First week of school

Well, I survived the first week of school. It was great! I have 19 4th graders who seem to be pretty good kids.
They are enthusiastic about school, and that is half the battle these days, my friends. It's so nice that they can already write, read, and take care of their own bodily functions (remember that I had to teach blowing the nose lessons last year!). I really think that I am going to be very happy. I am involved in two projects this year... teaching a unit for the University of Berkley involving science and literature on planets and moons AND a program called "In2Books" that sends the kids books to read and gives them an adult pen pal who also reads the book and writes letters to them about it. Kind of like a literature circle from afar. I am really excited about this. It is a great concept, and the kids get to keep the books that they send.
4th grade is also nice because they enjoy a variety of types of books. I read SkippyJonJones in the Doghouse to them which is a picture book on Friday. They howled! I like to make the voices of the characters, and it was so much fun to listen to them enjoy the story. I think it is shaping up to be a great year......but you all know what is likely to happen, and that makes me a little sad!