Just
Plain Bill
“Keep
your eyes on the flag of our country…”
Each
year of my ten plus years of elementary teaching, my classes wrote a song or
two, to add music and verse to our curriculum. With the passing of another
Independence Day, I was reminded of the one my third grade students wrote in
1976, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the founding of our
country:
Keep
your eyes on the flag of our country,
With
colors of red, white and blue,
With
freedom of choice as our banner,
The
rest depends on you,
Mountains
high,
Valleys
low,
Rivers
flowing,
Mighty
oceans touch our shore,
Keep
your eyes on the flag of our country,
America,
America,
We love
you yes we do!
Whenever
I’ve communicated with my former students, they’ve referred back to one or more
of the special parts of our school year that were designed to add enrichment to
the standard 180 day school year. The Annual Snail Race (with Ronald Reagan as
judge one year), the song we wrote each year (and performed on the local radio
station), the school-wide art fair we sponsored for the school, and the gazebo
third-graders built with hand tools are all favorites often recalled with
nostalgia and fondness.
Now
that I’ve returned to public school teaching after 33 years, presently on a
substitute level with the possibility of a full-time basis, I’m looking forward
to adding value from my personal repertoire – my stash of skill-focused,
student-proven enrichment activities designed to engage and inspire.
Moving
forward, I’m committed to keeping my eyes on the flag of the public school
room, as I’m truly blessed – and so are my students.
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