All things must come to an end...

THE FINAL CHAPTER

Priceless photo #1

I've realized it's a lot harder to say goodbye than I thought, knowing that when I write my final entry for the year, it's just that...my FINAL chapter on the most monumental year of teaching I've had thus far.   I've put myself out there, and I've been honest about what I feel is truly important in this world.  In case you haven't guessed already, it's children (a close second, my banjo).  Yes those angelic, curious, spontaneous, fearless observers that remind you to create simply because that is what we are born to do.  They create art in all they do because it's within them, and that my friends is a force to be reckoned with.

Priceless photo #2:  Kids in crochet beards and sock puppets who look like they just came from an after party at Studio 54.  Thanks again to my cousin Aundrea Sprengelmeyer for making those beards (I expect to get one for Christmas, just saying).

So there you have it, It's quite hard to find closure (or the right words) when you're not exactly ready to write the final chapter.  The only only way I know how to say goodbye without writing a novel longer than that really boring text book that sits in the back of every classroom in America (from 1972), is by simply narrowing down the year to three projects that have meant the most to me:

1.  Sock Puppets

2.  Growing Up

3.  Dreaming Big

Priceless photo #3

1. SOCK PUPPETS
What happens when you watch the same Dave Eggers speech ten times (yes, another inspiring TED talk)?  You start to realize this guy has the right idea about teaching, which begins with making your learning environment a magical place to be in.  Though I wasn't able to make my classroom into a pirate supply store (YET!) like Eggers was able to do with his after school writing center; I was inspired by how he made one totally creative and engaging place.  IMAGINATION is not dead.  What kid (or adult) wouldn't want to hang out in a pirate shop?  Make a creative, eclectic space, and kids won't even notice they're LEARNING!  Imagine that?

This is 826 Valencia, home to Eggers' after school writing center, which also serves as a pirate supply store.  I first got to visit this place three years ago while on tour with my sister Laurel (a.k.a. Little Scream) in San Francisco.  They pulled a trap door on me, and I felt like a kid again.

826 Valencia inspired me to create my own dream classroom, which initiated a writing prompt given to my students beginning with three simple words: "My dream classroom...".  I brought their dreams to an organization in support of the arts: Art Gumbo.  There we won first place, parents cried (in a good way), and so began the building of our sock puppet theater/reading fort.  Let's just say we spent a lot of time after school gluing feathers and eyeballs onto used socks.  Used socks might not make you too excited, but take a look at some footage and photos of what we did, and you'll understand why this project made us a part of a real community - our One Magic Classroom tribe.

Sock Puppet Theater AND BEYOND!!!!!

You'll notice my awesome friend Julie Arensdorf who came into my classroom, played the piano, and did a writing project with my happy kids.  See happy kids below:

She read us a story as well.  Take note of the posing.  We practice that kind of stuff.

A roof made out of old books!  Recycling at its best.

Look!  There's even a light and handmade oversized pillow to sit on (thanks to Candace Eudaley!).

Our sock puppet theater also serves as a reading fort.  I'm not going to lie, I was a little worried that the kids would just mess around, but an amazing thing happened....they actually read!  I also got to use it as an incentive for good behavior.  Oh, and did I mention I'm totally working on my own fort at home?  It sort of makes everything you do a little more exciting and magical.  

2. GROWING UP
Birthdays are awesome as a kid: ice-cream cake, Beatles T-shirts, Polly Pockets, my brother water-ballooning my friends and I in the backyard (most definitely someone getting hit in the eye and crying as well), and last but not least my mom dancing in the living room.  Growing up One Magic Classroom style is a little bit like a birthday party; you get to tape fake beards on your face and wear vintage glasses.  These are some of my favorite photos from the year, mostly because the kids have tape all over their faces.  I'm thinking this might need to be a calendar at some point.  I still have a lot that I want to do as I get older...or "grow up" in kid terminology, so it's great to hear what they all want to do with their lives.  It really makes me think about my own goals, and that's a magical thing - a lifetime of working towards something bigger than yourself.

DYLAN

"Where did all the tape go?" says Grandma No-Fun.

BEN

I call this the "sophisticated beard" look.  Does this guy work at IBM?

3. DREAMING BIG
We all have dreams, in fact every night we dream.  But the kind of dreams I am talking about are the waking dreams, the dreams you might ponder while picking your nose or staring out into the horizon.  At some point growing up, you probably had to give up on your dreams because somebody said it wasn't practical, and I'm about to say that's not really a practical way to think after all.  Money may come and go, but when you follow what you love, your passion, your bliss; a magical thing happens---happiness, and that only comes from doing what you love to do.  That, my friends, no one can take away from you.  I had a dream that I would start a blog and spread happiness by simply letting my students imagine.  We did that, and because thousands of people have now read our blog, you've (that's right YOU being Mr. and Ms. Read-e-pants-McGee) really inspired my students to keep on creating and gave them a voice.  They've had not only an audience of supportive parents and teachers, but a global audience, and this is really exciting for kids.  Every time we check our readership statistics, we find another country and locate it on the map.  Who would have thought our blog has made it all the way to Muldova in just a few short months?  Don't lie to yourself.  I hadn't heard of it either.

If I had to sum up my year in one photo, it would be from a wish.  Laney made a wish and blew her dandelion into the wind, with it a magical force that reminds me to find my inner nine-year-old.  When I asked her what her wish was, she said it was for One Magic Classroom, and that if she told me it wouldn't come true.  Well, I made my own wish for O.M.C. and I'm not telling anyone either.  

"May the force be with you."

-Luke Skywalker from the movie Star Wars

ROB NYE THE SCIENCE GUY

ROB NYE THE SCIENCE GUY

We here at One Magic Classroom Inc. (that's right, Corporation of Awesomeness) really love engineers who also know how to fix bicycles and teach us about angular momentum.  We also love engineers who run community projects like the Dubuque Bike Coop.  That's why we have decided to change Rob Williams' name to Rob Nye the Science Guy (sorry, we voted while you were gone), a more fitting term for people named Rob who make the world a better place, one bicycle at a time.

I like when we can teach kids the practical side of science.  We all hopefully know how to ride a bike, but if you're like most nine-year-olds (which I'm not), you may not yet know how to fill your tire with air.  So thanks Rob for your practical hands-on approach to learning science.  Kids love any excuse to get up out of their seat, and I don't blame them.

Angular Momentum....what you say???

That's right, you heard that correctly; we're learning terminology that makes us sound really smart and important at the dinner table thanks to Rob Nye the Science Guy.  Simply put, momentum will tell you how strong a moving thing is, and the faster you move something (a.k.a. Mr. Bicycle Wheel), the more momentum the object has, and therefore the harder it will be to move Mr. Bicycle Wheel in a different direction (hence the term angular or "rotating body" in this case).    

Art Gumbo comes full circle

Art Gumbo really did come full circle (hence the bicycle wheel) in more than one way.  Rob and Sami Sue (Rogue Collections) also came home winners with a tie for second place that magical night.  As wonderful community events such as Art Gumbo would have it, it not only brought out people of the community in support of the arts, but more importantly, it brought another magical person into our classroom.  We can't say this would have happened any other way.  It seems once you are on the right path doing the right things, the right people come along your way.  Well Rob, you were one of those "right" people that came around to our classroom in a very magical way. 

"As a kid I had a dream - I wanted to own my own bicycle.  When I got the bike I must have been the happiest boy in Liverpool, maybe the world.  I lived for that bike.  Most kids left their bike in the backyard at night.  Not me.  I insisted on taking mine indoors and the first night I even kept it in my bed."

- John Lennon

Bicycles make me nostalgic.  In writing this post, I couldn't help but think about riding on the backseat of Rachel Johnson's red banana seat bicycle when I was in third grade.  I would hitch a ride behind her on the elongated banana seat on our weekly trips to get ice cream, all the while dripping our favorite Blue Moon ice cream along the path on our way back home.  

GRATITUDE

GRATITUDE

"Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom."

-Marcel Proust

Karlyn Van Gelder with two of my very appreciative students.  

Amy McNally surrounded by love.  Yeah that's right, we are pretty much one big happy rainbow of love (if that's possible).

I'm not trying to make you jealous (okay, maybe I am), but I do have the best volunteers of all time.  This is a post dedicated to two volunteers who have not only spread happiness to our classroom, but more importantly who have helped my students grow and made them feel important.  This my friends is gratitude.  Gratitude for the little things in life; for the people who do those little things each day that add up to something truly wonderful in the end.

What are you grateful for?

"I'm grateful for my cat Peter.  He plays with me.  I feed him, and I love him."

-Tim

The students all used photos of themselves, and then drew imaginary bodies and gratitude thought bubbles to show what they were truly grateful for in life.  Tim also told his dad to "keep clicking on on our blog to get more views".  That's kinda hilarious, so If you are reading Dale....KEEP CLICKING ;)

"I'm grateful for my family because my mom and dad take me to fun places and come to my events.  My brother (Tyler) for playing with me and always being nice to me.  My coaches for letting me play, and my awesome teacher for doing all these incredible things for us."

-Brandon

Besides the fact that Brandon got an "A" for mentioning his teacher (just kidding), this is a great example of being grateful, because this is really about the people (not things!) that one should be grateful for.  Nice job Brando.

"I am grateful for having nice grandparents.  They always watch me when my parents are on a date or doing something.....BORING."

-Connor

This one rocks because I think what he is trying to say here is that going on dates would be boring.  You're right Connor, going on a date with your parents is definitely not as fun as making sock puppets with your teacher after school.  I'm also not totally sure what this picture refers to, but I like it.  

"I am grateful for my family because they care for me.  I am also grateful for my teacher because she helps me learn and grow!"

Sadie, I'm grateful for you and all the wonderful pictures you draw and stories you write.  Your picture seems like a really happy place to be, so I am going to check out the real estate available for the building of One Magic Animal Kingdom based on something similar to your drawing.

In closing:

I hope you have taken the time to think about a few people in your life who you are grateful for.  I'm totally grateful for Amy and Karlyn who volunteered all year in my classroom.  Since my One Magic Classroom budget (which doesn't exist) hasn't been able to pay you a dime for all your kindness, I know you have been repaid by the countless smiles they have given you in return. 

I hope you walk with some positive "tude"in your step after reading this grati-"tude" post.  I know I will for having the 25 best students a teacher could ask for, and the two best volunteers.

One last thing Amy...

"I am grateful for my mom because she had me."

-Dylan

In case you were wondering what your son wrote, it was about you.  Imagine that?  Your son is grateful for you as well.  So nice job on having Dylan so that he could be in my class, and so that you could volunteer ;)

One MAGIC Jule Bus!

One MAGIC Jule Bus!

If you're lucky, a giant green bus just might show up at your doorstep someday.  In case you haven't noticed, we're pretty lucky here at One Magic Classroom; and YES a magic green bus did show up for us.....the JULE Bus that is!  So enjoy our top five favorite reasons why you should ride The Jule.  We had one magic detention after school so the kids could work on their skits.  Give them ten minutes to brainstorm and a box of vintage clothes....the rest is Jule history my friends.

Did you know?

Did you know you can even take your bicycle on The Jule?  Did you also know that felt is super cheap and kids will come up with really creative things when you give them a permanent marker too?  Well, now you know and you're totally smarter because of it!

Listen to what "Randy" says.

And Randy says "Always stay seated on the bus!"

Bus drivers mean business, so don't mess around!

These might not be your typical bus rules, but nonetheless they are super important things to keep in mind like "don't hold onto the tires" and "don't play 20 questions with the bus driver".  

Be Green.  Be Cool.  Ride the Jule. 

This post is dedicated to Candace Eudaley and all the friends at the Jule (including a super awesome parent named Marla Quinn) who came in to share some earth friendly facts, and even let us ride on the bus.  Thanks for making another memorable moment, and taking the time to let my students know that they are special.  We think you're special, and we think green buses called the Jule are REALLY SPECIAL.

Sending Socks to Switzerland!

Sending Socks to Switzerland

One Magic Classroom enjoying One Magic Puppet Theater (thanks to Art Gumbo).

I love socks.  I also love chocolate from Switzerland, kitten stickers, and people from Switzerland (named DRACO!) that send us this stuff in the first place.  Since starting this most awesome blog, we have gotten lots of magical mail.  This week we got chocolate from Switzerland, German gummy bears, kitten stickers, crochet beards (I'm not joking, we really did....see photo below), and really funny postcards with sayings in French we didn't understand.  

Random is good, and so are random acts of sock kindness.  So if you've sent us mail, be expecting some handmade sock puppet love coming your way, One Magic Classroom style that is.

Crochet beards and Swiss chocolate:

Best combination gift of ALL TIME!

Did I mention crochet beards?  Yeah, my super-cala-magilistic cousin Auni made us crochet beards in honor of our blog entry "When I Grow Up".  She is a teacher as well, and her students are doing some of the projects that we have shared on our blog.  We got to see pictures of what they were doing and received some amazing letters too.  It is so inspiring to see that other kids are doing activities related to our class.  So here is to Auni (another Ms. Sprengelmeyer) and her wonderful students.  We think you're great (blog post to be continued later....insert scary music and thunderstorm noises here).

Swiss Chocolate + Crochet Beard = One Happy Sock?

Max's beard matches his sock!

One Magic Puppet Theater Performs!

Here's a video to thank Draco and Abigail (Draco's "mum" as he would call it).  I met Abigail over winter break for the first time several months ago with my sister in the woods of Canada.  Abigail loaned me a documentary on puppet making while I was staying at her house (or magic cabin castle as I like to think of it).  Based on the conversations we had, she thought I might be interested in puppet making.  Little did I know one of my students (Brody) would wish for a puppet theater just one month later, and that we would actually win money to build one!  Guess you had a sneaky suspicion One Magic Classroom was the perfect place to make puppet dreams happen.  Before I forget Abigail, you've got a book on tree houses I would like to borrow next (once I return your puppet making documentary of course).  I'm dreaming of a tree house, and lately dreams have been coming true.  Sometimes all it takes is the planting of a little seed.

Sibling Puppet Makers = Really Cute

Yeah, send that photo to grandma and grandpa!

It's a good thing when you tell your students that they are welcome to stay after school with their teacher to make puppets, and almost the entire class stays after.  In fact, the ones that didn't come said they couldn't make it.  If you would have asked me to stay after school with my teacher in elementary school, I would have said "I'll take a rain check".  If fact, the kids were all joking that they had to stay after school and do fun stuff with their teacher for detention.  I'm proud to say that we have created not only a community, but what Seth Godin would call a tribe.  We are a tribe of not just believers and dreamers, but achievers; and yes we are doing great things together.

"The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in.  Paint a picture of the future.  Go there.  People will follow."

-Seth Godin, Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us

I hope we have brightened your day a little more, by adding some British accents, chocolate, crochet beards, and if nothing else a little more sock love into your life.

I LOVE YOU MOM!

I LOVE YOU MOM!

"Your heart is as big as mine."

-Max

What mother doesn't love getting a homemade card from their child on Mother's Day (especially when you are wearing glasses that were won at the Reading Carnival)?.

I love the spontaneous creativity that occurs when you give kids a green piece of paper and a box of foam cut-outs to choose from.  Ben decided to make the foam cut-out into a bracelet and label it "Free Gift", which is awesome because it reminds me of a cereal box advertisement.  These kids are natural marketers.  So watch out fellow greeting card companies, cause you've got some stiff competition coming your way from the kids in One Magic Classroom.  Take note of the little picture frames that I found in the "free pile" at work.  They were once wedding announcement frames that obviously someone didn't need any more.  So instead of ending up in the garbage dump somewhere, we repurposed them into Mother's Day frames.  So here's an extra shout out to Mother Earth on Mother's Day.  We love you too!

I love you because....

Here's a little video montage of some reasons why my students love their mothers.  Didn't get to record all of them though because MOTHER NATURE got in the way (that's okay, we forgive you).

I LOVE MY MOM!

This post wouldn't be complete if I didn't give a shout out to my own mother.  She pretty much rocks all the time, and if you don't smile while looking at this picture, you might need to do a happy dance or something to fix that.  My mother Nora has taught me not to care about what other people think about you.  Take for example the other day while I was eating dinner at her house with a few of my friends and she decided to dance around in fairy wings to make us smile (my guess is most mothers don't do that kind of stuff).  It occurred to me during her "fairy spin" that I really do have a one of a kind mother, and I wouldn't have it any other way.  I'll never really be able to thank her for all she has done, but that's okay because she loves her kids more than anything.  So here it goes mom, I LOVE YOU!

You've GOT MAIL!

YOU'VE GOT MAIL!

(WAIT...I MEAN....WE'VE GOT MAIL!)

What do the History Channel and a man named Draco from Switzerland have in common?  Two really important things:              

 1.   They both send us mail.

2.  They are both awesome.

Not only is the History Channel flying me to Nashville to judge their most awesome PICK and TELL contest, but they also sent my students mail.  Yeah, that's right every student in my class got a gift from the History Channel (and they even gave me a CIVIL WAR teaching kit....that is a double score!).  So here is one SUPER-MEGA-TRON THANK YOU from ONE MAGIC CLASSROOM!   

History Channel = Happiness

MAIL FROM SWITZERLAND:

DRACO STYLE!

This is for you Draco Szathmary.  Since starting our blog only a few short months ago, we now have readers from over 30 countries, that's right 30!  And we're not stopping there.  We are dedicated to spreading happiness around the world, and we really love when people read and respond to our blog.  Draco has not only commented on almost all of our blog posts, but he has also sent us mail on several different occasions.  So here is another big thank you, for reminding my students that what they are doing is important and to YOU for taking the time to write us (p.s. tell your mom I said hi).  

REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FOR YOU DRACO

The great thing about kids, is if you put a camera in front of their face, they'll turn boring into magical in about 2.3 seconds.  

Colton insisted on making the "chipmunk" face.  So there you have it (and yeah this totally cracks your teacher up Colton, especially since the postcard is upside down).

Even though e-mails are convenient, real mail is twenty million times more special and exciting.  A hand written letter is a simple reminder of how wonderful it is to be YOU.  For after all, you have your own unique handwriting, and your own special way of picking out just the right card. 

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are."

-Joseph Campbell