26 kids

My class makes me happy.

WARNING: extremely long post below. This post is more for me to look back on in the future. I've had it in mind and ready for a long time.

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I get to spend a lot of time with 26 great kids. They're my favorite class so far! Here are the reasons why they make me happy. Since I can't refer to them by name (privacy), we'll go with their class number.

#1- She's my favorite! #1 is so good with our class pets. She can grab a bird and clean the fish bowl without being scared or grossed out. She was extremely shy at the beginning of the year and has come out of her shell to be a riot!

#2- He's my favorite too! He has a darling face and is always responsible. He is a pro at cleaning out the bird cage and has improved in his writing skills 10-fold. He is very athletic and talented. He and #10 are bound to get me out every time I play in a dodgeball game.

#3- She is the type of girl who spends most of the day laughing. She has such a good attitude and finds everything funny. She constantly raises her hand to participate and is very detailed in all that she does. She can perform "Party in the USA" in sign language too...which makes her another one of my favorites!

#4- He has come a long way this year! Participating has always been his strength, but listening to directions has not. I am amazed how kids, like him, can rise to expectations! One thing I love about him is his determination to be the first one to finish all of "Miss Fisher's Favorite Books." (which he did!)

#5- She is such a cute girl. #5 is incredibly smart and wears killer-red boots to school that I love. She's been absent a lot lately and I'm concerned about her. She has a cute smile and loves to talk to me out on the playground. I'll take a conversation with her any day!

#6- He's an interesting one...his goal in life is to become a future American Idol winner (which I have every confidence that he just might!) He's a great singer and is one of my most creative students. I love calling on him for responses because they are always unique. Additionally, his stubbornness is almost endearing.

#7- Another favorite! This little boy's feet still dangle from his chair and I think he is adorable! Not to mention his camouflage fleece outfit he regularly wears. He comes from hard circumstances and definitely makes the best out of everything. He's one of my Harry Potter groupies and has been plugging away at those books all year long.

#8- Ah...yet another favorite. This kid is nothing short of great! He's super respectful and has a darling face. He's fun to tease and is pretty gullible. I love his mom, who comes in to help every week, and he's great at participating in everything! (I can't wait to see #8 line-dance when I teach that in PE!)

#9- The favorites just keep coming! From day 1, I loved this girl. She brought me a wooden spider with movable legs that I keep hung in my classroom. She's from a family with 10 (or more) kids and is mature beyond her years (in good ways!). She's focused on what's important and is so sweet. I look forward to our daily interactions and just love her!

#10- He's my favorite. I had his sister last year and didn't think I could ever like him as much as I liked her...boy was I wrong! I like him even better! He has got be the MOST ORGANIZED boy that has ever been in 5th grade. When I need something important done "right" he's the guy to get it done. Not to mention his incredible athletic skills, respectful nature, and his HUGE grin. These are just a few of the reasons I share my orange with #10, if I have one for lunch.

#11- You should see this kid's iMovie skills! He took it and made it his own (which is what he always does). #11 is new to our school this year and struggled a lot at the beginning of the year with everything. You would never be able to pick him out now! He's made friends (great ones), loves coming to school and cracks up at the drop of a dime. I'm so proud of his progress!

#12- She's my favorite... This girl rocks the brown-nosing! She's super organized, responsible, and respectful. One of the reasons I love her is because she loves softball and talks to me about it all.the.time. She loves to help out and is one of the best board cleaners I have ever seen. #12 even calls my classroom and leaves me messages while we are off-track.

#13- This boy comes from the hardest family situation I have this year. He comes to school and tries his very best. I love that he is happy while he's at school and his little personality makes me grin! While he struggles with being prepared, I love our after-school talks and visiting with his younger brother and sister while they wait for him.

#14- I love this student, he melts my heart. He is everything you'd ever want in a kid. Respectful and smart. Kind and funny. Strong and confident. However, he does have one flaw: #14 roots for the U. He wore red the entire week after they beat BYU and loves giving me a hard time. I love giving him paragraph writing assignments on how great BYU football is. He understands sarcasm and sets the standard high in just about every area. #14 is my favorite!

#15- Another favorite that is so sweet! This girl's quiet voice makes you want to tune everything out whenever she speaks. #15 is incredibly smart, nice, and talented. She's gaining more confidence lately and I love the moments when her crazy-fun personality comes out during conversations with me and #3 during lunch and recess! Yes, she too can perform "Party in the USA" in sign language.

#16- This girl has a laugh that is so distinctive and contagious. We'll do anything to get her going. She struggles with listening, but I enjoy all the time we spend together at the back table during math (she probably comes for the cookies, but the help she gets is the best part!) I am impressed at how athletic she is and am proud of her improvements lately!

#17- Oh, #17. He tried giving me a run-for-my-money the first two weeks of school but soon learned that wasn't how it was going to work. He and I get along great now and his personality is quite endearing. He's a bright boy with lots of potential and he puts it to use. He asks distracting questions (purposefully) and I let him. He frequently can be found in the lunchroom checking his new braces out with a metal spoon. Yep, he's my favorite!

#18- She's my favorite! Her quiet nature may just be a facade--she's totally witty and fun. Her spelling skills can wipe anyone out of the water. She is always worried about other kids (i hope she doesn't get an ulcer) being nice and is really sweet. I love her willingness to do jobs for me and the fact that she does a dang good job at anything.

#19- I was a little emotional at her parent-teacher-conference. I do not want this girl to leave my class in a few months. She is my favorite! She has the cutest disposition of any 5th grade girl I have ever known. She works hard and tries even harder. She is soft-spoken and humble-yet powerful. #19's fashion sense is well beyond that of a 10 year old. I just love her.

#20- I love how far this girl has come! Somedays I have to pick my battles with her, but we understand each other on a level where she has been successful this year. She astounds me with the number of books she has read just since January! If I were to let her read all day every day, I would be her hero. My heart is full of love for #20 and I'm glad she's in my class.

#21- He is adorable. #21 tries to be the class clown and sometimes gets away with it. He'll do anything to get me to laugh and boy does he love to tell stories! I'm often found at the end of the line with him listening to one of them. His occasional fake accents make school even better and the ways he tries to persuade me are pretty convincing. You guessed it, he's my favorite!

#22- I have never known a 5th grader to be so punctual. This kid has never forgotten when to leave for speech, math, etc. He is always on-the-ball when it comes to time. He struggles academically but is one of the kindest boys in class. He has a lot of friends and is willing to be anyone's partner no matter what the project/assignment is. I just love the way he scrunches up his face every now and then too!

#23- Ok. Maybe #7 doesn't have the hardest home life now that I think of it. I think this kid does. He miraculously deals with it in an impressive way. This even-tempered, hilarious kid truly makes a difference in our classroom. He's that quiet-type that doesn't always say much, but when he does it's profound or hilarious. What a sweet kid.

#24-What a cute girl! This girl moved in 1/2 way through the year and boy, we're glad she did. Not only is she bright, she's quite innovative too. Her efforts with everything are always above-and-beyond. There are times when she knows she's above average and she acts like it, and others when it goes right-over-her-head (i prefer it this way). Her smile is darling and I love what she adds to our class.

#25-This boy is from South Africa! Need I say more? He's actually a year older than everyone else-which I think is interesting. This helps him understand things quicker and although it bugs me at times, he's pretty bright. He's currently working on a renewable energy project just cuz he wants to. Yes, he does bring dance shoes to school and practices on the playground. His little "lion king" face is adorable. (Not sure how to explain the face thing, it may be just because he's from africa).

#26- We call this girl "fun size." She has got to be the smallest and cutest girl in the whole 5th grade. She can do crazy-awesome gymnastic tricks (which i let her in class once) and has been dancing almost all of her life. I have been officially invited to her solo performance (which is a HUGE deal) in May. She's so cute and her smile is adorable. I love her, she's my favorite!

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Yeah, I have more than 1 favorite. I love them all and they make me happy.