We are at that point in the school year where final days are being counted, hands are being thrown up in exasperation as students manage to forget EVERYTHING they've learned, and behavior becomes somewhat questionable.
Since I am an optimist, I like to remind my faithful readers that, despite this annual weirdness, kids are still entertaining.
1. Dead Caterpillar
At the preschool, we have been singing a cute song about a little caterpillar. It crawls up the kids' arms and tickles the kids' hands. In the middle of the song, one boy clapped his hands together, smashing his imaginary caterpillar, and said, “Oh no! All done!”
2. Aging Gracefully
After calling myself an old lady who couldn’t bend over to get their papers, one third grader said, "No you're not. You're perfectly aged!"
3. Monster the Drum
In the kindergarten classes, we were playing drums, and one student kept saying over and over, “This is so cute. He's so cute.”
He was talking about a child size djembe in my room. I told him that some of the kids call it the "Flashlight Drum."
When the teacher picked them up, he told her, “I played the Flashlight Drum.”
He ran to the drum and showed it to her.
“I call him Monster!” he exclaimed.
.png)
4. Life Goal: Making Mrs. Duggan Cry
This semester, after two years of no singing at the elementary level, I was finally able to get "the band," I mean choir, back together. Several sixth graders, who had been in choir prior to the shutdown, joined the ensemble and immediately waxed nostalgic.
"Can we please sing 'A Million Dreams?'" they begged, referring to one of the pieces we had been working on two years ago.
The sixth graders were also more than happy to fill the kids in on my past secrets, “When we sing really beautifully, Mrs. Duggan cries.”
When I announced we were going to sing “Homeward Bound” this year since we didn't get to sing it for our concert two years ago, the older kids informed the others, “This is the song that makes Mrs. Duggan cry.”
Apparently, getting to see Mrs. Duggan cry is an incentive to join choir these days.
5. Drumming For Good Behavior
Some of the grade levels (ahem, I'm looking at you, sixth graders) have had some interesting behavior this year, and I've learned that drumming works miracles. Even in my most challenging groups, I've had a lot of success when I allow the kids to work out their aggression on the drums or buckets or pretty much anything I can find.
Pro Tip: Do not try this at home.
For the latest blog updates, visit and "like" Rebecca Turner-Duggan.
