Field Trip!!!

We went on our first field trip yesterday. It took a lot of effort to finally get on the field trip with all of the permission slips and "ok's" from everyone, but in the end it worked out. We walked about 4 blocks to the Air and Space Museum. The kids absolutely loved it! They were just beaming the entire trip. Each class took 4 or 5 students, so we had a total of 12 kids with 4 adults. It was nice to get out of the classroom and get a chance to really get to know the students. They are so much fun! I can't wait for the other field trips we have planned.


Walking to the museum. Single file line...not
easily kept. :)


The whole crew.


The students loved "flying" the airplane.


The kids got to participate in a paper airplane
contest. They learned about balance and stability
in the process. The kids really had fun with it.



My 4 that came from my class. They were a fun
group.




We had to eat at McDonalds. They are in love
with it out here.


Well today was an awesome day! My supervisors from BYU came for a visit and watched one of my lessons today. The lesson went unbelievable well, so they thought I was pretty amazing...or something like that. hehe. I am lovin' it!

Also, Dad is coming out so I am excited for that!

Moments to laugh

Okay we always have funny stories to tell, so I thought I would share some of the hilarious things that naturally arise when working with kids on a daily basis.

On Friday I was playing connect 4 with one of my students during recess. He made me laugh so hard when he was getting all into the game and said to me, "Girl, I know where your going. I got you, you can't get me. I see your plan." Oh man I wish you could here it the way he said it. First of all, he called me "girl" and second of all I beat him every time when I was trying to lose. It was so funny to me I seriously was almost on the floor laughing, which of course encouraged him to continue. :) He is so stinking cute!

The other day another elementary teacher here told one of her students, Aliya, she needed to be good for the last 20 minutes of school in order to recieve her treat. Aliya calmly replied, "Miss Mecham you know I can't be good for 20 whole minutes, I get fussy." She is in 4th grade. Fussy? 2 year olds get fussy. :)

Another teacher was talking to one of her 4^th graders and they got on the subject of getting married. Their conversation went something like this:

“Miss Buttars are you married?”

“No”

“I know how it’s gonna happen. You are going to be workin on some papers and

You will ax him for help. Then he will ax you on a date. After the date he will kiss you on the cheek, or maybe on the lips. Then by the second date he will say Miss Buttars marry me.”

“He will say Miss Buttars?”

“Well no, he will say Traci and then you will get married. But Miss Buttars when you get married you have to, you know…use protection.”

“What?!”

“You know protection…do you need me to say the word?”

“No. I know what you are talking about.”

“ My Aunt is always telling me you must use protection or you WILL have a baby.”

I am sure I didn’t know what “protection” was in 4^th grade! The funny things they know here are always a surprise to me. They try to act like they are much older than they are, but actually act immature for their age. But it makes for funny experiences like this.

Focusing on the small victories!

This week was pretty good. A mix of good and bad days, but more good. I finally have the hang of things and I know my kids pretty well. They all respond differently to management, so I have learned what works and doesn't work for each student.

My toughest student has been responding really well to me lately and he has even participated in a lot of my lessons! The other day he finished 2 whole assignments and took a test; I couldn't believe it!

Subtraction with regrouping (when you have to borrow) is really tough for the students. So last week and this week I really worked on it with them. They still need to work on it, but they are getting better. A few of the higher students who can subtract have been working on multiplication too. For some reason they all really love multiplication, so they have been excited about that.

Friday the students took a spelling test and everyone but 3 students got 100%! When I came only one student got every word correct! Nice! Their spelling is atrocious, so they really need to work on it. I was happy to see so many succeed and I could see that they were proud of themselves as well.

The weather is pretty nice here most of the time. It never snows, but rains occasionally. The wind chill is what really gets to you. It is piercing. However, most days it is in the 40's making it feel like a spring day when the sun is shinning and the wind isn't blowing. We have been lucky with good weather on the weekends which makes it possible to explore a little more. Last weekend we went to the Air and Space museum and this weekend we are planning to go to the Museum of Natural History; after watching Night at the Museum of course. :) I am really excited, because we are planning to take a few students on field trips and one will be at the Air and Space museum and another at the Museum of Natural History. My students rarely leave their neighborhood, so I think it will be very beneficial to them. It is so sad that they live 4 blocks away from all of the museums and yet very few have gone to a single one. I can't wait to take them!

Well I have heard it has been like Alaska there in Utah, so sorry about that. I strangely miss the snow, but I am sure being there for a week would cure that. Well I miss you guys and I hope all is well! Hugs and Kisses!

And a special kiss to the little man who warmed so many hearts: Jacob Travis Meyerson. You are loved and missed by many.

"Oh my gosh" (say it with attitude)

Today marks one month teaching here in DC! I really can't believe it has been a whole month. It went by so slow at first and sometimes it still does, but when I think it has been a month already it seems faster. I am definitely getting attached to my students out here. They can all be very sweet at times and they just love attention. They all hug me like 5 times a day.

Well today was not so great. My teacher didn't show up to school and so I was alone all day. The kids are a lot harder to manage when she is gone. They really try to test me. I actually felt more in control then I have before, but it was still really tough. For 45 minutes after lunch I was trying to get the kids to sit in their seats quietly for a few minutes to calm down. 45 minutes! Plus, my supervisor came to observe and so that made me feel more stressed. The worst part of the day was when my hardest student tried to tackle me and finally hit me in order to get into the classroom. When he came back from recess I could tell he was too hyper and needed to go somewhere else. Plus I was told he wouldn't even be in class, but he ended up in class about 1/2 of the day. Anyways, when he came back from lunch I asked him to go talk to the councilor. However, he didn't want to go. I told him he could not come into the classroom until he went to see the councilor and this is when the shoving and hitting started. It wasn't hard or anything, but I had to call security to come get him. Good times. The worst thing about that is that it gets all the other kids more hyper. So, it was a tough day, but the good news is I made it through! I am learning...

I hope everyone has a good weekend! Oh... in reference to my title...my kids say that like 3 times a day each when they don't want to do something. Arg!!! The attitude kills me! Gotta love them though. :)

Pictures!!!

I finally took some pictures of my kids so here you go!
In case you didn't know...you can click
on the picture to make it bigger.


Ah they seem like such angels...


Doesn't that girls smile just make you want to
hug her? She is so cute, but she is very chatty
and can have some serious attitude. :)








Can have the most attitude of anyone I have
ever met. She tests me, but I love her!




They were showing me their pictures they drew.


The boy it the back sits by himself right next
to my mentor teacher. He is a tough one.

The week finished off with a bang! My supervisor came on Thursday to do her first formal observation and it went really well. The kids did a really good job and the lesson ran smoothly.

I started to feel sick Thursday afternoon and it got worse by Friday. I have been relaxing for the most part this weekend, but I still don't feel great. Teaching is much more difficult when you don't feel very good. Hopefully I will get better quick!

Here is a video. We were having a
party, because they had behaved so well. They
were showing me their dance they learned in music.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com