"My Teacher"

Yesterday, the journal prompt for my first grade class was "Write about your teacher." I knew I was treading on dangerous ground because of two things:  1.First graders are brutally honest and 2. First graders are brutally honest.

Some of the comments I culled from these entries were:

• "She had four kids that now live by themselves. Now she has 19 more kids in her classroom." (An even swap, may I add.)
• "She likes coffee and chocolate." (A reoccurring fact that continued to be mentioned.)
• "She likes to see good reading and good math. She loves to teach." (Oh, yes I do!)
• "She drinks too much coffee." (Hey, kid, you teach 19 six year olds for 8 hours a day and see if you can live by bread alone.)
• "She likes children." (Very much)
• "After school, she likes to grade math." (It is my first choice for after school entertainment, right after sticking myself with sharp objects.)
• "She had kids but they moved away from her."(Only because I do not teach college subjects. They like me, they really like me.)
• "She is a grate teacher. She teachis fun stufe like spelin." (Apparently, not very well...)

And my particular favorite:

• "She is old but she doesn't have a beard." (Yet.)

And then, they decided to illustrate their stories by making pictures of their beloved teacher. If you are reading this blog and have ever wondered how I look, see the picture above. Now you will be able to pick me out at the mall. Or Starbucks where I'm apparently always drinking the coffee and eating the chocolate.

One of my favorite friends from another school, Nurse Connie, has a picture a child made of her years ago. It is basically a circle head pasted onto a triangle body. To quote my friend, "Why do we even bother to dress up if this is the way they see us?!" We laugh, but that picture is still taped to her door, and the little artist is now in college.

They may not see the blush, mascara and highlights, but I know they see our hearts because of comments like these:

• "She likes to teach us. She makes us smart and happy."

Fingers crossed that I will always be successful at that!