Two more days until the kids come to class. This week has been nice. I have been working in my room to get it to where I want it and I have had some time to get my head around my new world. On Tuesday we had Back to School night and it was great to see some of the kids that I will have in my class. Out of 15 kids I saw 6 or so. They are so cute and just what I needed to remind me of why I wanted to do this. They love my room with the blocks, and kitchen. School started for 1st - 8th last Wednesday, I am soooo happy that we start a week later. This extra week is exactly what I needed. I have been assessing kids on their knowledge of numbers, counting, the ABCs and their reading ability. It is as I guessed they are all pretty low. With the exception of a few kids that have had preschool and parents that help them to practice and learn at home. It ingrained in my head the importance of PreSchool. I am a firm believer in Preschool. Now I have some proof of the effectiveness of Preschool. These kidos that come in knowing their ABCs are ready to begin to read those that do not have some catching up to do. The good thing about this is that the growth for these kids should be substantial. I had one kid so far that cried and ran out of the room. I was asking him to write his name, he cried "Mama" then ran for the door. I could not catch him, nor did I speak Spanish so I was unable to console him. I felt pretty bad about it. Last year they say they had a runner and had to have people by the door just in case, they are fast for sure. Other than that it has gone pretty well. I love that I get to meet each child one on one prior to getting them all in class. I am feeling a little bit more relaxed and excited now. The room is coming together, the kids are so sweet and I am getting to plan some. School starts for me on Wednesday the 12th. I will post some photos on Tuesday once I am set up and cleaned up. I will be ready :) Bring on the kids!!
Also, it was AWESOME, Western Union Foundation had some left over backpacks-stuffed withe supplies and they contacted me to see if my school would like them. They were so happy to get them plus we got a lot of empty WU back packs for the kids that needed them. I was so great and my most sincere Thanks! goto WU for their generosity.
