This week has been interesting.
My little Artful Dodger has, again, been on the deck, inspecting what we have out there . The last time, I was a little taken back to see that his Dad ??? was watching him. Hope we haven't got a Fagin situation developing here...
Had a really funny experience with Taylor and Lori, Taylor's Mum, on Thursday. I told her, Lori, that I was sooooooo going to blog about this one :-)
Every Thursday, I take Taylor to her Karate lesson after school. Then we go back to my place, where Lori picks her up after she's finished work, usually around 7:05 PM.
That's until last Thursday. About 7:15, I get this frantic call from Lori, telling me that she was on her way to pick up Taylor. I started to laugh and asked her, if she'd forgotten her. Apparently she had made it all the way home. Gone to the bathroom and glared at Taylor's clothes lying on the floor and muttered about her child's habits. Came back out into the kitchen and started talking to Taylor's Dad and then had a feeling that she'd forgotten something!!! :-)
I'm sure, that if we are all honest, we have all had experiences like this, especially after a stressful day. My daughter still reminds me of the time that I forgot her and her twin brother, after her netball practice and left them sitting outside the netball courts for about an hour !! So Lori, don't feel so bad. I've done worse ! :-)
The official pupil head count was held, at school on Thursday. As a result, we are now getting another Kindergarten teacher!!! About time too, as trying to teach a class of 30 + kids, many of whom have behaviour problems, do not speak or understand English or have limited knowledge and use of the language and are unable to write their own name or even use a pair of scissors correctly, is an almost impossible task at times, for the poor teachers.
On top of the volunteer work I do in the classroom, I've now been *suckered* into being the volunteer, Volunteer Coordinator. I'm actually quite excited about this, even though it's going to be extra work. I'll be working with the school's Parent Coordinator and she's pretty pumped up about the whole idea as well.
We're intending to put a volunteer training program in place as well as a recruiting drive. We also have plans to train parents in how best to help their kids with homework. What to work with them on, at home, so they can do well in the classroom. Simple things, like writing their name, using scissors the right way, holding a pencil, reading to them, etc. All these things can make a huge difference in teaching time in the classroom.
So I have some questions for you all ....
If you have volunteered at a school, what sort of things have you done? What would you have liked to have training in? Do you have any other suggestions comments?
If you are a teacher, how do you use volunteers in the classroom? What do you wish they were trained to do? What would you like to see in a program aimed at helping parents prepare and help their kids to succeed in the classroom? Any other suggestions or comments?
On to contests...
There are some exciting Giveaways taking place right now....
Those Saucy Ladies at SITS have a CONTEST going on right now for one of these ....
Click on the contest link to get the details. This is something that I could really, really use. Be very useful for school projects, etc !!! I have my fingers and toes very firmly crossed!!
Tiffany , has a Pay It Forward Contest on her personal blog, for one of these ...
Another awesome prize from a totally awesome lady !!! Click on the contest link to get the details, but you better hurry as the contest finishes today. I've been trying to find the time all week to do this post, but life has been a little hectic! I've actually been drooling over photo printers for awhile !
Phewwww ... that was a long post. If you made it to here, congratulation and I'll be back :-)
