Okay, I admit it: I’m a Valentine’s Day Grump. I actually jokingly told the students that I was the Valentine’s Day Grinch, but without the hope of my heart every growing in size. 🙂 I think that I come by it naturally. My parents have never celebrated Valentine’s Day. In fact, every year, my step-dad gives my mom a gift and card a day or two before or after Valentine’s Day to just prove that “love doesn’t just happen one day out of the year.” 🙂

In the classroom, I always struggle with what to do about Valentine’s Day. As I’ve started teaching older students, without a doubt,  there’s an issue of young love, no love, friendships changed, or friendships destroyed. For every smile on this day, there’s at least one set of tears. Emotions run high on this Hallmark Holiday!

But the purpose of this blog post is really to apologize (and I thank my principal, Paul, for pointing out what I didn’t see on my own). I really thought that I was doing well with my positive goal, and I was really feeling positive too. Not today though … Today, I slipped from being positive to being negative. And while said in jest and with a chuckle of his own, I whole-heartedly thank my principal for pointing this out to me, and making me reconsider the positives. So in the loving spirit of Valentine’s Day, and with a fresh new positive outlook, here are the many things that I loved about today.

• I loved finding the beating heart video to show on our SMART Board on Tuesday. Students really wanted one to use for our Big Body Bonanza, and this one is perfect! While there were a few covered eyes initially, students were actually quite mesmerized by what they saw.
• I loved watching my Grade 5’s work with Ms. Stretton’s Grade 2 students on blogging today. I loved seeing the students collaborate, and the genuine interest in writing and editing.
• I loved how excited the students got when they got to plan our duct tape vein path for our Big Body Bonanza on Tuesday. They were so eager to work together, construct maps, think of different choices, and explain their choices through photographs and PicCollages.
• I loved how the students totally took over and worked together to create the duct tape veins. They problem solved. They decided on the addition of the heart in the middle, and they decided on the words to add. I just stood back and watched, and it was the most incredible thing ever!
• I loved going down to see the Kindergarten students at first nutrition break that I haven’t seen for a while, and getting overwhelmed with Valentine’s Day wishes, hugs, and high fives. Kindergarten students have a wonderful way of making everyone smile. 
• I loved how the students chose to make this duct tape vein path and add the final touches to our human body display before playing the games for our Valentine’s Day Party. Even when I gave them the choice to party, more than half of the students chose the work option instead. How amazing is that?!
• I loved how eager the students were to set-up their displays for Tuesday’s Big Body Bonanza. Even after eating candy and playing games, they happily stopped and spent the last 40 minutes of the day getting organized for Tuesday. I was unsure at first, but it was incredible to stand back and watch the class take over the room and get their organ systems up, running, and ready for classroom visits.
• I loved all of the chocolates, cards, and kind Valentine’s Day wishes that I got from all of my students today. I’m the luckiest teacher in the world to work with such incredible students and parents, and yet again, I was reminded of this today.

And now for my final point:

• I love how writing this blog post has actually made me smile. I love how an innocent comment helped me reconsider things today, and helped me start the long weekend in a positive mood.

Maybe my Grinch heart can grow after all. 🙂 My apologies to people if I was grumpy today. Let tomorrow be a new, positive day! How do you take a grumpy day and turn things around? How do you remember to remain positive even when it seems difficult to do so? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Aviva