The Monday morning rush to the window sill was soon followed by squeals of delight, as the vast majority of the students discovered tiny shoots poking their tender green heads through the over-watered soil of the clear, plastic containers into which they had been jammed by the over-zealous, would-be gardeners in our room last week.
It was a challenge to steer students back to the coat hooks to hang their coats and backpacks, and to get started with the morning Literacy routine. Only a few poor souls whose plants had not yet sprouted were sitting sullenly in various corners of the room, apparently deeply engrossed in their reading.
For those readers who pray, please add the not-yet-sprung seeds and their forlorn owners to your prayer list this week: Despite the fact that I ensured each student planted at least two seeds in their "pot", sometimes we need a miracle to ensure everyone feels like a master gardener in this first precarious introduction to plant growth!