Flurries in First Grade

I received a last minute call to fill in for a first grade teacher who was unable to plow through the snow to reach her class.  First grade students are always surprised to see a "guest teacher" greet them in the morning.  "Where's our teacher?" they want to know - I don't always know and I also don't know if I should even tell them if I did know! 
   It takes first graders quite some time to take off boots, snow pants, jackets, and hang up backpacks before they enter the classroom.  They barely made it into the classroom before it was time for them to get dressed again to head home!  There was, in fact, an announcement of early dismissal due to the falling snow.  Not always good news for a substitute teacher who isn't aware of the changes needed in the schedule!
    Morning meeting - these kids follow the rules and make sure I know them, too.  "NO, you can't pick the name from the green basket, you have to pick it from the red one!" " NO, we get to mark our lunch order ourselves, you don't ask us."  "Laura, the messenger, is absent today, pick me, pick me, pick me!"  Phew...
   As we sat down to morning meeting, I was told the book we were scheduled to read was used by a previous "guest teacher."  And asking them to draw a picture and write a story, what do you do when they can't think of something to write about?  "I don't know ANYTHING to write about - not my pet, not my family, not the snow day....No, no, no, I don't do anything, I don't have any toys, I don't read any books, I don't have any games..."  Phew, again....
  Walking into a classroom and finding a structured, organized lesson plan is the best!  You know that subsequently, the children work well with structure.  They appreciate the organization and routine of the classroom.  So, even as a substitute, the day runs a bit more smoothly if the schedule can be orderly.  There is less room for chaos among the students.  God Bless these Teachers, and God Bless the snow, which allowed me to step into their shoes for the day and spend some fun time with their students.