That's that then

Tonight has been spent mainly on paperwork for school. Every night I spend some time doing school stuff after cooking dinner, whether it be planning, resource making,  uploading assessments or other exciting stuff. It's not a complaint it is what it is and what I choose to do. As Mr Cymraeg is not back to work until Thursday (he has a chest infection) he cooked dinner this evening which was amazing - roast lamb. It was also a real treat not to even think about what we were going to have. It should hopefully mean that I can have an evening off and go to a car auction on Thursday night! I know how to live! Now I'm off to bed. Hopefully I  will have something far more interesting to talk about tomorrow but it's highly unlikely!!! 😂 Good night!

Alice in Wonderland

I am very blessed to work in a special needs school. It gladdens my heart to see my students everyday,  my staff aren't too bad either ; ). The theme for our class topic this term is Victorian Historians, we are currently working on Alice in Wonderland. 

We have done lots of sensory work around Alice in Wonderland which involves different materials that appeal to all the senses. It is often the process that holds the actual learning and I then turn it into something that visually appeals to the adults in my class. This keeps everyone happy! For instance my students have been touching a mixture of glitter, sequins and buttons, this was part of their learning activity. Prior to this an adult had supported them with squeezing a sauce bottle holding pva glue into making swirls/circles (onto black card) the amount and form of support depending on the student. This then became the platform on which to touch the sensory materials, which would stick to the glue and make a picture. 

My students don't particularly have any interest in the finished article but the staff that work with them do. This is the display of the student's work for our 'Down the rabbit hole' display board.

I also have a branch in the corner of my classroom to display other bits that have been made too.

Tomorrow we are ready to make Mad hatter hats!

I have a mixture of different textures to touch which will be over glue again. We will see how it all turns out tomorrow! Sometimes there is no salvaging for the adults! 

Sometimes when I get home I'm all done with creativity!

I have been holding two teaching jobs for a while which has been a struggle as it becomes much more than full time.  I'd worked at my two-day a week job for almost four years so that when I was offered long term sick cover I knew it was time for a change. It was sad to leave the children especially as some of them still think that I will be teaching them next year! I was given many, many presents and lots of beautiful flowers, that are still looking well two weeks after they were given to me.  I was also given lots of chocolates and other gifts, unfortunately dog no 2 ate three boxes of chocolates which in turn became gifts that we won't talk about!  I was also given a camera from work which was a very welcome gift, so there really is no excuse not to blog more now that I can take photos again. I'm looking forward to starting my new job in September.

This week's 52mmm challenge came in the form of a story sack that I have made for one of the amazing support staff that we have in the Foundation Stage. Now that she has completed her training and is no longer on student pay, the school can not afford to pay her the going rate, which means that she will be moving on to pastures new. This is a picture of the story sack that I have made for her.

As you can see in this picture I also bought some Old MacDonald masks that are available from here. I love the resources that you can buy from Sweet Counter, they are especially good at shows where you can buy just single items instead of the class packs that they sell online.I have been meaning to show you this for a while. I can't help myself when it comes to fabrics, wools, haberdashery, sewing machines... So it will come as no surprise that I just couldn't resist buying this beauty... One of the appeals for me is that it looks and smells old. It has been well used and I can only imagine the history that it may have. Even more exciting was that when I opened the case I saw a little box inside. I eagerly opened the box and look what I found inside!It is the instruction manual, very battered and dog eared but still there!I also found the key! Happy days!Along with the pleasure comes the pain...I'm also trying to get my head around blogger, so that i can be organised and have labels on my post. Long overdue methinks, but at least I'm having a go now. It would all go well if I wasn't quite so special!

We did a spot of research,
although some of them would say,
but it's probably something funny
as they look pretty strange by day.

Our headteacher's quite old-fashioned,
she wears a Victorian nighshirt,
our sports teacher wears her tracksuit
and sometimes her netball skirt.

That new teacher in the Infants,
wears bedsocks with see-through pyjamas,
our deputy head wears a t-shirt
she brought back from the Bahamas.

We asked our secretary what she wore,
but she shooed us out of her room,
and our teacher said, her favourite nightie
and a splash of expensive perfume.

And Mademoiselle, who teacher French,
is really very rude,
she whispered, 'Alors! Don't tell a soul,
but I sleep in the...back bedroom!'

Well it made me smile!