Torture Tuesday! (and a freebie)

Another torture Tuesday?? Yes! Well, kinda. It's my second day with my kiddos and, first of all, let me tell you that my students are awesome! I had only 3 criers. And boy, were they criers! Administration even came over to help. They are all cuties though and did a great job with all of the expectations. By recess, there were no more tears! It's funny how easily I forgot how many routines I have to teach right away. I think we are off to a great start so far. I made a few adjustments to my classroom but no pictures yet.
So why was it torture?? BECAUSE IT WAS 110 DEGREES HERE!!!! It is so stinkin' (I mean stinkin'!) hot! In fact, because it was so hot, we had to have lunch inside for the past 2 days. Don't you know these kids have got to run around! Being inside the classroom all day isn't fun for anyone! Especially me! There were some games of freeze dance though. That's always fun. Lucky me, I didn't have to go out to my first day of yard duty because of the heat. Unlucky me because I still had to stay inside with the stinky kids.
I am exhausted! I do have a freebie for all of you though...
We use this on our first day of school. I have seen on so many blogs that there are many different ideas for The Kissing Hand to use on the first day. Here is our version. It was given to me during my first year and I have no idea where it came from so if you are the author of this poem, please let me know! =)
I use a stamp pad to stamp their names for 2 reasons: 1. stamp pads are easier to clean up 2. stamp pads are easier to clean up. No one wants a big painty mess on the first day of school! lol. At least I don't !

I don't know why it is upside down but if you click on the picture, you can have your own copy!

 It was so cute to hear some of the kids show their "kissing hand" to their parents. One kid says, "Mom, I made this for you so you won't miss me when I'm at school." Oh so cute!  We added a heart in the middle so that it looked just like Chester Raccoon's Kissing Hand.

Now, since we're back in school, I'm going to try my best to give some helpful reflections and some of my tips on inclusion. Here we go... 
What to do for next time?
I would probably ask the kids to come up during a small group. I did this whole group and I would have really liked to see, on the first day, some of the kids write their names and watch them follow the directions. It may have come in handy when deciding centers groups (which we started today).
What to do for inclusion?
This one is easy, everyone can stamp their hand or get assistance stamping their hand! Some students may need support writing their name but stamping their own hand allows for some independence. We really work towards making our students independent because not everyone is going to have a "shadow" their whole lives.

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