Last year right before Teacher and Staff Appreciation week we ran a A Teacher’s Day In the Life blog post, written by LMS teacher Nick Stavros. It was so much fun, we decided to do it again!
This time, Track B Primary teacher Jennifer Perneel agreed to write up one of her classroom days (and a peek into the rest of her day as well!). We are certain that your appreciation for all our hard-working teachers will expand after reading about a typical busy day in the life of one. Enjoy!
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5:45 AM
Nope.
5:54
Snooze alarm.
6:02
Latte is brewing!
6:10
Now that I have my coffee cup in hand – I can introduce myself! I am Jennifer Perneel, Track B Primary teacher here at SLOCA and this is my “Day in the Life!”
As I drink my latte, I whip up some muffins and get them in the oven. (Note – baking this early is NOT common. My picky daughter requested these for breakfast. Yesterday I ran out of time while I was prepping food for the week. She doesn’t eat much for breakfast so I will make them to ensure I send her to school with a full belly!)
6:24
My husband (also a teacher, in a local district) comes into the kitchen. We briefly talk about our schedules and discover that aside from the practice my husband has with his 8th grade soccer team, we actually have a free night! No soccer games, baseball, softball, dance, rehearsals, or performances. We marvel at the oddity of this then go about our morning routines.
6:29
Quick check of my work email then I start to get myself ready for the day.
6:45
My daughter (a 1st grader at SLOCA) excitedly comes in to tell me she was dreaming about muffins and was so excited to wake up to the smell of them baking! She gobbles down a few, completely unaware of all the “extras” that make her chocolate chip banana muffins so healthy. HA!
My husband wakes up my son (a SLOCA 5th grader) at 7. After they eat, both kids are responsible for getting themselves ready for school, gathering all their belongings and cleaning up their areas.
7:35
Everyone is loaded up and we are off! So far there have been no meltdowns, no lost articles of clothing (like the match to the shoes that MUST be worn today), and nothing forgotten! To top it all off, it is a mellow day driving on the Grade. Wow!
7:55
We arrive at school. I only teach one track so I must get my room set-up for the day. It is going to be a great day, I can feel it! I send my kids off to the small playground and have a quick chat with Ms. Fragasso about a few things coming up in Primary.
8:25
Morning Meeting. Mr. Stavros is reading to us in Latin! I love our morning meetings. I sure am going to miss Mr. Stavros next year.
8:30
Level 2 Math! We have been studying how to count, add, and today – subtract money. The class is very interested! It is a very productive and smooth lesson. I love when it all clicks!
9:40
Transition! I send my non-core students to their respective classes and let this beautiful group from Level 1 math in. How adorable are they?
We take a short break to take out our history journals, have a quick snack and rest our brains after our busy math classes. We then gather on the carpet to review what is on our to-do list for the day.
Next up – Latin and spelling rules for the week, and preposition list practice! All my 2nd graders have already memorized it and recited it for the class! (1st graders are already practicing for next year!)
10:15
RECESS! I head to the bookstore and get a cup of coffee. After chatting with a few people, I find myself with a couple extra minutes before the whistle blows. I find a shady spot outside (it is already hot!) and observe the kids on the little playground. I love seeing how they interact outside the classroom. I also love being able to hear my thoughts for a moment!
10:40
Core! Today we are talking about Queen Nzinga and review our home day reading by working on a map of the Triangular Trade Route. We also go back to a lesson we didn’t get to last week – drawing a portrait of Powhatan. Yes, this is art by my Primary students. Yes, I am so thankful to have Ms. Fragasso as our art teacher!
Our literature story we are currently reading is A Lion to Guard Us. The class LOVES it. Yesterday parents were asked to tell a story to their child, the way Amanda (a main character in the book) tells stories to her little brother and sister, then draw a picture of it in their journal. Students were given time to share their illustrations. They had a blast listening to each other’s stories and looking at their journal work.
Following that, we work on building sentences about the storm that took down the ship in our book. I am so impressed with the strong verbs and quality adjectives they are coming up with! We don’t get to finish this project, but I think they are off to a good start! We will finish this on Thursday.
12:00 PM
LUNCH! After I send the class out to eat, I take a few minutes to prep for science then head to the Team SLOCA workroom and enjoy a quick lunch and good conversation with my fellow teachers. I clean up a few minutes early and start to prep for future lessons.
12:40
Science with Ms. Fragasso’s class! This week we are exploring light, temperature, salinity and pressure of the ocean. We just started our ocean unit and so far we are loving it! Today we look specifically at pressure and light. I challenged the students to answer some written questions. I love how Primary brains think!
1:30
Recess! Time to prep for my next class.
1:40
My core class returns for science (they just had art with Ms. Fragasso). We go through the same lesson I did with Ms. Fragasso’s class.
2:20
Time to pack up! We have a few minutes to gather and review our day. Again – how adorable is my class? I can’t believe spending my days with this group is my “job.” They are such a beautiful group and I am so honored to be a part of their educational journey!
They asked to please do a silly picture so, here you go:
2:30
Dismissal! I have several parent volunteers helping to clean up our room so it is ready for Track A tomorrow. My (bio!) children come in, drop off their stuff, and head out with their friends.
After everyone leaves, I prep for my next classroom day, finish cleaning up my classroom, and have a wonderful conversation with a dear friend, while my kids play with hers. After we leave, we stop for new allergy meds for me (I think I used an entire box of Kleenex today) and finally head home.
5:00
Home! My kids unpack their bags and load their stuff into their homeschool boxes for tomorrow. I take a quick shower to alleviate my allergy attack and then unpack my stuff. I start dinner.
6:15
My husband is home! Dinner tonight is a balsamic chicken recipe I recently found. It is really good!
After dinner, our evening is pretty much like anyone else’s – we clean up, my husband and I sit and chat, our kids take baths, etc.
7:30
Time for my daughter to start getting ready for bed. After the usual toothbrushing battle (WHY??) she gets a chapter of one of my favorite books read to her and quickly falls asleep by 8:00. My son is in his room, working on his last books for “Battle of the Books.” He is asleep by 8:30.
8:00
I am subbing for Ms. Fragasso tomorrow so after I do the usual prep for homeschooling (review grids, pull needed materials, etc.), I also pack our stuff for school (snacks, school work for my son who will do independent work in the library, etc.). We will be home by 12:30 so we will finish homeschool work after lunch. I check my work email, add a few things to next week’s grids, and add to my to-do list before I forget everything. In between, I am watching a baseball game with my husband, who is also prepping for his teaching day tomorrow.
9:30
Reading time! I am one of those people who reads multiple books at a time! I just had to return a few books to the library (before I was able to finish them all – cry!) so now I will choose from this pile, which also include three books I received today, to review for next year. I notoriously hoard books – I think I have about ten more under my bed waiting to be read as well. I may look through there, too. I am not sure what I feel like reading just yet. Lights out for me is completely dependent upon how engaged I am in a book.
It was a wonderful day and I go to bed so thankful! Thanks for spending the day with me!
Thank YOU, Mrs. Perneel! We loved “spending the day with you” and we are so grateful and thrilled that you’ve been nurturing our Primary students for the past 10 years! I may need to get that recipe from you to post on the blog…
