Tell me it’s not just my kids’ school that sends home every.single.piece.of.paper they touch at school–then assure me I’m not the only mom who makes a beeline to the recycling bin with the vast majority of the sketches, math workbook pages, and spelling tests. As I was going through the end-of-year avalanche of papers, though, I found gold: illustrated cards from many of the children in Daphne’s 1st-grade class, thanking me for volunteering every Tuesday when they ran (and walked) around the school. (I’ve written about them a few times during the year.) Here are some that made me veer sharply away from the recycling.
Underlined word in 2nd sentence is supposed to be “able.”
All clouds have smiley faces, right?
Sensing a theme? I was an avid (some might say goofy) cheerleader, especially for Charlotte who has enviable endurance and speed.
Peace, flowers, and running. What else do you need?
My favorite one, needless to say.
How sweet! As a teacher, I can tell you that what kids write is from their heart.
As a teacher, I agree…the words of a child, written or not, are genuine and honest…these kids loved you! Who kow,man other mother runner author could be in training…btw, teachers don’t always save all the little treasures we get either…congrats! I could tell each Tuesday they loved having you there!
Those are savers for sure! And no, you’re not the only one who sneaks papers into the recycle bin! I started a scrapbook for ours this year, got about a month into it, and realized that I needed to chuck waaaay more stuff. I mentioned it to a couple of other moms, who looked at each other, and then laughed and said, “you save HOW MUCH STUFF?”. You are not alone!
Very beautiful!
Priceless! I have a small container I keep those precious things in. It helps to look at them when they become teenagers and don’t offer those accolades so freely. Love them!
Sarah, you are so not alone. I have received just about every piece of paper my son has written on, looked at, thought about….SO MUCH PAPER! I have to wait until after bedtime to recycle it though because he gets made when I toss it. But if I wait until after bedtime, there are no arguments and he has forgotten all about it by morning.
i just love that kids can say things straight from their heart
LOVE IT!
Very cool!!! Thanks for sharing!
Yep, those are keepers! Most everything else goes in the recycle bin, and the few that I do save, I often scan into my computer and THEN put in the recycle bin…hate all that clutter!
Love those notes!
And that, ladies, is what you call work/life balance. Way to go, Sarah!
Gotta love them! Being there to help those kids run will be one of the best things you’ve ever done in your life. You’ve taught them way more than just running.
I still remember my childhood soccer teams with fondness.
Way to inspire the next generation!
So sweet! I have no doubt that was a part of the day that those kids (and the teacher!) probably looked forward to the most. What a great way to build community! And as for the papers – I often recycle a ton of worksheets/scratch paper/homework in the classroom (or next door if I don’t want the kids to find them!) but I also send plenty home. I always have a few kids who say “Can I just throw this away? My mom’s just going to throw it away as soon as I get home anyway!”
I just love the phonetic spelling at that age- somehow it is a little sad when they can spell everything correctly- the interesting ways they make the letters say what they hear is priceless. “Vallentear” is a good one- sometimes we get volun-tears from the happiness we feel when we see the difference we can make. Yup, its a keeper.
Thank Goodness someone does that too! My ‘papers’ gather in the side pocket of the car door and every time I put gas in the car, I grab the big bunch, sort through them and toss 98% of them. Every now and then, we find a few pieces of gold. But a blank piece of paper with a line of crayon across it. Really?
Love this post. When my daughter first started school, I felt obligated to keep everything. I would feel guilty if I threw something out. My mom threw all of my stuff away, so I guess that’s why I felt the need to keep it. Now that she is older I go through everything and only keep the good ones. :)
I do toss a lot of the papers but I keep the special ones! My cube is totally decorated in my daughter’s drawings – she loves rainbows. :-)