Tuesday, September 24, 2013

I Couldn't Have Done It Without You!

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice" 
to the Tuesday Slice of Life sponsored by 

When the school day ends, I hustle to the copy room to finish copying parent handouts for this evening's Curriculum Night.  Then I head out to the hallway to match star connections (a fun activity we used to connect with each other) to student quilt squares.  It takes longer than I expect, and my first set of helping hands arrives as Mr. Reyes, a teacher new to our building, helps me match stars to quilt squares.  Since he taught some of my Superstars in 5th grade, he shares stories from his experiences with them as we finish stapling stars to the bulletin board.  

Then I arrange student folders on desks for my first block of classes.  A few quick more tidying up touches and the clock reads 5:20.  Yikes, I had planned to head home by 5.  I dash home for a quick change of clothes,  and grab some smoked turkey and freshly picked cherry tomatoes for my drive back to school.  After opening my classroom, I step out to brush my teeth and discover that I've locked my keys in the classroom (no pockets in my skirt).  I sprint to Mr. Harrington's room, borrow his keys to open the door, and ask a parent standing in the hall if she'll return the keys for me.  Later in the evening, I discover that my second set of helping hands is Aidan's mom.   More help arrives as Mr. Barone, a fellow teacher and administrative intern for this year, steps into my room and inquires if I need any help.  I hand him pencils to distribute to each desk so that  parents without writing implements can write a quick reply to the student letter in the folder.  Another set of helping hands quickly writes the schedule for the evening on the board for me.  And Pamela's mom has the best teacher handwriting ever!  

These helping hands free mine for the important work of greeting parents at the door and directing them to their student's desk.  The next ninety minutes fly by as I spend it with parents from my two Language Arts/Social Studies blocks.  I talk about what we'll learn this year, how we've worked to build a community in Room 104, and how blessed I feel to have each of their children in my classroom this year.  Our evening is successful because of the helping hands of many people who arrived at just the right moment throughout the afternoon and evening.  Sometime soon my helping hands will receive a thank you note and home-baked treat!     

10 comments:

  1. Love that you paid attention to all of the helping hands. So many in a day that I probably don't even notice as much as I should. Glad you had a wonderful night with parents!

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  2. What a wonderful event with support and mutual respect from your parents. Sadly, that seems to be rare these days. Great that you can embrace it Ramona,
    I'm grinning in the darkness of the early morning. Can you feel it?
    Bonnie

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  3. I love how you're not afraid to ask for help, but more than that I love how people just appear when you need them.

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  4. We always benefit from letting others help. I'm so glad you noticed and enjoyed your helping hands. Maybe next time it will be your hands that are helping someone else! :)

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  5. We can't do it alone, so an extra hand is always appreciated. It sounds like it was a great night for you.

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  6. Such a great sense of community and helping spirits in your post, Ramona.

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  7. Such a great sense of community and helping spirits in your post, Ramona.

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  8. Such a great sense of community and helping spirits in your post, Ramona.

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  9. Isn't it wonderful to be blessed with parents/people who want to help? It seems like more is put on our plate each year and the extra help is such a welcome sight.

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  10. It seems you have some wonderful colleagues and parents this year, Ramona! Parent night is always stressful so those that know that & came to help are certainly ones to be grateful for. Glad it all went so well for you!

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