As the school bell rings

One of my new favorite things is when I check my email every morning the first thing I see is K-LOVE's encouraging word. Each morning I hear God whispering a new truth, or maybe one that I have not thought about in a while, to my heart. The verse from Thursday really spoke to me and challenged me, so I would like to share it with you.
"Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever." Psalm 23:6, NLT One of my favorite images of God is as the pursuer. The romantic in me feels at peace knowing that my Savior is willing to go to great lenghts to demonstrate His love for me, and that He will never stop pursuing me.

Soon the halls of my school will be filled with the sounds of students. I cannot wait for this new school year to begin. I feel I am more excited than I was last year, and I think it may be due to the fact that I know what to expect. I have had no first day of school nightmares haunting me at night, which is such a relief! A new year means a fresh start and a new group of students to find a special place in my heart.

Thursday was our Open House and Curriculum night. My new class came with their parents to find a home for all of their school supplies, and check out our room as well as meet me. I was able to meet all but two of my students, and each one of them is adorable! I am looking forward to learning so much more about each one of them. I have several students, both boys and girls, that love school and can't wait to start learning new things. This love for learning is so refreshing, and I hope that it will be a contageous attitude in my classroom this year.

My students come with wonderful parents, who are very supportive and eager to be involved in our room. I am looking forward to our partnership that will be crutical to their child's success in 4th grade. The Lord has truly blessed me by placing me where I am to begin my teaching career.

One of my favorite parts of Open House was seeing some of my students from last year. Oh how some of them have grown over the summer. Seeeing their faces brought back wonderful memories from last year. I realized after reuniting with them just how much I missed them. They all promised to come back and visit, and that they would not forget about me now that they are big, bad, 5th graders! As each one dropped by for a hug I felt an overwhelming sense of joy and pride in each of them and how they have matured over the summer. I love being a teacher becauase I have been given the gift of touching lives and being a part of something that is truly special, watching children blossum and grow into wonderful people.

Here are some pictures of my room. I am really loving it and cannot wait for it to be filled with 22 nine and ten year bodies that are eager to learn!

The calendar board when you first walk in the room. I promise I hung everything on the walls strait, but for some reason my camera made it look crooked.

My new cafe table! Isn't adorable? I can't wait to watch students enjoying thier favorite books, or maybe writing a great story at this table.

This is one of the areas that I like to do reading and writing lessons. It's also a spot where students can read and write. The purple chair is a favorite of the students.

My library and reading nook. I just love it! I recycled some old brown book boxes by adding a few coats of spray paint. Also, I am putting my new shelf to use, it really helped bring the room together!

My main bulliten board wall. This week students will be doing self portaits to put in the purple rectangle. I will show you the finished product later.

Their desk waiting to be filled!

I love my room, I would love to be a student in my room, and I am looking forward to all of the memories that will fill my room this year!