Dr. Poppy Moon

Yes we are!

One of the best parts of my day is going to 3rd grade to play Math-Roundup!  It is a simple game.  The teacher flashes a multiplication fact and the student and I rush to answer it.  If I beat you, I move onto the next kid.  If you beat me, you get a prize out of my Ding Ding Game Box (you may have learned about the Ding Ding Game in an earlier post).  The Ding Ding Game Box holds all my prizes.  A student cannot touch or look into my Ding Ding Box (its like my own personal Ark of the Covenant).  I get to pick the prize, and there are NO tradesies.  This means I won’t change out your prize.  These prizes are amazingly awesome!    Past winners have been awarded:

• a barbie doll head
• a paper plate
• a ladies lipstick case
• a plastic barbie motorcycle with a broken front wheel
• a pair of men’s jeans (so big the winner could fit in one leg!)
• a button
• a decorative full sized outdoor flag with an easter basket
• an infant’s swimsuit
• a piece of cotton fluff (I called it a cloud)
• a package of tomato seeds
• a jar of baby food
• an expired can of chili

You may ask, why do you give them this junk?  Because it is so funny, and it makes them pay attention.  When I first started the Ding Ding Game I gave out Oriental Trading prizes.  The kids always complained that their prize was not as good as Susan’s prize.  This irritated me.  I had a box of stuff to donate to the Salvation Army.  I decided “I’ll get them!  Let’s see how they like these prizes!”  They didn’t just like the prizes, they LOVED THEM!  They wonder, “what will the next winner receive?”  This makes them pay attention to the lesson/game/whatever.  They want that kid to win so they can see the prize.  Thus, they are more supportive of their classmates and leads to social-academic success.  So if anyone is looking for a dissertation topic, it should be called The ding ding game and social/academic growth and development in elementary-aged children of rural Alabama.

Check out this video to see how I play 3rd Grade Math Roundoff.  If you are a fan of a certain show featuring a gentleman named Johnny Knoxville, you will recognize the music and the intro!

I am always surprised when students in my graduate classes misspell simple words.  Isn’t that what the spell checker is for?  This is a sign at our local Tuscaloosa Chic-fil-A.  I guess they need a spell checker too!

In the drive-thru

Does this mean I won't get a free breakfast because this month doesn't exist?

Monday is our 100th day of school.  For kindergarten I have made 100th Day of School buttons.  I am attaching them so you can use them too!

100th Day Buttons

Check out all my new products!

Bully Smartz Kids CD

You may recall that after the Tuscaloosa tornado I discovered a cat living under my house.  No one claimed him, so I adopted him and named him Artemis Clyde Frog since I really like South Park.  When I found him he was really skinny.  Since then he eats constantly.  Now he is huge!  He expects wet food around 6:30 a.m. and then again at 4:00 p.m.  Between those times he eats massive amounts of dry kibble and kitty Temptations treats.

Here is a picture of him sleeping on our bed.  It looks like he is planking or floating off the side of the bed.  Silly kitty!

Artemis Planking

His favorite thing to do is watch Simon’s Cat videos on YouTube.  Here are his favorites:

I was so surprised and pleased to learn that 2 of my games were featured on the website for Chicago Games and Card Company!  Check it out (Snoots is getting a big head thinking he is all famous and cool):

Snoots and Let's Make Friends

One of my greatest frustrations at Christmas is families who hit me up at the last minute for gifts.  I try to get parents to tell me as early as possible if they need Christmas assistance.  I have several sources who help me provide gifts to needy families.  One of my best resources is Kathy Duncan from the Credit Union of Alabama.  They have a great program that allows families to skip a payment (ex. a car payment) for the month of December.  There is no penalty for skipping a payment (although it is added to the end of your loan).  The person must pay a small fee for this benefit.  That fee is used to purchase gifts for needy children and their families.   Families!  The whole family (except for the adults)!  This way everyone gets gifts and not just the one kid or two kids from my school.  They spend a good amount on each family member and they wrap the gifts (and they don’t forget the batteries)!

So two days before Christmas break I get a call from a parent who needs assistance.  AAAGG!  THREE DAYS before break!  I had some presents that I had squirreled away just in case, but not enough for all five of the children!  I was able to scrape up some money, but it still wasn’t enough to provide for the whole family.

Thats when the miracle happened.  I was walking to my car after school and under my windshield was this envelope:

The Envelope

I thought it was a card from a student.  I took it off the car and got in.  I decided to open it to see who it was from.  Inside the envelope was this:

The Card

Clipped to the back of this card (with a tiny Christmas Tree clip) was a $100 dollar bill. Exactly what I needed to complete the family’s Christmas.  My mouth dropped open.  Who put it there?  There was no note, but this was on the other side of the card:

Who is it from?

Who is this from?  I looked around in the parking lot but I didn’t see anyone!  I still don’t know who it is from!  I am going to send a thank you to the church, but I wonder who is the mysterious person that left the money?  How did they know what I needed?  Surely they were watching to make sure I got the envelope?

Thank you, mysterious Christmas person!  What a wondrous time for miracles!

This fall has flown by!  Here is a recap of the exciting highlights from fall 2011!