In my Classroom!!!

I have 4 days until there are 15 fourth graders running around in my classroom. For the past week (since Monday) I've been doing lesson plans, cleaning, decorating and more planning after more planning.

Today (Thursday) I got the list of my students. It's not final and won't be until the 2nd week of school. So far I have 15 and we're hoping it won't change. I am really surprised that these kids names aren't as hard to pronounce as I thought. I guess I've got it easy since other teachers have way harder names to pronounce.

Here's their names:
Joni, Rosie (sisters), Kyle Joseph, Taldil, Kai (or Carol, not quite sure what she'll go by), Ilang, Maggie, Kobe, Ozzie (brothers), Reklai (pronounced: Rekli), Milenna, Mimokl, Alfernie John, Genesis, and Cowall.
Like I said, I may get more but I'm planning on 18 at most. (fingers crossed)

I am so excited to see and meet and each and every one of them that I wish Monday would hurry up and get here. At the same time I'm really nervous that I'll freak out and loose control and I'll have a bunch of wild Indians running around my room. Thankfully and hopefully the Lord has other plans. I know that this teaching experience will be a test of my patience, faith and trust, but since I know that God is ultimately in control I am very, very excited to see what this year has in store.

As for my classroom, it looks really, really cool. I kind of have a star theme going on. Each student has their name on a start which will hang from the ceiling with a sign that says "We're shining for Jesus!" They're name plates (on each desk) have stars on them and the main bulletin board is the "Star of the Week" board. This is basically a bulletin board for each student to tell all about themselves. On each Friday I will select a different student and over the weekend they will gather infomation about where they were born, their family and friends, their favorite food, movie and place and etc. I am so excited that every thing is working out.

I have 2 corners designated for 2 different parts of the day. One is our "Reading Corner". I plan on having story time 2 or 3 times a week where I will read chapter books/continuing stories like "Swift Arrow" and other really great books. This area is also for them to read on their free time.

The second corner/wall is called the "Display Wall". This is where they will have the oppourtunity to display their art work, class projects and etc.

I am very happy with the layout of my classroom so far. It is pretty big considering what I have to work with. It's air conditioned and the view from the back window is a jungle full of bananna trees and coconut trees. Unfortunately out front isn't as beautiful. They are currently building a gym and so I have to walk through construction every day to get to my classroom. I'm hoping they don't take all of first semester to get it done.

Well, I hope that this has given you a little glimpse of what my classroom looks like. Trust me, there is much more to come!! I thank you all for your prayers and support back home!

Love you all very much!!