Coming to the end.

Another school year is coming to a close, and I have such a mixture of emotions this week. I am so excited for almost two months of relaxation and travel, but so sad to part with my second graders.

I have spent 180 days with these kids, almost 1,500 hours, and I am attached to them. I find myself tearing up thinking about them leaving my room and traveling down the hall to third grade next year. I will miss their smiling faces each morning, their witty comments throughout the day, and their genuine excitement for learning. Being a teacher is a very strange experience- you get to know 25 kids so incredibly well, spending more time with them than anyone else in their lives, and then after one short school year you have to let them go. When I see my old students walking through the hallways, now fourth graders (soon to be fifth graders), I still remember them as little seven year olds. Their personalities, mannerisms, and strengths will forever be frozen in time with me. Luckily, through the programs in our school, I do get to see them grow and change, but will always remember their times in my classroom in second grade.

During this final week, I am trying to soak up as much time with my kids as possible. We have planned a week of trips and fun activities at school to make their final week in second grade as wonderful as possible. We started the week off with a trip in honor of our Brooklyn Bridge Study, which we culminated last week. After taking the subway to Manhattan this morning, we strolled across the bridge admiring the views of New York City.

After walking across the promenade, we made our way to an open lawn in the new Brooklyn Bridge Park for lunch. After eating, the kids ran around and played while the teachers relaxed in the lawn. And let me just say, the skyline was stunning.

After about an hour of running around and playing, we headed to the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory for an afternoon snack before walking back to school. This is seriously the highlight of the year for many of my second grade friends. The stories they heard all year about ice cream after a bridge trip were really true!

The ice cream is really so delicious...

We had a great day together enjoying one of Brooklyn's finest treasures, and I can't wait for another day in the city tomorrow with my class. Happy last week of school!