During the holiday season, we talk so much about what gifts WE want and we often neglect to think about others. So this year, I posted the following on the students’ class blog:

It’s the season of giving. What gift would you like to give someone? Who would receive this gift?

As the students reflected on the questions, I gave a bit more information:

• The gift could be to anyone – parents, siblings, cousins, friends, grandparents, etc
• It did not have to be something bought.

This was the first time the students had logged into their blog so we spent a bit of time just getting on. I explained that I had written the post and they were responding by writing a comment.

I asked if they knew how to spell every single word they might need and the response was a resounding NO! So, what would they do when they came across a word they couldn’t spell? A few said they would ask the teacher but I pointed out that there were only 2 teachers and 20 students so we might not be available when they needed a word spelled. The students concluded that the best thing to do was to sound it out.

Below are some of their responses (written in 1st grade spelling with “adult” spelling in parentheses if needed to make sense of the thought).

• from Greyson: I am gowing to giv my mom a quite time love greyson.
• from Riley: I Wud Like To Giv Mom a nis Worm Kise! (I would like to give Mom a nice warm kiss!)
• from Ruthie: I would give a doll to one of my nextdoor neighbors. Her name is Charlotte.She is two years old.I would give her older sisster, Jainie a coloring book.She is four years old.
• from Zoe: I would give to you Mrs Kee a vacation .
• from Benton: i would give the gif of love and cinednis. (I would give the gift of love and kindness.)
• from Mary Blair: what i wunt to give my mommy and daddy for crismas is a odamit to hang on the crismas tree and breckfist in bed. and to wish evreone to have a merry crismas. (What I want to give my mommy and daddy for Christmas is an ornament to hang on the Christmas tree and breakfast in bed. And to wish everyone a Merry  Christmas.)
• from Toby: I wold give a present to my Granparets the present wold be a BIBLE .
• from Ruby: I will give my mom a little puppy and I will give my dad a big kiss on the chek (cheek).

If you would like to read more responses, visit the class blogs listed below:

• Mrs. Hutchinson
• Mrs. Kee
• Mrs. Orehek