Our First Friday of Firsts

As teachers, we always need to read our students; this can be a difficult task sometimes. On our first Friday of school, however, we were all open books: everyone, teachers included, was exhausted from the speedboat that was the first week of classes. TGIF!

So why not raffle off a book at the beginning of class? Why? Why not? Just for fun. And I just so happened to have two rolls or raffle tickets in my props closet (center of photo). It turned out to be a serendipitous and enjoyable few minutes of expectation and surprise. Everyone waited with baited breath for me to read the last two numbers of the ticket I'd selected..........5.........8.......Henry (though his first name is George) won and received a book I'd pulled spontaneously from my shelves: the original Curious George. One of his classmates exclaimed, "His name is George!" He asked what he was supposed to do with it. "Keep it. You won." "Forever?" "Yes. Have you read it before?" "No." "Really?" Another classmate yelled, "Read it to us! Teacher-style." So George read George...at least the first few pages...teacher-style. Made my day. And it was only first period :)

Before we got down to business, which was preparing presentations for next week on their summer reading books, we filed out of the building, silently in single file, to the lawn where we'd begun our week with 500 collective push-ups. I told them that we were going to do 600 push-ups this time. A few sighs and groans, then the majority of them hit the ground and completed their 32 individual push-ups. A few took a little longer than others, but that was okay. One who had done none on Monday did...TWO! Three of her classmates picked up the slack and did ten more each. We've already upped the ante! Next week: 700??

I think we're building a culture of R.A.F.T.ing together: of growing together, recognizing our differences and our strengths, of picking up the slack, of encouraging each other, of knowing when to have fun and knowing when to buckle down. However exhausted I might have been when I stepped in the doors on Friday morning, this class re-energized me and has me looking forward even more to the weeks and months ahead.