Summer Kinders

Again, musing over my summer daycare days, I recall so many lovely memories. I used to play Hide-and-Go-Seek for hours with the kindergarteners. Amazingly, we would use the same small rectangular room. Hiding places were few and far between, but it turns out that five-year-olds can't possibly get enough of the game. I would, of course, ham the whole thing up. I would search talking out loud to myself about how confused I felt-- even as the little ones used the same hiding spots over and over. Little legs stuck out from behind doors, lumpy bodies curled beneath blankets with elbows poking out. Snickers would erupt as I drew near. I would play off their exaggerated emotions of anticipation and sneakiness-- then, bam! I would uncover the hiding kid and she or he would erupt with laughter and shock. Or I would hide, and I would be as creative as possible with my limited resources. It was great fun.

One of my other favorite parts was nap time. Firstly, we got to turn the lights down and rest in a cool room away from the blasting Tucson summer heat. But secondly, I always had a chance to read to them as they lay upon those colored squishy mats. My absolute favorite children's book in the world was (and so still is) Fox in Sox. I basically had the story memorized I would read it so much. I had a voice for the Fox and this awesome, sort of Richard Nixon voice for Mr. Knox. Mr. Knox would shake his head and 'blubber blabber' with frustration like the fat Gungan king from Star Wars Episode 1-- it was pretty awesome.