Conundrums

As I posted earlier, I love snow a lot. However, it's presented a little bit of a problem because another thing that I like a lot is outside recess. Open fresh air where a kid can run and scream to his or her little heart's content. And at my school, we don't go outside when there is snow on the ground. Therefore, we've basically been inside since December 1st. Great for me the snow lover; not so great for pent up five year old energy.

Student 1: Um, where's jelly from? Does jelly come from jellyfish?
Me: No, it's made out of berries like strawberries or raspberries.
Student 2: Or grapes!
Student 1: Oh, okay.

Full moons. Seriously. It's true. Ask anyone who works with large groups of children. Full moons make kids act out. They get in fights. They shout. They argue. They bug each other to death. It's totally weird. No way around it.

We didn't have school on Monday because of President's day and I had forgotten how great a 3 day weekend followed by a 4 day week feels. We haven't had one this year since we cancelled all our holidays, and it was much more appreciated than usual. You never know what you've got until it's gone.

My kids are LOUD. I could write this entire post in caps lock and you still wouldn't understand how loud they are. My noise tolerance is probably too high because most of the time I can let it go but the last 2 weeks have started to get to me. Maybe it was the 3 months of inside recess or the full moon but whatever it was I'm glad we've moved past it. I changed up the seating chart and while they take another week to get used to sitting with new people, I'm going to enjoy the moments of less shouting. Less shouting my name. Less shouting at each other. Less shouting at me. Maybe while we aren't shouting, I'll make a big deal of it and we can stop shouting all together. That would probably make the 1st grade teachers happy.

I have two girls who usually like to be friends but also drive each other crazy which in turns drives me crazy. They tattle all day long for "bothering" one another. Looking at each other. Being too close to one another. Then, they are friends. Then, they hate each other. Then, they are never coming back to school. Then, they love me. Then, they're sharing. Then, they're fighting. Then, they're best friends. Please just leave me out of it.

My best "tattle" of the year?
Student: He's going to tattle on me!!
Me: So you are going to tattle on him for tattling on you?
Student: Yes
Me: Go away.

Sometimes, I appreciate the tattling because it's something that needs to be stopped, disciplined, or investigated. Most of the time, I just wish I had ear muffs. Can we go outside now??