Five Words

A first grader's favorite thing to say is "STOP!" but it comes out in a long whiny shrill that rings above the voices in the classroom. It is the same every year - two kids get into a little tizzy and one of them yells "StoOoOoP!!!!!!" at the top of their lungs. This is why I am always so grateful when the "Kelso's Choices" counselor lesson makes its way to the first grade hall, complete with a poster to hang and refer to. This word is still heard throughout the year, but Kelso does help a tad!

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Meet Kendall. She's a spunky, adorable, almost seven year old and she likes the word "prechis" (precious). She said "it's so nice to be cute" and she sure is! I have a shirt that says "Throw Kindness Like It's Confetti" which I made with my Silhouette (Yay!!). Kendall found a shirt while out shopping and told her mom that she had to by it since it was a "Ms. Stephens Shirt"

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This girl. She has blown my mind this year! She is a self starter, motivated learner, and is always having mindful moments with herself to give herself a little pep talk! She even has a plan to open a boutique when she gets older, complete with a plan for the type of clothes she will sell, the type of client she is marketing to, a,d a business plan for how to expand her stores. I mean WOW. and she has stuck to it too. She taught herself how to get on Google Drive and share documents with me, and she does this often. She sent me a random "Have a good day" powerpoint slide one day - and it came right at the best time to remind me why I do what I do. She even made herself a behavior chart and asked me to print it out so that she could work on some things throughout the day. When I asked my class what their favorite words were she said "mustache - because who doesn't like a funny mustache?!" and chuckled to herself. I just love her spirit - and I just had to share her with you. 

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If you follow The Caffeinated Counselor , then you have met Lily before. She is one of a kind, and really should have a series of children's books written with her as the star! (She does kind of remind me of Kevin Henke's Lilly as a matter of fact.) She is actually quite brilliant, but sometimes gets all mixed up in that head of hers with "what-ifs" of glorious proportions. I was interested to hear what her favorite words were, but to be honest, I was initially let down when she responded with the word "line". "Why line?" I asked, and she said "Well Ms. Stephens....lines are everywhere, I mean you can find them EVERYWHERE...of course it's my favorite!" and her assurance was all I needed. I mean she is right....they are everywhere...and her commitment convinced me that this word should be in my top five!

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I cannot tell you how many of my first graders wrote "love" as one of their favorite words. It never ceases to amaze me how innocent and caring kiddos are in these first few years of school, and this innocence is what makes me come back to First Grade year after year. It takes love to push through the whining, tattling, and messy classrooms, and that is exactly what keeps me going. I love my little ones and I am so fortunate to have their examples of innocence in my classroom each day to bring me back to life. Sometimes you get wrapped up in the little "adult" things, and forget to just stop and feel the love. 

Some reasons why First Graders like the word "love":

• "It is just nice to say"
• "It's like a heart and hearts are pretty"
• "Because it makes you feel good"
• "Because it's what you like and what you do"
• "Because it's nice and cute and cozy"