My Joy School Run

As I mentioned in an earlier post,

this was the first year that we've participated in

Joy School (think, pre-school) Co-op.

Owen was our guinea pig,

and after some initial trepidation he took

to it easily.

However Owen wasn't the only one being

thrown into the deep end of the pool,

I was too!

The Co-op portion meant that I would be responsible

for teaching approximately 6-7 classes,

organizing a class field trip and class party, and

assisting for an additional 6-7 classes for another teacher.

And all with Gabriel underfoot!

Whew!

I'm tired already!

Looking back though,

the experience was really great.

The time really did fly by,

and it was fun having this barage of little ones

invade the house each week.

I read, or heard in a movie,

children referred to as,

"Ankle-biters".

I really liked the term,

and that's exactly how I'd describe these little guys!

But in a cute and endearing way,

of course!

Meet the gang!

{note}

Owen was camera shy at the moment.

My lesson theme focused on

"Bugs & Crawly Things".

It was a perfect subject for little ones,

and luckily the weather cooperated

for plenty of outdoor exploring.

It still amazes me how often we hit the jackpot

in finding all kinds of bugs in the backyard.

We lucked out by finding a huge grasshopper, praying mantis,

and fuzzy caterpillar.

Granted,

I did help some things along,

like when I thought of the brilliant idea of purchasing live

ladybugs from Green Acres Nursery.

All was well

 while the little guys were contained and snoozing

in a deep sleep in the fridge,

but of course I just had to cut open their packaging

to move them to a netted bug container.

How was I supposed to know ladybugs can easily

squeeze through tiny netted holes?

And that the moment they're removed from the fridge,

they wake up and start moving around like crazy?

Long story short,

I had another brilliant idea

and just shoved the whole mess back into the fridge

hoping everyone would settle down again.

They did,

but for weeks we found ladybugs

in odd places all over the place

(the vegetable drawer, the ceiling, etc.-)!

{note}

Did I mention each package of ladybugs contains

1,800 of the little buggers?

Busy bees!

For our class field trip we visited

Bishop's Pumpkin Farm!

We were a little stretched on time,

but if you're looking for a fall experience,

you can't beat everything this place has to offer.

You can't go wrong with any holiday party,

but come on,

Halloween is right up every kids alley!

P A R T Y  I T I N E R A R Y

D E C O R A T E  S U G A R  C O O K I E S

G A M E S

P U M P K I N  G U T S  1 0 1

M U D  &  W O R M S  P U D D I N G  C U P S

M O V I E : 

T H E  G R E A T  P U M P K I N , C H A R L I E  B R O W N

Later,

as an assistant,

we visited the Utility Exploration Center

and the Universal Playground!

All in all,

it's a relief to be done!

And though I do miss my ankle-biters,

now I get to drop off Owen and know he's having

loads of fun and learning so much too...

at someone elses house!

{smile}