~and it was bound to happen~

It was bound to happen.  I just never figured it would happen during a lesson on timelines.

The last six weeks of school are basically upon us.  No way did I ever figure it would fly by this fast, yet it has.  We are working diligently every single day, knowing full well that our time together is dwindling down rather quickly.  Before we know it, the last day shall arrive.  It's a sobering thought especially since there is still much left for me to teach them.  

Today we worked on the concept of timelines.  I tried to apply a practical approach to it as I inserted a few connections for myself within my own personal one.

I started out with the usual.  1955 was added as the year I was born and 2007 was added as the year that most of them were born.  It seemed important to add the year I arrived at Big Pasture and came to be their teacher.  I wasn't sure what else to add but I need not to have worried because those 21 kids were more than willing to tell me everything that I ever told them about myself.  All this year I have been sharing stories about what life has been like for me.  I had no doubt that they listened to what I said.  I was just shocked at how much they remembered of it all.

"Don't forget to add the year you were a third grader, just like us Mrs. Renfro."
So 1963 was scribbled in.

"Hey, remember that year you hated math and started your own "I hate math club"?
Yes, as a matter of fact I did.  1965 found its place.

One sweet kid was recalling the time I told him about my brother running in a race and refusing to give up.  He reminded me that I told the class that my brother only wanted to be sure to cross the finish line, even if he was dead last, before they turned off the race clock. 

"Add that year, Mrs. Renfro!"
Hello 2004.

They will never forget the story of breaking my arm in about a gazillion pieces.  One young man was insistent that I place it onto the timeline as well.

"Mrs. Renfro, you better add that year that you tried to jump the curb on your bike and you know what happened then."
Skoosch over 2011.  2010 needs to squeeze in.

And it went on.  

I learned a lesson from those kids today and the lesson went like this.
They listen to me.  They hear every word I say.  Those 9-year olds get what I tell them and they even get what I do not.  It's been my experience to learn that they know very well how to read between the lines.  There are not many secrets that you can successfully keep from them.

They hear me even when it appears they do not.  The old memories of their teacher are somewhat interesting to them, even when a guy would think that it's the most boring tidbit of information on the planet.  

We ended up our lesson comparing the use of a personal timeline to using a timeline to document history.  Our discussion led us to a review of the cattle drives in 1870's Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas.  They had many interesting questions and among the most interesting was this.

"Mrs. Renfro, were you alive when they invented barbed wire?"

Just for the record, the answer is no.
Kids~you have to love them.

If I could go back in time and leave a message for that 17-year old girl shown above, I'd tell her that she would have an interesting life ahead of her.  She just didn't know it yet.