 |
| It's our first day of kindergarten. |
 |
| It's a brand new year. |
 |
| It happens every year. The gingerbread man runs away. |
 |
| We stopped at the STEAM lab (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) to look for him. |
 |
| We're working together. |
 |
| We're building a bridge for the gingerbread man. |
 |
| The gingerbread man left us clues. |
 |
| We'll help him get across the lake so the fox won't eat him. |
 |
| We used the QR reader on the iPad to decipher the codes. |
 |
| We searched in the gym. |
 |
| We looked in the library. |
 |
| We asked everyone if they'd seen him. |
 |
| We finally caught up with him. He left us a tasty treat. |
 |
| All that running around made us hungry. |
 |
| Our day was filled with gingerbread activities. |
 |
| We're counting on having a great school year. |
“Forget the former things. Do not dwell on the past. See I
am doing a new thing. Now it springs up, do you not perceive it?”
Brand-new, unbroken, pointy crayons, still wrapped in their
paper. Sharp, unchewed pencils, topped off with square, pink erasers. Shiny
laminated name tags. New notebooks filled with clean, blank pages.
Fresh little faces, eager to love and be loved.
One of the most rewarding perks of teaching is the
opportunity to start fresh every August. I’ve cleaned the classroom from top to
bottom and everything has been refreshed or replaced. I’ve thrown away old and
outdated materials, touched up paint, put out new supplies. And I have a new
crop of kids.
If I made mistakes last year, I get a do-over. And if I had
successes, I can’t rest on past accomplishments; now I have a new group of
kindergartners who need to learn to learn about words, about numbers, and about
God’s wonder-filled world.
It’s a fresh start for the kids, too. They’re not the same children
they were a year ago; they’ve grown and matured. Their personalities are not
set; they’re still in the process of becoming who they are meant to be.
Not everyone has the unique opportunity of starting fresh in
August, but as Christians we’re not bound by our past mistakes or failures. Every
sunrise provides a new opportunity to begin again and to live victoriously. God’s
compassions are new every morning.
“But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining
toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal toward the prize or which God
has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:13-14
“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for
his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your
faithfulness.” Lamentation 3:22-23
