Leprechaun Day

This week, Cora's kindergarten friends created leprechaun traps as their homework. 

All week, Cora has been telling us what she's learning about the little mystical creatures: they are sneaky, greedy, mischievous and love gold. She believes it all, and really hopes to catch one for herself. 

Cora came up with the plan for her trap herself. The leprechaun will climb the ladder (normally set up on the outside) and spot a piece of gold hanging from a rope inside. He'll jump onto the rope to get the gold, but the weight of his body will pull the lid of the box down, trapping him inside. Then, the bell on the rubber band will ring, alerting her to his presence.

 

I was happy when I saw that Mrs. Hawthorne had scheduled me to work in class Friday, when all the kindergartners presented their traps. They were all so cute! It was a fun thing to watch.

 (Most the children had to be reminded to speak up, look at their audience - Cora wasn't alone in using her quietest voice.)

 During recess, leprechauns struck in the classroom! Here, the students are amazed at all the havoc the little guy wreaked. The calendar was all mixed up, binders on the floor, chairs overturned, leprechaun traps upended. The coats were all over the place, including one in the recycling bin and one worn by a Clifford the Big Red Dog stuffed animal.

 Left on Mrs. Hawthorne's chair was a little glittery green hat, drink mix, and a note, telling to mix the contents with water. It warned that NO teachers should try it.

 Unfortunately, Mrs. Hawthorne didn't follow the instructions. Her nose started itching, her feet got very hot, and then - she discovered they had turned green! You can imagine the uproar.

The children were then eager to watch me drink my cup; Cora was very concerned that I would suffer a similar green fate. She actually was near tears, and her anxiety lasted through library time. Poor girl. I assured her that since I'm not a teacher, I could drink the apple-flavored drink problem-free.

After school, we met up with several kindergarten friends (including Sophia here) at Chick-Fil-A for lunch.