Monday, January 10, 2011

Old Things In A New Home

No school today.  Snow day.  The Superintendent said that since members of FEMA, dignitaries, and press were coming from a couple of hours away for our ribbon cutting ceremony, that he would have to make the decision to call off school the night before.  Those people needed warning.  There is some disappointment, but the ceremony will be held on whatever day is our first day in our new building.

In the meantime, a few more pictures from my room.
The cabinetry not only provided needed storage, but also gave some additional room to decorate.  Mine is full of a lot of things I love, from people that I love.
The literature books were Dad's from his teaching career.  As a kid when I would run out of reading material from the library, I would read short stories and plays from Dad's textbooks.  "Our Town" was a great find!  As he was cleaning house, he gave them to me.  They are great reference books, and I still love them! 

The school house with "slate" roof was Mom's.  She taught elementary school, and a student gave it to her.  The roof can be removed for storage.  After she died, I inherited quite a few of the gifts that her students had given to her.  It is nice to have a place to share them now. 
The little girl in that poster could easily have been either K or L at that age.  I've always loved it.  I think it was in K's room, and I rescued it when she was cleaning out her old things.

As for the football helmet, it was a gift to the Mr. when he retired from coaching at Tiny Town High. The football equipment manager purchased it and presented it to him at his retirement. The Mr.'s nephews used to love to put it on and wear it around the house.  It has always been cherished, and he was nice enough to let me display it.  I like it because it is like a part of him is still teaching and coaching at Tiny Town High.

Besides those things, there are a couple of stuffed animals.  One is a bear mascot of Tiny Town High that L won in a drawing.  The other is a duck that quacks "Old McDonald."  I can't tell you how much fun a couple of my colleagues and I had with that duck through the years.  As he was dying, he used to quack at random times in our faculty lounge.  Someone would always say, "Careful.  The duck is watching--and he'll talk."  When I had my stroke, the duck was delivered to my house. I returned the duck, when I returned to school.  Then, I rescued him after the tornado.  Hopefully, this will be his permanent home.

It is a brand new room, but it still has a lot of old memories in it.  I like that.  And I can't wait to share it with my students!  Maybe tomorrow!!

8 comments:

Mary said...

Guess I should've read your post before I asked if you were out today! What a nice blend of the old and the new in your room.

Puna said...

How ironic since your school was just reopened that there would be a snow day! It looks lovely. I'm so happy for you and for your students. They are lucky to have a teacher that cares so much!

Mrs. E said...

As one of my colleagues pointed out, Mother Nature started this whole thing--so it is only appropriate that she is having her say today, too!

Katie (Can't Get There) said...

I love how "homey" it looks already! I always learned better in classrooms that looked like they were loved, as opposed to the ones without any personality. Your students will love it!

Heidi said...

Happy for you!

Sharon Rose said...

Hi Mrs. E.

I just stopped in to visit after meeting you at my place.

The room looks great. I love how you have placed items of comfort and those you love around you!

That gives students a sense that you are a real person. At least it did for me.

I'll be back to see ya. Oh, and for the record, I am not an expert on grammar. So, please be gentle when grading as I work through this challenge!

kbrenz said...

I am loving the Dan Quisenberry bobblehead! Go Royals!

Kim said...

I love the blend of old and new. Having old things in your new "digs" will make it like home for you AND your students. I'm so happy for all of you!