Can I get a....

Woot woot!

18 days people.

18 days until I am in Germany with my cute husband sipping lattes and reading like it's my job because I literally want to make relaxation my job this summer as I have pretty much forgotten what it feels like (with the exception of sitting in the steam room this past weekend after working out in California).

Pure bliss...

I feel like so much is going on in the next 18 days and I am going to be 12 kinds of busy. (totally stole that line from Babbling Abby...love her!)

I feel like I am in a race to complete my core paper and now that I can see the finish line I am just in an all out sprint to eek out every last drop of mental energy that I have left. I stayed up until about 1 AM doing work last night, then promptly got back out of bed after getting in so I could plan math for this week. Then, upon returning to my bed, I was awake for what felt like the entire night unable to sleep because visions of core papers were inundating my brain. So much for good night's sleep. Needless to say I am really tired today and wish that it was feasible to get in bed and go to sleep at 5:00. But, alas, I need to keep trucking away on my paper so that a really truly honest to goodness final copy actually materializes!

Fairy godmother....magic wand...where are you?

My mind is so focused on this giant culmination of all my hard work over the course of the past two years, I feel like I am in denial that it is almost the end of the school year. In two weeks, my kiddos will be leaving me and that just sounds bizarre. Not to mention that we have a field trip that I need to prep for, I have to assess, alphabetize and bind 43 alphabet books, make thank you gifts for parent volunteers, make sure I have taught every little thing I need to teach this year, and clean/organize/sort through my classroom and put the rest of my personal belongings back in storage before heading to Germany. Just writing this is making me even more tired.

Time for some food and maybe a teeny tiny nap before I get cracking on my paper once again. I think champagne is in order when I finally click send on the email to turn it in because it feels like a celebration!

California Love

Just keep writing....just keep writing...

I am currently in sunny California with my in-laws enjoying a break from the rain and a little writing/relaxation retreat. Yesterday I did a little shopping with my MIL and found a dress for the wedding that Mr. Sneaker and I will be attending in Amsterdam in July. Have you ever attended a wedding with a dress code in the form of a color scheme for the guests? We are being asked to wear beige, creme, and khaki tones for this wedding, so we were on a hunt for a dress that I can wear because out of all the many dresses that I currently own, none of them fit that description. Luckily Banana Republic had exactly what I needed with amazingly cute bronze heels to boot! After shopping, we met up with Mr. Sneaker's bf, his wife and their adorable baby who is Mr. Sneaker's godson for lunch, and I got my MIL totally hooked on Words with Friends. I am such a good teacher, she is currently kicking my butt! Then, I worked out at their club, relaxed in the steam room, and saw a rainbow! I heart California :0)

This morning we went over to Santa Clara University, where my FIL teaches and I did a few practice rounds of my core presentation for them. I cut down my presentation to approximately the right amount of time, but I am still working on getting it to come out right! Grr. Is it June 19th yet? I have been writing/typing/editing away since we got home because my final draft is due June 2nd and that is fast approaching. I am trying to make all the changes that my adviser recommended and then I need to do some final editing, check my references, read it over a gazillion times etc. etc., so I can be sure it is as good as it is going to get before I turn it in. Yikes! A paper that was two years in the making--craziness! Fortunately aside from practicing it until I have it down cold, the presentation is pretty much done, so between June 2nd when I turn the paper in and June 16th when I do my actual presentation, I won't have too much to worry about (besides teaching, saying goodbye to by soon to be firsties, and packing up my stuff).

I am so happy that tomorrow is a holiday and I can sleep in one more day!

Oh Hello....

I have noticed some new followers popping up this week.

Welcome to my world of Kindergarten, fitness, crazy busy schedules, and traveling.

For those of you who are new to Sneaker Teacher, let me catch you up...

I am coming up on the end of an entire school year spent away from my husband who is currently residing in Germany. We have been married almost 4 years, he spoils me, and I am whooping his butt on Words with Friends :0)

I lived in Germany last year and will be returning/reuniting with hubs in 23 days!!!

(that statement definitely deserves three exclamation points)

In bloggyland I am Mrs. Sneaker 

(a nickname very appropriate given the massive amounts of sneakers I have in various colors of the rainbow!), but I sign my bloggy comments KT because those are my initials and my name IRL is Katie. My mom always told me when I was growing up that I needed to marry someone with a last name that started with a T so I could be KT...Katie...KT...get it?

I have been teaching for 6 years including this year

1 year bilingual Head Start

3 years first grade

1 year SPED in Germany

1 year Kinder with two half day classes

Even though I lived in Germany for a year, I don't speak much German.

I can hold my own en español though.

I am currently finishing up my second year as a doctoral student (hence the crazy busy schedule bit and the living apart from my husband for the school year bit)

I heart reality TV, Starbucks lattes, chocolate, pedicures, books, sleeping, and my very cute husband.

If you are visiting for the first time or are a relatively new follower, leave me a comment so I can check out your blog too!

Apps

This week I downloaded a few apps on my iPad and tried them out with a few of my kiddos who just need a little extra TLC. I invited one kiddo in this morning before the official arrival time to play on my iPad and plan to do the same every day until school is out. I also brought Paddy (my iPad) to lunch and let another kiddo play a game with me when he was finished eating. I am all about free apps (and sometimes I am willing to shell out 99 cents) so I thought I would share some of the ones I like. Sometimes the free ones only give you a part of the game, so you end up having to buy the "real" version, but they are typically less than 3 dollars each....

And yes, it is sick that I video taped my iPad using my iPhone :0)

It's a whole new generation of BOB!

I love how kiddos can hear the sounds and hear them blended into words!

app name: BB Magic Lite-FREE

(I don't recommend the lite version because there isn't much to it)

This is the game my friends played today. It is great for vocabulary building and phoneme segmentation. Both boys really liked it and they really did a great job using the technology. 

app name: Word Magic

This is a fun one for kids who are working on fine motor and writing their letters. It makes one sound if they are on the dotted lines and makes a squeaky sound when they go off. As you can see in the video, I was able to model what happens when you don't stay on the line as I tried to hold my phone in one hand and trace with my right hand (I am not a righty, so it was not easy!)

app name: ABC Tracer

There is a free "lite" version, but it didn't include the whole alphabet, so I paid for the real one, but it was on sale. 

I also downloaded:

PBS Kids

Sight Words Lite (again doesn't have a lot to it)

ABC Phonics

KidsMathFun

Kindergarten

Count Magic

Math Series (fill in the missing number game)

I haven't played with all of them yet, but so far the ones I have played or used with kids have worked well!

Proud

I brought home my DIBELS scores to examine more closely tonight and I just came across something that literally just blew my mind.

I have talked about my sweet little Dianita before. Seriously the most adorable/precious/darling little thing on earth. Earlier this year, she was participating in our extended day and on our most recent DIBELS assessment she scored 129 on Nonsense Word Fluency....

one.twenty.nine

the benchmark for end of the year Kinder is 25. 

So.Proud.Of.Her!

I cannot wait to tell her mom tomorrow when she comes for the volunteer brunch. I could seriously cry right now thinking about sharing that moment with her mama. She outscored many of the kids who I consider my high kids (by a lot!). It's not that I don't consider her one of my high kids--I am always really pleased with the quality of her work and I know that she is incredibly bright, but there is just something about seeing that enormous number.

It is especially great because there was only one other student out of 42 that scored higher than she did and that girl entered Kinder already reading. Dianita did not and she struggled a bit, but clearly she blew the roof off of DIBELS and I just want her to stay in my class forever.

I am tempted to call her mom right now because I just can't wait, yet I want to do it in person because I want to see her smile when she hears the news. Go girl!

***

Today I introduced the "fly swatter game" for the first time and the kids LOVED it. I made a huge deal about how it's only a game for responsible students because I wouldn't put a fly swatter in the hands of just any old kid and tell them to slap something...that is a job for kids who can handle it...and handle it they did.

I have two kiddos come up in front of the white board and give each one a fly swatter. They have their backs to the words and when I say the word I want them to find, they can turn around and swat it. We incorporated our sight word songs into the game and sang the song for each word after it was swatted. 

I have a feeling there are going to be a lot of requests to play this game again because my firsties always loved it in a major way.

feels like my bday

I arrived home today to find a box from amazon and the special key in my mailbox signifying that I have a package. 

I heart getting mail and receiving packages, so getting not just one, but two in one day was a fantastic treat.

I feel like I have been buying stuff for my classroom left and right these days, but it's all of the good of the kiddies, so it is what it is.

In box #1 I got these...

Sunny posted about them a few days ago and when I saw that they are geared for grades K-2, I had to have them. I am a little disappointed that the pages are not actually in color like the pictures show, but I will definitely make copies of the pages rather than letting the kiddos use the originals so I guess that really doesn't matter. They can color the pictures in themselves. No biggie.

In box #2 I got these...

I am particularly excited because they both come with DVD's!

Tired of reading PD books? Watch the video!

I have only just browsed through them so far, but both books look like they have a lot to offer! I am excited to read them cover to cover this summer!

I also picked up these for our teen number practice lesson tomorrow...

And, I already divvied them up for table groups with exactly the same number of markers in each bag.

We have been working on drawing teen numbers by making groups of tens and then extras, so I thought using stampy markers would be an oh so fun way to practice that some more. The Teen Number video was a huge hit today and I think that it will really help my kiddos remember that teen numbers can be broken up into a ten group and then additional ones. They were seriously rockin' out and doing some funky moves to the hip hop beat.

Oh, and then there's this recent purchase from TJ Maxx (Can I get an amen for TJ Maxx?!) 

Love that place!

If there ever was a perfect mug for a Kindergarten teacher, this would be it. 

I just wish it was filled with steaming coffee right now :0)

PS. My lovely teaching partner has started a blog of her very own so please visit and give her some bloggy love! This would be the very same teaching partner that I spend much of my lunch time chatting with if that gives you any clue about how great she is!

Q & A

In an effort to keep up my blogging everyday streak that I have had going for about three consecutive days now, I am joining in on Getting To Know You Sunday just like Jen!

1. what's your favorite rainy day activity?

Since it rains all the time in Portland, I don't really alter my plans due to rain, but I do like to curl up with a good book or stay in and watch a movie as a special treat sometimes. And, after getting caught in the rain during a few runs while training for the half marathon, I will admit that running in the rain is pretty fun too!

2. what time do you go to bed?

I try to go to bed by 10, but usually it's more like 11. I am pretty productive at night sometimes, but that has resulted in frequent stops at Starby's in the am for some latte love!

3. how many magazines do you subscribe to?

I've got People, Time, Food and Wine, and Portland Monthly on my ipad which I can download automatically...love it! I also subscribe to a few professional journals...The Reading Teacher, Young Children, Journal of Staff Development, and Instructor Magazine. I would have to say my favorite of all is US Weekly, but I only read that in the grocery line.

4. did you sell all your belongings because you thought the world was ending yesterday?

We did have a garage sale yesterday, but it's an annual event at the condo complex where I am living and not at all related to Judgment Day.

5. what's your beauty obsession?

My flatiron. Can't live without it!

6. if you could only wear one designer/brand for the rest of your life...what would it be?

Does adidas count as a designer brand?

7. what's your summer must have?

Pedicures and sun dresses.

8. do you make weekly dinner menus?

No. As a matter of fact I have done a horrible job of cooking this year due to being so busy with classes. I am out and about several nights a week and I feel like I bring a whole bag of groceries to work in the morning in order to cover lunch, snack, and dinner without going home. I rarely cook and prefer meals that are easy to grab and go. I am looking forward to cooking for hubs when I get back to Germany!

P.S.

• I went for a nice 6 mile run this morning with some friends and now I am gearing up to get some homework done.

• I am obsessed with playing Words with Friends and am currently beating Mr. Sneaker! He beat me on our first game and I am determined to whoop him now! Any tips for scoring big would be greatly appreciated! If you know of any interesting words let me know!

• I got a mani/pedi yesterday and tried out this new type of polish that is supposed to last 24 days. Well, one day later it is already peeling off! I was told that I have to make an appt. to have them professionally remove it, yet it seems to have no trouble coming off all by itself. I am going back tomorrow and asking them to remove it because I am just not loving it. 

June Babies

June is fast approaching and that means birthdays galore in the Sneaker family. I will be landing in Germany just in time for Mr. Sneaker's big day and then exactly one week later we celebrate mine (and the celebration continues on and on until I am good and done with presents, attention, and fun!). 

I love birthdays...can you tell?

But, back to Mr. Sneaker's birthday...

The other day I stopped in at Michaels after I finished up at the library. While I was browsing, I finally got my hands on this:

 I totally want it! 

And...as I just searched for a photo, I discovered that there is a Kindle edition for 9.99! Woot woot! The price at Michaels was 19.99, so I was going to wait for a 40% off coupon, but 9.99 is a deal, especially since that means I can have it with me in Germany without any additional baggage weight.

Once again I was in awe of Bakerella's amazing creations, but I especially loved her tennis ball cake balls and I want to try to make them for Mr. Sneaker's bday. In Germany, when it's your birthday you are expected to bring a treat for people at work. Last year several of hubby's colleagues posted on his facebook wall that they were looking forward to him bringing cake. Luckily, I was on top of it since he was out of town until late on the evening of his bday and I made some cupcakes for him to bring in to work. Since I am literally getting back to Germany on his birthday, which falls on a Sunday, I am trying to plan ahead since all stores are closed on Sundays and I will need to make sure I have all the required goods.

People from Mr. Sneaker's PDX office know all about my penchant for making cake balls and request favorite flavor combos for their own birthdays, but the adidas folks in Deutschland have not yet experienced the wonder of cake balls. I tried to make a batch last year, but it was small disaster....This year, I plan to bring a box of good old American Betty Crocker cake mix, and chocolate melts so I can get it right. Since boxed cake mix is not available in Germany (unless you want to shell out a small fortune at random gas stations that carry Betty Crocker along with Ben & Jerry's), I tried making both cake and frosting from scratch and sadly it just did not work. Also, the chocolate melts were just not the same and didn't harden correctly.

With familiar ingredients in hand, I will try again this year. I can't wait to bake in my German kitchen again! 28 days people :0)

Aren't these great?

I hope I can handle it.....

 

I bet their jaws would drop if he showed up with this...

LOVE it!

It would truly be the perfect cake for hubs...I just may have to take it on!

Visions

Yesterday I mentioned a little fantasy that I have and it has got me thinking about the lovely fresh start that happens each year for teachers--quite possibly making being a teacher the very best job in the entire world. In what other profession do you have the ability to basically reinvent yourself each and every September?! As we creep closer and closer to that coveted last day of school, sometimes our organization starts to slip (ok, who am I kidding, I don't think my organization was ever awesome to begin with), our energy starts to fade, and our mojo is a little short of teachery pizazz. Our minds start to focus on umbrella drinks, lazy mornings, beach books, and the ultra luxury of having more than 20 minutes to eat lunch! I am not saying that we are bad teachers by the end of the year, but I do look forward to a fresh start in the fall when I have renewed sense of energy, purpose, and passion for spending so much time with my little monkeys.

So, back to my fantasy...the one in which I am the best teacher ever and have the most amazing class/activities/lessons/ideas...I came home after hitting up the library for a very large pile of Eric Carle books, a side of Frog and Toad, and a large helping of beginner non-fiction books on various land animals and started filling out my lesson plans for next week. Back to that whole organization thing, somehow this year I am finding myself leaving school on Friday with a completely empty lesson plan page, but while catching up on missed shows from the week and sipping my cold Diet Coke, I somehow manage to get it completed in order to begin the next week with fantabulous activities for my little friends. While I was planning lessons to reinforce teen numbers, I remembered that Mr. H from Look at My Happy Rainbow had posted a good video showing all the teen numbers. I headed over to youtube and entered the wonderful world of educational videos (some good/some bad) and had a lot of fun browsing around. I came across a few gems and started having visions of using a lot of music and fun tunes next year with my teenie tiny newbie Kinders. I really need to learn how to play the guitar or at least the ukulele so I can be like the Jack Black ala School of Rock.

Take a look at some of the videos I found!

I love the hip hop alphabet the most and I am thinking of getting some fun sun glasses from Oriental Trading so we can get into character when we rock it out!

these...

or maybe these...

I am partial to animal prints!

I think I will also throw some of these into the order

 

Pointing to the words is so much cooler with a martian finger!

Year two of Kindergarten is going to be so much fun! 

I had a conversation with a PM kiddo today about him leaving me for first grade. I asked him if he was sure he didn't just want to stay with me, but he told me he wanted to try something new. Sigh. At least he agreed to come visit me and I sure hope he brings along his awesome hugs. I should probably head to Costco one of these days to get a mondo bulk pack of Kleenex because I sure and going to need them on June 15th!

Short and Sweet

Earlier this week one of my PM girls told me that if I needed her she would be meditating by the backpack hooks....

When asked to share something that makes him special one AM boy responded "Jesus made me."

And then there was my PM kiddo whose morning consisted of putting on his pants.

Kindergartners are just too funny!

I just ordered two more books from the International Reading Association:

The IRA publishes so many great books and I have quite a stack that I have gotten my hands on this year that are still waiting to be read. I would have rather read them than a lot of other things I have read this year, but 13-14 credits a term is pretty demanding in terms of required reading. Throw in book club book each term that I read so I could visit with friends and eat yummy snacks every Tuesday and I am pretty much tapped out in terms of time to spend enjoying good books that will improve my teaching. I am excited to read these two in addition to several others this summer in between sleeping, enjoying lattes in Europe, and relaxing! Oh, and writing a teeny tiny 30 page paper...no biggie. What's über cool is that these books come with DVD's too! They are part of my 'next year I will truly be the best teacher ever and have the most amazing class/activities/lessons/ideas' fantasy that I have every summer.

Tomorrow is Friday, I don't have class this weekend, I am getting a mani/pedi on Saturday, and it has been sunny for two days in a row! 

Life is good :0)

Literal

I have a few boys in my classes that are just all boy... active, loud, testing the boundaries a lot. Their behavior has been up and down all year and they are now earning daily points as a motivator to be good listeners and follow the directions in class. Their behavior has definitely improved, even though there are still rough days, but I have heard from one of our IA's that lunchtime is a struggle.

So, I started bringing my lunch into the cafeteria and sitting with them while they eat.

Since I have two half day sessions, I get an hour and 10 minutes in between the AM and PM. Usually I can be found chatting with my friend/teammate Britta for at least a small portion (ok, sometimes big portion) of that time, but I also use that time to get stuff done and often don't take the time to actually sit down for lunch. Since I found out that some of my little gems have been acting up during that break time, I decided that maybe it would be nice to just go and sit with them and talk to them while they eat. When I only have 30 minutes, I just can't swing eating with kids all that often. It's tough to do that and go straight back to working without any downtime at all. With over an hour, I have some time to spare and it's worth it to spend some of that with kiddos like these guys. I like to throw in a whole lot of talk about expectations while they eat, but I also like to just use the time to be with them and give them attention.

Today, I sat down next to one little guy who has been having a really tough time lately. Making noises, grabbing at other kids, hitting, running, break dancing on the carpet, you name it. I started to talk to him as he sucked his chocolate milk through the straw. I made some small talk and he was pretty quiet.

I asked him how his day had been so far and he didn't say anything.

I asked him if it was a good day and he continued drinking his milk.

So, I asked him what he did after he woke up this morning.

He replied, "I put my pants on."

I kind of chuckled to myself and said, and what did you do after that?

"I put my shirt on."

Of course he did. I don't even know why I asked!

Sunday Solace

Whew. Class Wednesday, class Thursday, class Friday, and class Saturday. Thank goodness I get a day of rest!

I did my practice presentation in class on Friday night and I thought it went pretty well. It was almost twice the time limit, so I definitely need to cut it down, but it was really helpful to run through the entire Power Point and get a chance to practice what I will say for each slide. Now I have more than a month to work on it until I do my actual defense on June 16th. I need to submit the final draft of my paper on June 2nd, so I still have a good amount of time to work with that as well. I had a hard time judging if my presentation was going well as I was doing it, but I got good feedback from the other people in my class. My advisers seemed pretty positive as well, but they can't really say that much since they are going to be evaluating it during the actual defense.

I haven't done any work since I got home yesterday afternoon because I needed a well deserved break, but I did start organizing my stuff and preparing some winter clothes and other stuff to put in storage. I have just about five weeks left in OR before I go back to Germany for the summer, so I am trying to stay organized so that life doesn't get more stressful as the end of the school year gets closer. My entire car is full of stuff to bring to my classroom and to storage. I am going to put my books in my classroom for the summer since there is ample storage room and I know it will stay dry. The storage unit has not had any issues, but there is always the risk of water damage and I just can't have anything happening to my books! It's always hard to decide what stays and what goes, but I am really trying to go with the less is more mentality since I still have some stuff back in Germany that I left behind in August.

In other news, I got a surprise from my very sweet hubs on Friday....

an iPhone! I feel like a walking advertisement for apple! But hey, when you live in a different country than your husband, it's good to have easy access to staying in touch! I am obsessed with Words with Friends and had a fun time playing a virtual game with Mr. Sneaker! :0)

Later on today, I am going to meet up with some friends from my cohort to get some work done (work never ends!) and I have to grocery shop, do laundry and all that fun stuff. I tried to sleep in, but for some reason my body just doesn't let me do that anymore. By 7:30 I am awake and ready for the day.

Updates

It's amazing that I have created a routine to write daily for one of my classes this term, yet I still am averaging about 1 blog post a week because writing typically means working on one of my many homework assignments or papers.....ok, it's more sad than amazing.... I am so looking forward to being in Germany this summer with so much less on my plate! So, here is the latest:

• Hubs told me today that I am going to get a surprise in the mail soon because he is so proud of all my hard work this year. I heart surprises!

• Hubs also told me that he booked our trip to London and we will be there for my birthday in June! I heart my sweet husband and I can't wait to go to London!

• I applied to teach a professional development class within my district. There were several courses listed that they were looking to find teachers for and one on the list was culturally responsive teaching. I am focusing on culturally responsive instruction for most of my doctoral work and my hope is to teach at the university level some day, so I am really excited at the idea of teaching other teachers in my district on a topic that I am really passionate about. I am not sure what the competition will be like to get the position, but there will be interviews two weeks from now.

•  I met with my advisers last week about my core paper and although I still have some work to do, they said I am making good progress so we went ahead and scheduled my defense date! I am set to defend on June 16th, which is the last day of school for everyone but half day Kinder. This weekend I am doing a practice presentation for my cohort which is a great opportunity to get their feedback since almost everyone in the group has already successfully defended. Then I have two weeks to turn in the final draft of my paper and two more weeks after that to refine my presentation. I am taking 1/2 day off tomorrow to work on my presentation and then I am taking the other 1/2 off the day of the presentation. We get one "floating holiday" per year, so that is what I am using mine for. I wish I could use it for something a bit more fun, but it is what it is.

• My kiddos are doing great and I just love them. We are working on reading a lot of non-fiction books and doing some four square writing this week about sea animals just like Kelly did. Some of the kids are impressing me so much with what they can write! It's amazing. I do have several kiddos that are copying words straight from the book, so I am encouraging them to write additional sentences in their own words to add more details to the facts they have copied. This exercise is a struggle for some, but overall I am really happy with how well they are getting information from the non-fiction books. I was lucky to find some fairly simple non-fiction books that are great for beginning readers, but even the more complex ones are working for them. I feel like I am at the library every other day, but that helps them stay engaged with the books in the classroom library.

•  We are also studying butterflies right now, so we have live caterpillars in the classroom that have been busy turning into the pupa stage this week. The kids are so excited to go over and look at the container each day when they arrive. It is just so great for them to be exposed to this process of change and see it right before their eyes. I love how excited they are and how much they are learning just from looking at/reading the butterfly books that I got from the library. 

•  There are less than 40 days until I am back in Germany with hubs! I am actually arriving on his birthday, which is awesome and I am so excited to feel married again!

• I got a latte every single day last week because it was Teacher Appreciation Week and I thought that I deserved a little self appreciation. I also got flowers, chocolates, a candle, Starbucks gift cards (hence all the lattes), a plant, cookies and several very sweet notes and cards from students and their families. I heart teacher appreciation week!

Don't You Talk 'Bout my Mama!

Since Mother's Day is fast approaching, I had my students use a four square organizer to write 4 things they like about their moms (shout out to Britta for the idea!) and they are going to make a letter tomorrow using the 4 square sheet as a plan for what to write.

During my PM class I was circulating around the room, helping kids and encouraging them with their writing. I came across a student who proudly showed me his work, which was an exact replica of the example I gave about things I like about my mom. There is such a fine line between good and thorough modeling and providing the kids something they can just copy. I usually quickly erase my example when I write something to prevent them from just copying, but this time I happened to have left it on the board. That is aside the point though....

I told this child that I wanted him to write what he likes about his mom.

He kind of gave me that blank stare and didn't write anything. I kept trying to encourage him and told him I would give him some thinking time and I would come back and check.

When I returned a few minutes later, he still had not written anything. I crouched down next to him and again tried to ask him what he likes about his mom or what he does with her.

Blank stare.

So, as I often do if I think that maybe a child has not understood the directions or needs a better explanation, I tried asking this child in Spanish to see if that would help.

Um...

Big mistake.

I said, "por qué tu mamá es especial?" and immediately his eyes filled with tears and he began sobbing.

I was so shocked and I felt so horrible, but I honestly still have no idea what set him off.

He has a mom. She is really supportive. He has never cried in school before. I was lost.

I tried so hard to comfort him and ask him if he was ok and what was wrong. I asked him if what I said upset him and he just continued wailing.

WAILING.

yikes.

I patted his back and told him everything was okay and that I really wanted to help him but that I didn't know what was wrong. Eventually after trying really hard to console him without any luck, I told him that I was going to give him some space and I would check back with him.

Eventually he stopped crying, but only after he had cried long and loud enough that I considered calling one of the ELL teachers to just come and talk to him to see if they could make any headway in figuring out what happened. I seriously have not had criers this year and I was freaked out a little bit. I had forgotten what it was like.

I later went back over after he had stopped crying and asked if he was ok. He nodded and seemed like whatever had caused him to become really upset had passed. I apologized to him and told him that if it was something I said that upset him I was very sorry and I didn't mean to upset him.

For the rest of the day he was fine.

Kids can be such puzzles.

I always try to be sensitive to what is going on in kids' lives and obviously something was up today...maybe he missed his mom? I have no idea, but wow, it was pretty intense there for awhile. One other boy who was sitting nearby covered his ears from the loud crying. Two other boys approached my crying friend and tried to soothe him as well. They were really concerned and so sweet. They kept asking me what happened to him, but all I could say was, I really don't know! A few others kiddos did not want to write about their moms. They could not think of anything to say about their moms. I feel lucky because I have a long list of nice things I could say about my mom.

Lesson learned.

Sometimes you really can't talk about other people's mamas!

Theft

On Friday I discovered one of my students trying to steal a Capri Sun that had been on one of my tables. He was dragging his feet as we were heading out to the buses and as I walked back to the end of the line, he was crouched down putting the juice in his backpack. Given a conversation I had recently had with him about sometimes not eating for an entire day (which I honestly don't know is true or not), I felt like there must have been a reason that he was trying to take it, so I asked him.

I explained the difference between taking something without asking, which is called stealing, and asking someone's permission to have something that you want. Despite my instinct to "teach him a lesson" about the wrongs of stealing, I coached him into asking me for the juice and allowed him to have it once he asked because he said he wanted it to drink at home. I care a lot about this kiddo and I see him having difficulties at school with friends and classroom expectations. If he is hungry, I can help with that...so I gave him the juice. I wanted to show him that I care for him more than anything else because I want him to know that I am a person he can trust and I am a person that wants the best for him.

Today I found out from another student that this same kiddo who tried stealing my juice also took some of the play money that was in the cash register in my kitchen area. He was really interested in playing in that area on Friday and when we cleaned up I did notice that some of the play dollars I had put in the register were gone, but I didn't think it was a big deal and thought maybe they had been hidden somewhere in the kitchen cabinets or something. This was before the juice incident, so I didn't really have reason to believe that this particular child would take something that belonged to the classroom.

Now, I realize that within one day, this kiddo stole on two occasions. I am really saddened because I truly want the best for him, yet I can't help but feel stung by the fact that despite my continued support and encouragement, he would still steal from me. I know that his circumstances at home are far different than the life I have been privileged with and his "stealing" might just be curiosity or more likely survival. I don't understand it because I have never been there...I have never experienced what it might be like to not know when my next meal is coming. To me, giving him the juice or letting him have the play money are small tokens in exchange for the happiness or relief it might provide him. I don't think kids just steal for fun--I think there is a reason and I am not condoning it, yet it makes me realize that he has needs that are not being met.

I don't think punishing this child is the right consequence for his actions, yet I wish I knew how to make him understand the damage he has done to trust I had for him. He is still young, so I don't know the best way to go about addressing this issue with him.

Any advice on teaching kids about the consequence of lost trust as a result of stealing without inflicting more negativity on a child who seems to already have enough difficulties in his life? How do you handle stealing in your classroom?