We made it!

Back in January the day before I started teaching, I only somewhat jokingly said I hoped that in June I could say we'd made it out alive... Well, today my kids graduated, so I guess that means we did it!

I don’t know that I could ever really describe what this first semester of teaching has been like. The first month was HARD. As I’ve said before, I took over for another teacher and that’s never easy… In the beginning, I was reminded daily that I just didn’t do it right! By about mid-February, we started to figure it out together and at some point in March, I remember telling myself that we were having more good days than bad. This semester has flown by and I can’t believe it’s over! They were a diverse bunch and I learned so much from them, so much more than I ever taught them.

Some pictures from our time together...

 Cochabamba is in a valley, and the view of the mountains is so pretty from school!

 I probably shouldn't post this, but a few months ago, we were learning about the weather. One page in our book had this blank picture and the kids had to draw appropriate clothing for hot and cold weather. This little girl left NOTHING to the imagination in her hot weather picture!

 I think I may have blogged about Murphy el Dinosaurio awhile ago. Before we started our dinosaur unit, I bought this little plastic dinosaur and made an egg for him. He hatched while we were at recess, and when the kids came back in, they named him Murphy. Most of them forgot about him after a couple days but one of my kids was OBSESSED with Murphy. She asked about him multiple times a day and was constantly wanting to be near him.

 In April, kindergarten participated in the Science Fair. We put the kids into groups and each had a topic about plants. They all brought in supplies for our posters and each had a sentence or two to speak at the presentation. They did so well!

 Several of my kids took home a behavior chart every day... Good or bad behavior, it didn't matter. On days the class as a whole was especially wild, I'd write "Behavior Chart" on the board and they knew if their name was written down, they'd take one too. My most difficult child loved "helping" write it on the board some days. This was her first attempt. She understands so much English but prefers not to speak it, so I was impressed with her attempt- Bihevo Ch

 I didn't always eat a snack at the same time as the kids, and they always worried that I would be hungry. If I didn't eat at the same time, I had several that would always offer me part of their snack. Sometimes I'd leave the room for a few minutes and when I came back, I'd find a little pile of snacks on my desk!

The kids loved learning about healthy eating and taking care of our bodies. I saw this idea on Pinterest and they really enjoyed it! You have to fill up your plate with foods of every color of the rainbow if you want to be healthy. We did a few examples together and then they each colored their own healthy food.

 Graduation must be soon! Signing the first set of diplomas...

 Graduation day with our two amazing kinder assistants!

One of my student's parents sent this to me... We received beautiful flowers and gifts from our class during the graduation!

I have many more cute pictures of the kids during graduation but I can't post any pictures of them. Imagine a big group of cute Bolivian kids in tiny caps and gowns! It was a short but sweet ceremony... and now they're off to 1st grade!