LAST DAY WITH SUGAR ON TOP

There's nothing better than sugaring the kiddos up on their last day of school.

I teach four classes in a row and then I'm done for the day.  Well, not really done -- I have meetings daily, sometimes with co-teachers, sometimes with my entire team, sometimes with administration, and sometimes with parents.  It's a schedule that melts my brain by the time we're in our meeting time, but it's great for teaching because it's breakneck from the moment the students arrive until I can take a breath about 4.75 hours later.

Since I have all of my students back-to-back-to-back-to-back, and since today is the students' last day (not mine, but theirs), I decide to sugar them up before sending them off to their next classes.  Of course, I spend hours internet searching and print out dozens and dozens of pages of peanut-free, gluten-free, egg-free candy.  I spend $40 on candy, but that's only enough for about eight pieces of candy per student.  Thinking of how I want to rile them all up on sugar highs, I truly hope that's enough.

By the end of each class, all of the candy wrappers have been picked up and put into the trash, the Apples to Apples game (which is rip-roaringly successful) has been put back, and the kiddos participate in singing a rap about writing (which we found online months ago).  After they leave me, I may be done, but they still have two more classes (both the beauty and curse of our schedule) -- art, gym, French, robotics, etc.  They and their other teachers are now facing the effects of the candy.

My team of teachers and I?  We are off the hook.  These kids aren't even in our wing anymore, and it's slightly disappointing that we cannot witness them pinging off the walls of the music room or the health room like overly-stimulated human ping-pong balls.

Ahhhh, there really is nothing like the last day of school ... on sugar.