What is a turnip?

School is just breezing along. This is a fun group of 5 year olds. There are a few feisty ones and they all need to work on the social things that most kindergarten need to work on: sharing, using respectful language towards each other, walking in the classroom, keeping their hands to themselves in lines, sneezing into the 'crook' of their arm or a tissue instead of blowing snot and a bazillion germs all over the unfortunate person across from them BUT they are good at discussions, lots of eager hands raised and pretty articulate vocabularies from the English speaking children.
Yet there is always at least one funny story a week where they didn't quite hit the mark on understanding a word. Last week's was turnip. I was preparing to read The Enormous Turnip and asked if anyone knew what a turnip was. One little boy, in his most authoritative tone told us "It's a bug like an ant that eats wood." At first I was totally puzzled at how he could possible be so far off the mark because we had been talking about foods prior to when I asked the question. Then it dawned on me, he was thinking termite instead of turnip. Fortunately we had a real turnip to look at and taste (not a favorite food for any of them) after the story! Now we have a turnip rooting in a jar of water in the classroom window. Hopefully by watching and commenting on it's growth over the next couple weeks they will all know what a turnip
is. Fall is definitely here. Many of the yellow leaves in the neighborhood have already fluttered to the ground. Every morning for a week now we have awakened to thick fog and the sound of the foghorns. By afternoon it burns off and the rest of the day is lovely. I picked the big pumpkin and planted a few perennials that I bought on sale as well as 150 tulips. I have 50 more yet to plant.
On Saturday I walked in the 3rd annual walk for Hospitality House, a shelter in Burien for homeless women. We think that a total of 5,700 dollars was made.
Well, I am at work writing and I see the clock says 5:10. I had best head home because the electrician will be there to do some work in the stairwell of our basement. All of you friends and relatives have a wonderful week!
Hey did you notice...I fixed that link to Teaching In Thailand. I have to brag, I did it without anyone's advice!