Puppets

My class has been doing Design and Technology (D&T) with the PPA teacher this term but today was to be devoted to finally making the glove puppets they have been designing, practising sewing for etc. The PPA teacher had asked me to change my PPA time to this morning instead of this afternoon for this week, so I didn't arrive in class until just before the afternoon session. I had had a couple of frantic texts at break-time from my teaching assistant, which I replied to in lighthearted vein - after all, she couldn't really mean that she was nearly bald from tearing her hair out, or that, at lunchtime, I would find her hanging over the railings in a desperate attempt to escape...
Suffice it to say that we got through the afternoon, although hysteria did threaten at times. Had these children EVER held a sewing needle in their tiny hands before?
So we had L. who had obviously decided that he didn't actually want to make a puppet anyway and so reported that his embryo puppet had gone AWOL during lunchtime. The sum total of his day's work was to stick the eyes on the front piece of felt.
C.'s idea of sewing seemed to be to close his eyes, point the needle at whatever part of the puppet it touched first and stick it through - no neat sewing round (or even anywhere near) the edges of the felt for him!
A. thought that decorating the face of his was infinitely preferable to doing battle with needle and thread, so he spent most of his time carefully placing the features on the face of his puppet, although he somehow failed to notice that he had ended up with about 6 eyes, 3 mouths and a couple of noses. I sewed his myself.
Then there was S. who must have used half a pint of glue sticking the eyes on his puppet's face. I disposed of the sodden felt and cut out a new outline for him.
Still, it's half term now. Freedom for a week!
And, you know what? I'll actually miss that class when I leave at Christmas.

Arachnophobes unite!

Morning registration, children (finally) sitting on the carpet at my feet, when suddenly a shriek pierces the air from one of the girls. There is an enormous spider on the carpet. 30 children are immediately evacuated to their chairs while 'Miss' attempts to continue calling the register, having bravely resisted the impulse to stand on her chair or or sprint from the room, and the trusty TA (Teaching Assistant) dives in to do battle with the intruder.
Unfortunately, she lost it and, as luck would have it, was not around at the beginning of the afternoon session when it suddenly reappeared, right by my feet (Wouldn't you know it?). This time, however, 'Miss' was made of sterling stuff and, grabbing courage with both hands, throwing caution to the winds etc etc, I quickly stamped on it and dispatched it to the Great Cobweb of the hereafter. Brave, innit!
And it was REALLY, REALLY ENORMOUS!!!

That Monday feeling

So, I'm sitting here, having just watched the update on Strictly Come Dancing (Come on, it's got to be ageism that Stephanie was voted out first!) and paying some overdue visits to the blogs on my sidebar. The pace of life is pleasant at the weekend - I actually manage to have time to relax and think, but now it's Sunday evening and I am about to step back onto that mad carousel that is the week (Poetic, that, don't you think, YP?)
Still, keeps me out of mischief, I suppose....