The Reality of Christmas Break & a Freebie

Have you heard that Christmas is only 6 days away? :) My first graders come in each morning, with energy that outdoes the power of a whole box of Pop Tarts in a little 6 year old frame, and let me know how close we are to Christmas! Then they follow up with the number of days to Christmas Eve. The magic of Christmas can not truly be understood until you step into a first grade classroom 6 days before Christmas and 5 days before Christmas Eve. :)

Teachers--let me just tell you that if I was on the Olympic committee I would decide to give every one of you a gold medal for teaching the week before Christmas alone! It is not an easy task to turn this Christmas energy into productivity as you spend the next 6+ hours refocusing and engaging them in learning. Especially when you throw in the full moon we had this week.

What the students don't realize is that they are not the only ones with a countdown going on!

2 more days! And no that wasn't a typo, we still have Friday and Monday to go before our break!

I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. I have so many things I want to share with you--wish I could show you some of the things we have been working hard on in first grade, but from keeping students engaged, meetings and trainings, fun and educational Christmas related activities, and moving the Elf everyday (my kids LOVE Sugar Cookie, our elf!) I have not a picture to show you. Well, I may have one on my phone, but I'm lacking the energy to go and download it. HA!

In the midst of my tiredness and Christmas bouncing kids, I had a lightbulb moment today. You know-those Ah-ha kind of moments that ground you and remind you why you do what you do. Here's how it played out.

One of my students came up to me today and said: "Mrs. Foxwell, I'm really sad that we don't have school on Christmas day."

I must admit I was shocked, especially since this was one of my kiddos that had been bouncing with an energetic "6 more days to Christmas" only moments earlier.

In my surprised state I asked them "Why?" and they responded: "Well, because that means I won't get to spend Christmas with you."#breakmyheart

That's when it hit me--even though we all need that Christmas break ASAP, the reality of what we do is BIG! It's huge--we give and give everyday (and spend our evenings even Pinterest away trying to find another way to move that crazy elf around #truestory #whoswithme), and we do it not because we have to but because we love our kids. It's because we believe in them and want to see them succeed. It's because we think that each one of them has value and great worth. The full impact of what we do will never truly be able to be measured on a data sheet or a benchmark exam. While each of those things has it's place, the reality is that teachers play an important role in the lives of each one of our students:

So as the reality of Christmas break soon begins (2 more days!!), I want to say thank you for all that you do as teachers!! You are making a difference and what you do is so so important! And as your break begins I want you to relax, laugh, eat lots of good food (calories don't count at Christmas time ;), and spend every moment you can with those you love! Because not only do you need that, but your students will also need a refreshed and ready teacher when the New Year comes around too! Have no fear:

And as a little Christmas gift from me to you, I have these Thank You Notes Freebie for you to use! Just click HERE or on the picture to download! :)

Happy Friday friends!