Presenting King Jeffrey

My group for one of the classes I'm taking this semester (Creative and Sensory Experiences for Young Children from Birth - 2nd Grade.  How's that for a class name??) made a recycle monster for our creature project for the class.  We named him King Jeffrey, and you can read my first post about him by clicking here.

We presented King Jeffrey to the kids at the daycare on campus today.  We presented in the Preschool-4 room (to four year olds who aren't in kindergarten yet).  It went SO well!  The kids loved our story about King Jeffrey and were really into it.  They absolutely loved getting to feed the king cans and bottles.

Being with the younger kids... that's where I'm most in my element.  That's the grade/level I want to teach at.  PreK, kindergarten, or first grade.  Seriously, first at the absolute oldest.  Don't get me wrong, I love my fourth graders and I'm having a good experience in the fourth grade... but it's not where I'm at my most comfortable, not where I'm most in my element.

I knew that I didn't want to teach older students, but I still thought that maybe being in a fourth grade classroom might change my mind.  I mean, last semester I didn't think I wanted to teach first grade, but being in a first grade classroom changed that.  I tried so hard to go into this placement experience with an open mind, but I just don't want to teach older students.  Being in the fourth grade has just solidified my knowledge that I have virtually no interest in teaching older kids.  I'm having a good time, a good experience in the class I'm in, but I just... I don't know.  I really don't know.  Being in a class with the little ones, preK or kindergarten, that's where I feel most at home.  That's where I'm happiest teaching.

I was so much happier being in front of the room of four year olds today than I have been the entire time I've been in the fourth grade classroom.

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