Age Appropriate And Grumpy

by Stacie Isabella Turk

It is 2:00 on Thursday afternoon and I have been given 30 glorious min in classroom 5 with 24 five yr olds.  I am greeted with all sorts of questions, but the loudest one is “how old do you think I am, I am , I am, what about me, me, me?”

(Funny, that seems to be the question a mature woman asks a boy she likes in my age bracket too! )

Of course I know this game, so I guess at many ages: 5 3/4, 6, 5 1/2...all the answers tickle them and promote giggles, which of course was my intention.

Seconds later, I am asked by Jacob, “how old are YOU?”

I answered a truthful response, to which he replies disappointed, “oh... I thought you were five.”

Today was the first time I read one of the Mac and Cheese stories to a kindergarten class!

What a trip, after all these years of shaping this project, to actually hold the book in my hand, thumb through the finished illustrations, watch their faces up close and hear their questions.

Treasure.

I read GRUMPY, GROUCHY AND GRATEFUL. Charlotte was bummed that the caterpillars were boys and squealed with joy when she finally discovered Belinda the butterfly. They all twirled their mouths into smiles at the end on the last page. (Sorry, you’ll have to read the story.)

Jacob guessed the fate of their home when he saw the red tractor and Evan commented about how furry the caterpillars are. Joyful exclamation on the last page and they all staked their claim on which character they wanted to be.

Conversation about what they do when they feel grumpy prompted answers such as:

I KICK THE BED

I HIT MY HEAD

I HIDE UNDER THE COVERS

As usual, reading with the kids was a good fact finding mission...maybe next time we can come up with some other ideas about what to do with our grumpiness rather than destroy furniture, prompt a headache and hide.

What do your own kids or students do with their grumpiness? What kinds of things do you invite them to consider to do when feeling grumpy?