Monday, October 12, 2026
I went to work today, which felt as foreign as anything could. I was working for someone who is really good at her job, so that makes the job feel easy, knowing my plans would be so well prepared, but also a bit intimidating, because maybe the kids would notice I was lame by comparison. If that gets too far into your (my) head, I just have to remember elementary kids don’t really ever think that way. Yay, kids!
Being in the library means (possibly) having every grade level in one day. The schedule today started with 5, then 4, then 3, then 2, then K.
Fifth graders are not my favorite, because they are eye rollers. They tend to not be much interested in substitute teachers and think you are wasting their time. Luckily, our lesson today was on challenging (as in debating or battling, not mean like the math bonus questions) stereotypes. They wanted to just chitchat (oh, no! Do they already know about what is being graded and what is not? Augh), but I could do a pretty good stand-up routine on stereotypes, so I got ’em and we survived with no casualties.
Fourth graders are pretty good. I got some performers – rolling on the floor (we were on the carpet in front of the smart board – they weren’t falling out of chairs) and repeatedly saying they liked my underwear, but nothing too bothersome. There were a lot of raised hands, then the questions started with, “Do you know that…” I did not mention that yes, I really probably did know that and that wasn’t the kind of question I was looking for.
Third graders are the jewels of elementary school. They are happy to welcome me to their school and willing to do anything to make the day go well. They answer questions seriously. They worry if they aren’t getting their work done. And they are funny! They say, “I like your gold shoes; I have a banana for lunch,” or “She isn’t here today because she got into it with the woodchips and that’s just not okay.”
Second graders are really cute. Their moms still get a lot of say over how they dress. One boy had on a camp shirt with s’mores on it. I wanted one for Keith. Three girls were dressed in tulle skirted dresses. This is my kind of fashion. They want to be good for you, but somehow they find themselves 10 feet off the carpet, wondering how they got there. There was a run on going to the bathroom, because once someone is granted the magical ability to go down the hall alone, everyone wants to. Class is only 30 minutes, so there is a finite number that can go, one by one, so it works out.
And finally, kinders. Oh my. Kindergarten teachers are born, not made. They are wizards. I was in such a good mood by the time they showed up late in the afternoon, that the bingbongzippitytowntimes didn’t bother me at all. You just cannot begin to fathom what it is to have 24 kindergarteners (24! Twenty-four is sooooo many tiny people. I swear the max class size for Benjamin was 18, and that came with a full-time paraprofessional. Oh, those were the days) sitting on colored dots on the floor, holding iPads. IPads that they just got. It is like 360degree whack-a-mole with the most nonsensical questions and some crying for no reason. At one point, they had to find their own name on the corner of the screen and push that button. SO HARD. I asked each of the freaker-outers if they knew their name and every.single.one. stopped to consider it before saying yes. Given a one-to-one direction, everyone found it. I did have two boys that were determined to kick and then chase each other. It was so bad that the media clerk popped over to wrangle them.
Thank the universe for Stephanie, the media clerk!!
Over the weekend, I wondered why I was going to work (other than the person I was subbing for called and asked me to) and thought about going to sleep at a reasonable time and getting UP in the dark morning. No wonderings anymore. I had so much fun. Yay.
I didn’t take a picture today, so the POTD is Sophie.