“It is fun to see my students writing their stories, and this year’s animations are the best that I’ve seen,” Grijalva said. “To see the care the older peers put into these projects to make my kindergarteners happy is really special,” Jamie Grijalva, Brookhaven kindergarten teacher said.Īfter Vitelli asked her kindergarteners to write down their stories, Ross would read each line to them to have the kindergarteners repeat it back, finally recording each of the 63 kindergarteners’ stories. Vitelli, Brookhaven’s teacher of the year, focuses on teaching her students to write early on, which gave them the ability to write their own stories. Seven years ago, Ross, was looking for a new way to weave together students across the curriculum, when Amanda Wolfe, an English teacher, suggested a project that would connect Teresa Vitelli’s kindergarteners with Ross’s high school students. After getting to know them a little bit, we got to animate their stories,” sophomore Kei Takahashi said. She blogs at Wendy’s Weekly Words.“I liked meeting the kids. Parent, GreenPrints,, , United Teacher, Beyond the Diaper Bag, and The Barefoot Review. She has had work published in the Los Angeles Times, Christian Science Monitor, L.A. Wendy is the mother to a 5-year-old-son, a writer, and a public school teacher for twelve years. That every adult at his school has the number one job of keeping all the kids healthy and safe.Īnd my son knows that in our family, there will be no shortage of hugs and kisses. Meanwhile, I can’t force someone to become a “hugger ” all I can do is remind my son that his teacher is there to keep him and all his friends healthy and safe. And, it has been my experience, that hugs accomplish all those things.

Personally, that’s where I would remind others that the key word here is “children.” We are talking about children children who need to feel safe and respected and cared for. Some believe that hugs have no place in a school setting children are there to learn, not to be cuddled. There’s no easy explanation regarding the lack of hugs my son is receiving this year. I told him that she was wearing her keys around her neck and probably didn’t want to bump him with them. Later, Ryan questioned me about his teacher’s hug “It wasn’t cozy,” he told me. We asked if Ryan could hug her, and she turned sideways and gave a half-hearted hug. One afternoon at dismissal, he asked me if his teacher would hug him good-bye. Now my son is in kindergarten, where he is one of twenty-three students with one teacher, and a part-time teacher’s assistant. They were firm believers in the power of hugs and kisses on the tops of heads. My son went to a fantastic preschool where he was one of twenty children, with three teachers. I was willing to risk any reprimand if it meant a child knew he or she was loved and cared for. Not everyone agreed with my hands-on methods, but that’s who I am. They also received high-fives, air kisses across the hallway, pinkie swears, a hand on their shoulder. Any child who wanted a hug, got one from me. And I watched teachers tell students they couldn’t hug them.īut, that wasn’t me. It is safer that way - no innocent gesture could be misinterpreted. Teachers are now advised not to touch a student. Within the last few years, teachers have been in the news with increasing frequency for inappropriate, criminal behavior towards their students. I hugged them hello and goodbye, I hugged them on their birthdays, to celebrate an accomplishment, to offer comfort, and to calm and soothe. Whether I was teaching kindergarten, fourth, or fifth grades, I always hugged my students (if they wanted a hug). When I was a teacher, I was known for many things: not allowing use of the word “hate,” wearing a lot of rings on my fingers, and hugging.

Teacher and student hug artoon