The Best Laid Plans

We had several very fun things planned for Thursday and Friday last week.  There was a formal Christmas dinner and a reading of "The Grinch" planned for Thursday.  On Friday, there were going to be classroom Christmas parties, class trips to Crystal Mountain, and a staff breakfast.

Despite looking forward to all these exciting traditions for the past month or so, you can bet we all loved the sound of Carol's voice Thursday morning as she called to let us know that school had been cancelled.  So, all of a sudden, here we are on Christmas break.

Isn't that what happens to our best-laid plans?  We prepare our lessons, yet we can never know what will actually happen.  We never know if the lesson will work out the way we plan it.  We constantly adjust and modify our plans, everyday, in mid-stream.

So first, take a well-deserved 18 days off, then we'll do our Secret Santa reveal, take a trip to Crystal Mountain, and have a formal dinner sometime in 2013.  We'll figure it out on January 7th.  Merry Christmas and Happy 2013!

Great Things I Noticed This Short Week at Betsie Valley

There was a table set up in the lobby that was full of bright and animated robots created by Mr. Kelly's second graders.

There were 28 beautiful and accurate National Monument projects brought in to Mrs. Vanderlinde's classroom on Monday morning, which were displayed for all to see on Wednesday.

Three separate groups from outside our school contacted Mrs. Sauer, each wishing to donate Christmas presents for entire families.

Ms. Herban's kids collected clothing and hygiene items all this week to donate to BACN as a way to celebrate the holiday season together.

4th and 5th graders, Tyler and Larry, led Mrs. Vanderlinde's 2nd grade class in singing Christmas Carols Tuesday.

After two days of training at TBA-ISD, Mrs. Corey and Mrs. Gramzow are now certified in P-BIT.

And...there are about ten kindergarteners who think my name is MR. GRAPES.

Articles Worth Your Time
3 Characteristics of a Great Teacher - (A Brief Description of Betsie Valley Teaching Staff)

10 Things Teachers Can Do Over Christmas Break - Read it from the bottom to the top if you want realistic ideas :)

This is how our Kindergarteners were learning volleyball skills Wednesday (FUN!):

Short Videos Worth Your Time

Special Holiday Message From State Superintendent Mike Flanagan:

The year 2012 is almost over...Hard to believe! Here's a recap, based on Google searches:

How to wrap a present:

Mrs. Vanderlinde's and Mr. Kelly's 2nd Graders' National Monument Projects: