Who knew that the last time I would see my precious preschoolers again, in person, would be months away when I said, “I love you! Have a great weekend! On Friday, March 13th? Never, in my wildest dreams, did I think our time together would be cut short by an entire quarter of school! That's what this crappy viral pandemic did, though!
I spent the weekend, putting things from winter, Valentine's Day, Dr. Suess Week, and Dinosaurs back in their correct tubs in the basement. I pulled out the items for Weather, and Planting and Growing. I put it all into my rolling cart, ready to take back to school to work on my lesson plans for the remainder of the school year. My mind was filled with thought and ideas of how to make the rest of our time together exciting and educational.
I had so much I still wanted to do with them! I had received Growing in a Glove kits we were going to use for planting. I have milkweed seed from my parent's farm that I was thinking of using in a bare spot on the playground to enlist the help of some parents to start a butterfly garden. Thank heavens I hadn't ordered my caterpillars yet! We were going to watch them eat through their special food, make cocoons, hatch into butterflies, and release them on our playground. I was almost ready to get eggs from the county extension office to incubate and hatch. The kids would have loved it!! This is my favorite time of the year and I don't get to share it with them!
I get it, but I'm bummed. We have to keep the kids, their families, and their families safe. On the flip side, I just feel so cheated. I feel cheated on missing eight weeks of instructional time. I feel cheated on the spring activities and experiences I had planned. I feel cheated out of our Sensory Walk at the nature center, followed by sack lunch and outdoor play in the Children's Playscape. I feel cheated out of making Mother's Day gifts with my kids. I feel REALLY cheated out of the preschool program and graduation. The kids are always so stinkin' adorable. I just want to be with my kids! Stupid Covid! I didn't even get a chance to tell them good-bye!
