I absolutely loved fifth grade! Not only was I a "top dog" in the school, but I genuinely enjoyed my class/teacher. I had Mrs. Garvin, one of the sweetest people I have ever met.
I actually liked to learn things in elementary school. And as per usual with the quiet kid who likes to learn, I was a teacher's pet with pretty much all of my teachers, including Mrs. Garvin. I would volunteer for anything "behind the scenes" she needed help with (as I was very shy).
One of my favorite things from this year was the colonial times week the entire 5th grade participated in. Every class had a different area of the country (or something like that) that they had to interpret/act out for the other classrooms. We spent part of every day visiting each classroom and learning about different lifestyles of Americans back then. Besides my own classroom, I can remember Mr. Franklin's class acting out (I hope this is right) the Boston Tea Party. They built a ship right there in the middle of their classroom and acted out the event that took place. As one of their food items, I remember trying sauerkraut for the first time, it was awful. It's pungent odor loomed the hall for days. In my classroom, we had several stations set up where the lives of our people were brought to life. I played a woman who sat in a rocking chair and sewed (pretended to, anyway) this cloth using a wooden embroidery hoop. I had several lines that I had to memorize and say as each class came to visit. My shyness made me a nervous wreck that day. I can remember feeling that anxiety of having to speak in front of my peers. I'm telling you, my anxiety was unbearable when I was a kid. I may have had some kind of social or anxiety disorder. Who knows?
This is the year that the girls and boys were split up and taught about our "changing bodies". I remember this discussion - lecture, rather - being a shock. My body is going to do WHAT? I thought to myself. I was not okay with that. Also, I was a little confused as to how it all worked. Whatever the case, I didn't see the big change for a few years, so I was okay. A girl in my class, on the other hand, had been dealing with her "girly problems" for about a year at this point. How sad!
I do believe that 5th grade was the year Taylor, Sydney, and I played "wolf" almost everyday at recess. (Or maybe it was just at SOAR recess.) Anyway, Sydney - a black girl - was the wolf and Tay and I had to chase her when she "escaped" from her "cage". The cage was just this huge hole in the side of a hill. It was one of the most fun things I played at recess but looking back, it's rather weird. ha
Movies seen in theater: 43
DvDs bought: 70
Showing posts with label the wonder years. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the wonder years. Show all posts
Monday, August 08, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
The Wonder Years: Fourth Grade.
To be honest, I don't remember much about fourth grade. It's like I blocked that entire school year from my mind.
Well, I do remember I had Mrs. Henderson (I think that was her name... that could be the name of a teacher I had in middle school... not sure) and that this was the year we started CCC Lab. I actually enjoyed it because we got to learn things on the computer. One lesson that sticks out in my mind is the use of levers when trying to hoist something into the air. Part of the lesson on the computer, I helped "build a pyramid."
This was the year that I started wearing a bra. I was so unhappy with my mom for making me wear one. She tricked me and Ash one day by taking us shopping for clothes, but she really planned to make us try on a buy our first bra. I was humiliated. I felt like everyone could tell I was wearing one and got so embarrassed. Eventually I got over it because all of my other friends started wearing them too. I suppose it was just awkward because it meant my body was changing and that meant that people would notice and I would be different. I just wanted to blend in.
I could be wrong, but this may also be the year I started shaving my legs. Mom would make Ash and I wear panty hose to church sometimes and I remember one day looking at my legs with those horrid things on them and seeing little blond hairs sticking through in a few random places. I didn't like how it did that and I didn't like that those awful tights made me itch because of the hair, so Mom finally taught me to shave. Well, I say taught me but she actually shaved my legs for me for a while.
That's about as much as I can remember from that year at school... guess I just wasn't too impressed about fourth grade.
Movies seen in theater: 34
DvDs bought: 62
Well, I do remember I had Mrs. Henderson (I think that was her name... that could be the name of a teacher I had in middle school... not sure) and that this was the year we started CCC Lab. I actually enjoyed it because we got to learn things on the computer. One lesson that sticks out in my mind is the use of levers when trying to hoist something into the air. Part of the lesson on the computer, I helped "build a pyramid."
This was the year that I started wearing a bra. I was so unhappy with my mom for making me wear one. She tricked me and Ash one day by taking us shopping for clothes, but she really planned to make us try on a buy our first bra. I was humiliated. I felt like everyone could tell I was wearing one and got so embarrassed. Eventually I got over it because all of my other friends started wearing them too. I suppose it was just awkward because it meant my body was changing and that meant that people would notice and I would be different. I just wanted to blend in.
I could be wrong, but this may also be the year I started shaving my legs. Mom would make Ash and I wear panty hose to church sometimes and I remember one day looking at my legs with those horrid things on them and seeing little blond hairs sticking through in a few random places. I didn't like how it did that and I didn't like that those awful tights made me itch because of the hair, so Mom finally taught me to shave. Well, I say taught me but she actually shaved my legs for me for a while.
That's about as much as I can remember from that year at school... guess I just wasn't too impressed about fourth grade.
Movies seen in theater: 34
DvDs bought: 62
Thursday, May 05, 2011
The Wonder Years: Third Grade.
I was 8 years old in 1997 when I became a third grader*. Mrs. Scicchitano was the teacher of my class. She always reminded me a little of Mrs. Frizzle, even down to the redness of the hair. I really liked that about her.
For our very first spelling test, our bonus words list included our teacher's last name... that is how I can still remember it today. So yes, Scicchitano** is really her last name.
This is the year Taylor Staten, Ashley Hebert, and I became close friends. We worked on projects together when we could. One in particular was the solar system project. We had decided to make the solar system from styrofoam balls, complete with glitter, of course. I remember when we were in class working on it, we stayed towards the front left corner of the class, separating ourself from the others so they could not see our masterpiece. Also, we sort of used the table that was up there and a couple other objects as a shield. We didn't want our project leaked. We ended up having to work on it outside of the classroom as well. Tay and I went to Ashley's house after school with her one day. Ashley's family had a very long truck... I'm talking three doors on each side and a truck bed. It was exciting to ride in. Anyway, we worked on the project in her bedroom, more specifically, on this rug she had in the floor. When we were finished with the project, there was so much glitter on that rug that there would still be glitter stuck to it today if she still had it. It was nuts.
Third grade is the year you are able to start the SOAR class if you test into it. (I think it was a test that was the deciding factor.) Anyway, it was a "gifted" class we went to once a week. I have been trying to remember the subjects we studied and the things we did in each grade specifically, but I have them jumbled. I will devote a post later on to the things we did in SOAR as a whole.
I remember one time, Tay and I had some work to make up that we missed while we were in SOAR so we decided to stay in at recess to do it. Mrs. Scicchitano allowed us to stay in without supervision. For some reason, we chose to keep the lights turned off, leaving only the sun to light the room. We sat side by side at a pair of desks that faced the vastness of the room, our backs to the filing cabinets. It was about ten minutes after we started working that we suddenly felt something... a kind of presence behind us, in that small opening between us and the cabinets. Needless to say, we left our work for later and high tailed it out of there.
Once, we were to do a report choosing whichever animal we wanted and stemming from the year before, I chose polar bears. Again. I'm telling you, they were my favorite! (That, along with whales.)
A project that my class partook in was the building of our very own homemade cooler. Dad, of course helped*** me with mine. We had a competition in class to see whose cooler would work best. We were each given a large piece of ice, put it in our cooler, and waited. Mine was one of the last ones to melt, though I think one or two kids had me beat. But still, I was proud of the cooler my dad made. He is a genius.****
The rest of my memories are turning fuzzy.
Movies seen in theaters: 22
DvDs bought: 60
*This is the year we learned that "-er" means "one who" ... "one who third grades"?
**Pronounced shick-uh-tan-o.
***And by "helped" I mean designed and built himself... with MY help. :)
****Um, this whole thing may have taken place in 2nd grade. Either way, it happened.
For our very first spelling test, our bonus words list included our teacher's last name... that is how I can still remember it today. So yes, Scicchitano** is really her last name.
This is the year Taylor Staten, Ashley Hebert, and I became close friends. We worked on projects together when we could. One in particular was the solar system project. We had decided to make the solar system from styrofoam balls, complete with glitter, of course. I remember when we were in class working on it, we stayed towards the front left corner of the class, separating ourself from the others so they could not see our masterpiece. Also, we sort of used the table that was up there and a couple other objects as a shield. We didn't want our project leaked. We ended up having to work on it outside of the classroom as well. Tay and I went to Ashley's house after school with her one day. Ashley's family had a very long truck... I'm talking three doors on each side and a truck bed. It was exciting to ride in. Anyway, we worked on the project in her bedroom, more specifically, on this rug she had in the floor. When we were finished with the project, there was so much glitter on that rug that there would still be glitter stuck to it today if she still had it. It was nuts.
Third grade is the year you are able to start the SOAR class if you test into it. (I think it was a test that was the deciding factor.) Anyway, it was a "gifted" class we went to once a week. I have been trying to remember the subjects we studied and the things we did in each grade specifically, but I have them jumbled. I will devote a post later on to the things we did in SOAR as a whole.
I remember one time, Tay and I had some work to make up that we missed while we were in SOAR so we decided to stay in at recess to do it. Mrs. Scicchitano allowed us to stay in without supervision. For some reason, we chose to keep the lights turned off, leaving only the sun to light the room. We sat side by side at a pair of desks that faced the vastness of the room, our backs to the filing cabinets. It was about ten minutes after we started working that we suddenly felt something... a kind of presence behind us, in that small opening between us and the cabinets. Needless to say, we left our work for later and high tailed it out of there.
Once, we were to do a report choosing whichever animal we wanted and stemming from the year before, I chose polar bears. Again. I'm telling you, they were my favorite! (That, along with whales.)
A project that my class partook in was the building of our very own homemade cooler. Dad, of course helped*** me with mine. We had a competition in class to see whose cooler would work best. We were each given a large piece of ice, put it in our cooler, and waited. Mine was one of the last ones to melt, though I think one or two kids had me beat. But still, I was proud of the cooler my dad made. He is a genius.****
The rest of my memories are turning fuzzy.
Movies seen in theaters: 22
DvDs bought: 60
*This is the year we learned that "-er" means "one who" ... "one who third grades"?
**Pronounced shick-uh-tan-o.
***And by "helped" I mean designed and built himself... with MY help. :)
****Um, this whole thing may have taken place in 2nd grade. Either way, it happened.
Tuesday, April 05, 2011
The Wonder Years: Second Grade.
This was by far my favorite grade in elementary school. It was 1996 and I was 7 years old when I started second grade. I think this was my favorite because of my teacher, Mrs. Chapman. She was so sweet and made learning so much fun, and I wanted to be a second grade teacher because of her. The dream of being a teacher eventually ended before high school, but if I had to be one now, I'd still choose second grade... it was the best!
This was the year I learned how to write in cursive, which I loved. We used those really thin papers with the two solid lines, one about an inch above the other, and the dotted line in between them to learn. Those papers were the worst. If you messed up and had to erase, it would either smudge really badly or the paper would tear. Why couldn't the school invest in better paper?
Remember the kid who picked his nose and ate it on the school bus? Well, he was in my class again in second grade. One day when Mrs. Chapman was reading to us in the reading corner, that same kid sat behind me. I felt some kind of constant tugging on my very long blonde hair (it was literally down to my butt) so I turned around to see what was going on... what I found was this kid chewing on my hair. Do you understand what I just said? He was chewing on my hair! What in the world was he thinking?!
That same kid also introduced me to the first bad word I had ever heard. I walked into the classroom one day and he was standing by my desk waiting on me. When I walked over to him and the small group that was forming, he put both of his hands on the name tag on my desk, one on the C and the other on the -ie and said, "Look, Cassie. Your name has a bad word in it." Then he proceeded to say the word. I was then very self conscious about my name. It made me feel like I was a bad person because I had a bad word in my name and was worried that three letter word stuck out to everyone who read or said my name.
I remember the Golden Shoe that acted as a trophy between each class, though I can't recall if it was only for the second graders or if it was a school wide thing. I feel like it had to do with the marbles that were put into the marble jar when the class as a whole did something commendable, so I think it was just second grade. Anyway, classes always wanted this makeshift trophy, so we always did what we could to be the best. When your class had that shoe for the week, it was as if you were far superior to your peers. The shoe was always placed in the window above the cubbies so the school could see. That was a great privilege to have.
I hope I am not confusing this with a different grade, but the second grade portion of the hall was called Polar Bear Parkway. I became really intrigued with polar bears because of this. We had to do some kind of project for the class, and I chose to do mine on polar bears. I was so proud of it, too... polars bears are boss.
For St. Patrick's Day, each of us had to make a leprechaun trap. I had so much fun building mine with my daddy. He always helped us with projects... and in my opinion, our projects far exceeded expectations and were so much better than everyone else's. Though, I may be biased. :)
I had this friend named Kimberly and for years, we played this secret game of tag. It wasn't tag like "run and if I get you, you're it" but it was whoever "tagged" the other one last wins. Most of the time, we stood one behind the other in line when our class went anywhere outside of the classroom. In line, of course, we always had to be quiet and couldn't talk, but we played anyway. If you were "it" all you had to do was touch some part of the other one and they would then be "it". It was a big deal to be able to go home without being it, but the game never really ended because whoever was "it" would just tag the other one the next morning. It probably sounds silly, but it was fun.
Around Christmas time, our class acted out a play. It wasn't for anyone outside of the class, but for ourselves. I don't remember a whole lot about the play except that there was a part that was on an airplane and that Poinsettias were a big part of the story. I am pretty sure I was the flight attendant.
I think I have legitimately summed up most of what I remember of second grade. The main thing I remember is loving every minute of it.
Movies seen in theater: 13
DvDs bought: 52
This was the year I learned how to write in cursive, which I loved. We used those really thin papers with the two solid lines, one about an inch above the other, and the dotted line in between them to learn. Those papers were the worst. If you messed up and had to erase, it would either smudge really badly or the paper would tear. Why couldn't the school invest in better paper?
Remember the kid who picked his nose and ate it on the school bus? Well, he was in my class again in second grade. One day when Mrs. Chapman was reading to us in the reading corner, that same kid sat behind me. I felt some kind of constant tugging on my very long blonde hair (it was literally down to my butt) so I turned around to see what was going on... what I found was this kid chewing on my hair. Do you understand what I just said? He was chewing on my hair! What in the world was he thinking?!
That same kid also introduced me to the first bad word I had ever heard. I walked into the classroom one day and he was standing by my desk waiting on me. When I walked over to him and the small group that was forming, he put both of his hands on the name tag on my desk, one on the C and the other on the -ie and said, "Look, Cassie. Your name has a bad word in it." Then he proceeded to say the word. I was then very self conscious about my name. It made me feel like I was a bad person because I had a bad word in my name and was worried that three letter word stuck out to everyone who read or said my name.
I remember the Golden Shoe that acted as a trophy between each class, though I can't recall if it was only for the second graders or if it was a school wide thing. I feel like it had to do with the marbles that were put into the marble jar when the class as a whole did something commendable, so I think it was just second grade. Anyway, classes always wanted this makeshift trophy, so we always did what we could to be the best. When your class had that shoe for the week, it was as if you were far superior to your peers. The shoe was always placed in the window above the cubbies so the school could see. That was a great privilege to have.
I hope I am not confusing this with a different grade, but the second grade portion of the hall was called Polar Bear Parkway. I became really intrigued with polar bears because of this. We had to do some kind of project for the class, and I chose to do mine on polar bears. I was so proud of it, too... polars bears are boss.
For St. Patrick's Day, each of us had to make a leprechaun trap. I had so much fun building mine with my daddy. He always helped us with projects... and in my opinion, our projects far exceeded expectations and were so much better than everyone else's. Though, I may be biased. :)
I had this friend named Kimberly and for years, we played this secret game of tag. It wasn't tag like "run and if I get you, you're it" but it was whoever "tagged" the other one last wins. Most of the time, we stood one behind the other in line when our class went anywhere outside of the classroom. In line, of course, we always had to be quiet and couldn't talk, but we played anyway. If you were "it" all you had to do was touch some part of the other one and they would then be "it". It was a big deal to be able to go home without being it, but the game never really ended because whoever was "it" would just tag the other one the next morning. It probably sounds silly, but it was fun.
Around Christmas time, our class acted out a play. It wasn't for anyone outside of the class, but for ourselves. I don't remember a whole lot about the play except that there was a part that was on an airplane and that Poinsettias were a big part of the story. I am pretty sure I was the flight attendant.
I think I have legitimately summed up most of what I remember of second grade. The main thing I remember is loving every minute of it.
Movies seen in theater: 13
DvDs bought: 52
Thursday, March 24, 2011
The Wonder Years: First Grade
It was '95, I was 6 years old, and I had Mrs. Brasco as a teacher. It was the year of many firsts: First grade, first time I had my own desk, first year I wore glasses, and the first (and last!) time I got in trouble.
Back then, I thought those ugly, round glasses would be the death of me. For a few weeks, I would walk into class without my extra pair of eyes on and hide them in my desk. Only when I really needed them would I put them on my face... when we had to look at something far away (i.e. a movie on the television, writing on the chalk board, etc.). Eventually, I kept them on all day because I just couldn't see. Seriously, those glasses were awful. If I had a picture on my computer, I would show you.
Unfairly, I had to move a card once for talking. But honestly, I wasn't the one talking. Someone at my table kept trying to talk to me so I told him to be quiet and the teacher caught me telling him to do so. I was the only one who got in trouble. I was so upset that I cried in the bathroom. When the teacher came to check on me, I had made myself so sick that she had to call my mom to come get me. How embarrassing, I know. But that incident scarred me so bad that I never got caught talking again. I made sure of it.
We had a "class bear" that sat in his chair all week until Friday when the teacher drew a name and that kid got to take him home for the weekend. We had to write down everything that we did together and read it to the class the following Monday. I remember that he was a polar bear and so cute! Everyone always wished that it would be their turn to take him home, it was a special privelage.
We had a one person restroom in the back of the class. I was in there one day sitting on the toilet, and apparently, I didn't lock the door. A girl walked in, looked at me for a second, and walked back out. Another embarrassing moment got the best of me. After that, I tried not to use the bathroom unless it was vital; I didn't want another opportunity for that to happen.
I am pretty sure this is the year I started softball... tee-ball, rather. I remember playing "pitcher" a lot of the time. I didn't like that; I was too close to the batter, leaving me defenseless if the ball was hit in a line drive (ha, right... at that age?) at me... I hadn't gotten used to the game enough for that kind of responsibility. I was in the process of learning to catch, hit off of a tee, and hit a pitched ball. Blakeley was on the team with me and her dad was either one of the coaches or just helped out a lot. I was throwing and catching with him one practice and was doing so well until a ball he threw to me missed my glove and hit my nose. It bled pretty badly and I can remember him using his shirt tail to wipe the blood from my face. I think it scared him more than it actually hurt or scared me. I am pretty sure after that incident, I was less afraid of getting hit and actually put forth more effort to be a good player. So thank you, Mr. Bill! ;)
There used to be a bump on my cheek that had cause my mom to take me to the doctor. I am still not sure what it was, but it was something that had to be removed. I remember when I had it removed, I was told to keep a bandage on it and to not touch it or green would ooze out. That made me paranoid. I would be so careful not to touch it. One day at school, we were lined up outside of our classroom and a girl asked me if she could just see that spot. I took the bandage off for her to see and she took it upon herself to touch it! I freaked out and told her not to do that... that it was going to ooze green stuff now. (I don't think it ever did.) I checked it for the rest of the day, worsening my paranoia.
That year, I also had a terrible eye injury. Blakeley, Austin, my siblings, and I were piled into my mom's van coming back from somewhere when we stopped at McDonald's for dinner. We went through the drive thru so as my mom was handed our drinks, they were passed out to us. I was in the backseat, window to my left and Blakeley to my right. I put my straw through the lid and saw that Blake was having trouble with hers. So she could get it through successfully, she was going to jab the straw in. She reared back her arm, straw in hand and I saw that straw come straight into my eye. If this was a movie, it would have been in slow motion. That is how I saw it coming towards me. I don't remember much of what happened after that until I was at my doctor's office the next morning. Dr. Pilcher had me lay back on that cold, paper covered bed and he put drops in my eye. At the time, it felt like the end of the world and my eye had been pulled out of my head by straw extraction. The doctor put an eye patch on my new injury and told me I had to wear it for a few days. An eyepatch. Like a pirate. Needless to say, I didn't have to go to school that day... for class anyways. Mom let me go to the school to help her sell ice cream. It was always so much fun when we got to sit in that little room in the butterfly garden and sell ice cream. Parents took turns selling every Friday. After selling the ice cream, we went to visit my class so Mom could talk to Mrs. Brasco. I was nervous to go in the classroom because of my new pirate look, but when I walked in, the kids were very intrigued, and dare I say, even a little jealous. That experience turned out to be quite alright, as good as having a straw injected into your eye can go.
Can't remember anymore stories at the moment. If I think of another, I'll tell you in a future post.
Movies seen in theater: 12
DvDs bought: 52
Back then, I thought those ugly, round glasses would be the death of me. For a few weeks, I would walk into class without my extra pair of eyes on and hide them in my desk. Only when I really needed them would I put them on my face... when we had to look at something far away (i.e. a movie on the television, writing on the chalk board, etc.). Eventually, I kept them on all day because I just couldn't see. Seriously, those glasses were awful. If I had a picture on my computer, I would show you.
Unfairly, I had to move a card once for talking. But honestly, I wasn't the one talking. Someone at my table kept trying to talk to me so I told him to be quiet and the teacher caught me telling him to do so. I was the only one who got in trouble. I was so upset that I cried in the bathroom. When the teacher came to check on me, I had made myself so sick that she had to call my mom to come get me. How embarrassing, I know. But that incident scarred me so bad that I never got caught talking again. I made sure of it.
We had a "class bear" that sat in his chair all week until Friday when the teacher drew a name and that kid got to take him home for the weekend. We had to write down everything that we did together and read it to the class the following Monday. I remember that he was a polar bear and so cute! Everyone always wished that it would be their turn to take him home, it was a special privelage.
We had a one person restroom in the back of the class. I was in there one day sitting on the toilet, and apparently, I didn't lock the door. A girl walked in, looked at me for a second, and walked back out. Another embarrassing moment got the best of me. After that, I tried not to use the bathroom unless it was vital; I didn't want another opportunity for that to happen.
I am pretty sure this is the year I started softball... tee-ball, rather. I remember playing "pitcher" a lot of the time. I didn't like that; I was too close to the batter, leaving me defenseless if the ball was hit in a line drive (ha, right... at that age?) at me... I hadn't gotten used to the game enough for that kind of responsibility. I was in the process of learning to catch, hit off of a tee, and hit a pitched ball. Blakeley was on the team with me and her dad was either one of the coaches or just helped out a lot. I was throwing and catching with him one practice and was doing so well until a ball he threw to me missed my glove and hit my nose. It bled pretty badly and I can remember him using his shirt tail to wipe the blood from my face. I think it scared him more than it actually hurt or scared me. I am pretty sure after that incident, I was less afraid of getting hit and actually put forth more effort to be a good player. So thank you, Mr. Bill! ;)
There used to be a bump on my cheek that had cause my mom to take me to the doctor. I am still not sure what it was, but it was something that had to be removed. I remember when I had it removed, I was told to keep a bandage on it and to not touch it or green would ooze out. That made me paranoid. I would be so careful not to touch it. One day at school, we were lined up outside of our classroom and a girl asked me if she could just see that spot. I took the bandage off for her to see and she took it upon herself to touch it! I freaked out and told her not to do that... that it was going to ooze green stuff now. (I don't think it ever did.) I checked it for the rest of the day, worsening my paranoia.
That year, I also had a terrible eye injury. Blakeley, Austin, my siblings, and I were piled into my mom's van coming back from somewhere when we stopped at McDonald's for dinner. We went through the drive thru so as my mom was handed our drinks, they were passed out to us. I was in the backseat, window to my left and Blakeley to my right. I put my straw through the lid and saw that Blake was having trouble with hers. So she could get it through successfully, she was going to jab the straw in. She reared back her arm, straw in hand and I saw that straw come straight into my eye. If this was a movie, it would have been in slow motion. That is how I saw it coming towards me. I don't remember much of what happened after that until I was at my doctor's office the next morning. Dr. Pilcher had me lay back on that cold, paper covered bed and he put drops in my eye. At the time, it felt like the end of the world and my eye had been pulled out of my head by straw extraction. The doctor put an eye patch on my new injury and told me I had to wear it for a few days. An eyepatch. Like a pirate. Needless to say, I didn't have to go to school that day... for class anyways. Mom let me go to the school to help her sell ice cream. It was always so much fun when we got to sit in that little room in the butterfly garden and sell ice cream. Parents took turns selling every Friday. After selling the ice cream, we went to visit my class so Mom could talk to Mrs. Brasco. I was nervous to go in the classroom because of my new pirate look, but when I walked in, the kids were very intrigued, and dare I say, even a little jealous. That experience turned out to be quite alright, as good as having a straw injected into your eye can go.
Can't remember anymore stories at the moment. If I think of another, I'll tell you in a future post.
Movies seen in theater: 12
DvDs bought: 52
Wednesday, March 09, 2011
The Wonder Years: Kindergarten.
It was 1994 when the 5 year old Cassie started Kindergarten. This is the point I really start having cognitive memories.
I went to Belvedere Elementary for grades K-5. Mrs. Burgess was my Kindergarten teacher and I was in her afternoon class. (We didn't go a full day.)
I started riding the bus to school. A boy who lived in my neighborhood came over to my house every morning to get on the bus with me. We never sat together because you know, boys had cooties. He did, however, sit in the seat across the aisle from me. One morning, I looked over at him right as he stuck his finger up his nose. Even though it was gross, it was one of those things you can't look away from. So I then watched him dig out a booger, look at it for about three seconds, and bite it off of his finger with his teeth. It was a truly disgusting moment.
My teacher taught us the days of the week and the months of the year through song. I remember sitting on the floor facing the chalkboard corner the first time we heard the song. She had posters above the chalkboard with the names of the days and months on it. Mrs. Burgess would point to the corresponding word when we sang it out. I still remember the song.
For some reason, all of my memories from actually being in the classroom are very dark; not scary or evil, dark as in there was very little light. I am not sure why it was this way, but that is a major description for every classroom story I have. Weird. Maybe it was the beginning of the downfall of my eyesight. It's quite possible.
This is the year I was introduced to the punishment system that hangs on the wall. I believe it was an apple with our name on it that we had to move if we got in trouble. And no, I never had to move my apple. I was terrified to get in trouble so I, of course, stayed quiet and well behaved.
I remember my first fire drill at the school. We had just come in from playing outside and were in line to wash our hands. The teacher's aid squirted liquid soap into my hands and as soon as I had begun to lather it up, the alarm went off. We were immediately lined up and led out of our back door onto the playground by the fence. I just stood there looking at my hands and the drying, sticky soap on them and thought to myself how gross it felt. I wanted so badly to get my hands under some running water. We were out there for quite a while so when we finally went back in, my hands had a thick coat of now dirty and waxy soap.
We had a small "library" in our room, which I loved. During free time, I would always read (or pretend to read) a book. Our teacher even allowed us to check out a book if we wanted to take it home. One day, I checked out Casey at the Bat and took it home with me. I somehow went weeks without bringing it back in. Mrs. Burgess never asked me about it even though my name was written down on her "books checked out" list. Finally, it was the end of the school year and I still had Casey at the Bat sitting in my room. To this day, I have never given it back.
Now, during these Wonder Years posts, I may not be able to remember the specific year for a particular event or whatever I happen to be talking about, so I will probably throw in things that happened around that particular phase in my life.
With that said, I must confess that Winnie the Pooh was my absolute favorite thing in the world when I was little. I started collecting stuffed animals before I can even remember. I seriously have tons of Pooh Bears... they are sitting in a bag in the basement at my house right now. I even have this one bear that is huge.. bigger than I was when I got him; he was a gift from my Nana and Pawpaw. I usually don't like to play favorites, but I have two bears that were always my favorite (I even gave them nicknames): my very first Pooh Bear was nicknamed Tiger Lily (like the indian girl from Peter Pan) and my other favorite was nicknamed Rough (because he infact was rougher in texture than the others). This all probably sounds silly to you, but Pooh was a big part of my childhood. I would watch the cartoon when I could, and I would play the part of Pooh while Ash was Tigger and Blakeley was Piglet. My collection of Poohs would be my audience when I needed one and my children when I played "house". I had some good times with the little guy.
Movies seen in theater: 10
DvDs bought: 47
I went to Belvedere Elementary for grades K-5. Mrs. Burgess was my Kindergarten teacher and I was in her afternoon class. (We didn't go a full day.)
I started riding the bus to school. A boy who lived in my neighborhood came over to my house every morning to get on the bus with me. We never sat together because you know, boys had cooties. He did, however, sit in the seat across the aisle from me. One morning, I looked over at him right as he stuck his finger up his nose. Even though it was gross, it was one of those things you can't look away from. So I then watched him dig out a booger, look at it for about three seconds, and bite it off of his finger with his teeth. It was a truly disgusting moment.
My teacher taught us the days of the week and the months of the year through song. I remember sitting on the floor facing the chalkboard corner the first time we heard the song. She had posters above the chalkboard with the names of the days and months on it. Mrs. Burgess would point to the corresponding word when we sang it out. I still remember the song.
For some reason, all of my memories from actually being in the classroom are very dark; not scary or evil, dark as in there was very little light. I am not sure why it was this way, but that is a major description for every classroom story I have. Weird. Maybe it was the beginning of the downfall of my eyesight. It's quite possible.
This is the year I was introduced to the punishment system that hangs on the wall. I believe it was an apple with our name on it that we had to move if we got in trouble. And no, I never had to move my apple. I was terrified to get in trouble so I, of course, stayed quiet and well behaved.
I remember my first fire drill at the school. We had just come in from playing outside and were in line to wash our hands. The teacher's aid squirted liquid soap into my hands and as soon as I had begun to lather it up, the alarm went off. We were immediately lined up and led out of our back door onto the playground by the fence. I just stood there looking at my hands and the drying, sticky soap on them and thought to myself how gross it felt. I wanted so badly to get my hands under some running water. We were out there for quite a while so when we finally went back in, my hands had a thick coat of now dirty and waxy soap.
We had a small "library" in our room, which I loved. During free time, I would always read (or pretend to read) a book. Our teacher even allowed us to check out a book if we wanted to take it home. One day, I checked out Casey at the Bat and took it home with me. I somehow went weeks without bringing it back in. Mrs. Burgess never asked me about it even though my name was written down on her "books checked out" list. Finally, it was the end of the school year and I still had Casey at the Bat sitting in my room. To this day, I have never given it back.
Now, during these Wonder Years posts, I may not be able to remember the specific year for a particular event or whatever I happen to be talking about, so I will probably throw in things that happened around that particular phase in my life.
With that said, I must confess that Winnie the Pooh was my absolute favorite thing in the world when I was little. I started collecting stuffed animals before I can even remember. I seriously have tons of Pooh Bears... they are sitting in a bag in the basement at my house right now. I even have this one bear that is huge.. bigger than I was when I got him; he was a gift from my Nana and Pawpaw. I usually don't like to play favorites, but I have two bears that were always my favorite (I even gave them nicknames): my very first Pooh Bear was nicknamed Tiger Lily (like the indian girl from Peter Pan) and my other favorite was nicknamed Rough (because he infact was rougher in texture than the others). This all probably sounds silly to you, but Pooh was a big part of my childhood. I would watch the cartoon when I could, and I would play the part of Pooh while Ash was Tigger and Blakeley was Piglet. My collection of Poohs would be my audience when I needed one and my children when I played "house". I had some good times with the little guy.
Movies seen in theater: 10
DvDs bought: 47
Monday, February 21, 2011
The Wonder Years: Preschool.
This is the first in a series I have decided to write. I have an awful memory so I want to document as many important/funny/(ir)relevant memories as I can. I am going to attempt to recollect memories as far back as I can remember and start with Preschool. We'll see how long (or short!) this post ends up being...
I was 4 years old in 1993 when I started Preschool. I went to North Augusta First Baptist and I distinctly remember walking that same hall everyday to my classroom. That is probably my most vivid memory of Preschool. Mom always walked me inside and held my hand. I can also remember the way the room was set up. We had different "stations" of playthings. One area had a kitchen with supplies, one area was a colorful rug, and one area had building blocks inside of cubbies and bins. We were broken up in groups and were allotted a certain amount of time in one area then had to switch to the next one.
There were also several small tables where we sat and ate at snack time. The kitchen area (for the adults) was very small and the cabinets were painted blue I think. Before we ate our snack, we said a blessing resembling "God is great, God is good; Let us thank Him for our food; By His hands, we all are fed; Give us Lord, our daily bread; Amen."
There is one specific event that I can remember, though. It may be partly because we have it on tape but also parlty because I got to be my favorite Disney Princess. For Halloween, we were allowed to dress up and I went as Belle from Beauty and the Beast. I wore her yellow ball gown and crown. I remember thinking what a big deal it was that I was Belle, I really did feel like a princess that day.
I actually have a picture from Halloween that year hanging up on my memory board. I was Belle, Ash was Jasmine, Cody was Aladdin, Brandy was a Hershey Kiss, Blakeley was Minnie Mouse, and Austin was Winnie the Pooh (so cute!).
Growing up with those I have just listed was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. To this day, we are all still the best of friends. I can't wait to share with you all of our fun little stories from our formative years... they make me smile. :)
Movies seen in theaters: 6
DvDs bought: 40
I was 4 years old in 1993 when I started Preschool. I went to North Augusta First Baptist and I distinctly remember walking that same hall everyday to my classroom. That is probably my most vivid memory of Preschool. Mom always walked me inside and held my hand. I can also remember the way the room was set up. We had different "stations" of playthings. One area had a kitchen with supplies, one area was a colorful rug, and one area had building blocks inside of cubbies and bins. We were broken up in groups and were allotted a certain amount of time in one area then had to switch to the next one.
There were also several small tables where we sat and ate at snack time. The kitchen area (for the adults) was very small and the cabinets were painted blue I think. Before we ate our snack, we said a blessing resembling "God is great, God is good; Let us thank Him for our food; By His hands, we all are fed; Give us Lord, our daily bread; Amen."
There is one specific event that I can remember, though. It may be partly because we have it on tape but also parlty because I got to be my favorite Disney Princess. For Halloween, we were allowed to dress up and I went as Belle from Beauty and the Beast. I wore her yellow ball gown and crown. I remember thinking what a big deal it was that I was Belle, I really did feel like a princess that day.
I actually have a picture from Halloween that year hanging up on my memory board. I was Belle, Ash was Jasmine, Cody was Aladdin, Brandy was a Hershey Kiss, Blakeley was Minnie Mouse, and Austin was Winnie the Pooh (so cute!).
Growing up with those I have just listed was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. To this day, we are all still the best of friends. I can't wait to share with you all of our fun little stories from our formative years... they make me smile. :)
Movies seen in theaters: 6
DvDs bought: 40
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