not assign that...but they did it all the time!

May 25, 2011 3,100 books read aloud!

What a way to welcome the summer...a broken arm for one little girl!

X is for eXchange Autographs.

End of Year Party:
Bubbles

Cupcakes

Balls and Hula Hoops

2nd MOST AR points in 1st grade!

My heart makes room for 18 more children I will carry in my heart forever!  I wish you all the best.  Come back and see me after you meet your NEW teacher in August!

M is for Memories!

 You will note how wonderfully the children are working in photo above.  Then, notice the children as I took their photos individually. They cracked me up when their "Paparazzi" persona immediately came out!

 I think he just died...

 ...wait their he is willing himself NOT to smile! :o)

Hope you enjoyed reading what your children wrote as much as I did!  The autograph session was possibly one of their favorite moments...with a pen!  I LOVE these little people!

J is for Joke Day!

Each and every child got up and shared jokes with us!  It was one of my favorite afternoons to date with your children.  They were funny.  They were engaging.  They had good timing and not so good timing.  We laughed through it all!
I prefaced the afternoon with the fact we needed clean jokes and ones that were school appropriate.
I was a little shocked at one of the jokes, but feel it is important to share. Everyone deserves a good laugh!

"A man goes into a bar and gets drunk on beer. (Yes, it was at this moment I said, "Whoa is this a clean joke?") He leaves the bar and begins to drive drunk.  He drives down a one way street the wrong way.  A cop who saw him leave the bar and drive drunk followed him then pulls him over.  The cop says, Didn't you see that arrow back there?  The drunk man replies, What arrow?  I never saw the Indian!"

Moral of the story and life lesson taught to a classroom full of 1st graders and a teacher with her mouth hanging open...DON'T DRIVE DRUNK!  The children didn't really get it.  I never stopped giggling.