DREW PAYNE....Hall of Fame!

We are so blessed to be able to send our children to the most wonderful elementary school ever. Our children learn so much there but one of the most important things, I feel, they learn is kindness. Through Rachel's Challenge, our children are taught about being kind and compassionate. If a child/teacher sees another child doing something kind, they can write a link that says what their peer did that was kind. The links are long strips of paper which are linked together throughout the school. Last year, I believe our school had approximately 4500 links strung throughout the school with all the kind and compassionate things the students had done for each other. I LOVE IT! I can't tell you how much I LOVE that they are doing this.

This year our school has adopted something else to help recognize students who are kind, compassionate, and hard working. Every Friday, the entire school starts the morning off with an assembly....it's really like a little pep rally. They sing the school song, compete for a spirit stick, honor some of the children who have received links; AND induct 4 students into the HALL OF FAME. Four teachers are chosen each week to nominate one of their homeroom students to the HALL OF FAME! This past week, Drew's teacher was chosen and guess who she inducted into the HALL OF FAME? That's right people....my Drewby! The students don't know that they are being inducted, and the teacher calls the parents to invite them up to watch their child be inducted; so of course NPayne, myself, Bryna, Elliot and Addi were there. Cal was already at school, so we didn't throw off his schedule too much. When it was Ms. Norwood's turn, she called Drew up and this is what she said....

"Drew Payne is just a delightful student! She comes in every morning with a smile on her face and is cheerful all day long. When problems do come up, Drew handles them calmly and then moves on. Drew willingly works with whoever she needs to in class and is kind and cooperative with all her classmates. She knows how to help other students without just giving them the answers and can explain how to do something clearly so that other students also understand her strategy. I can count on her to be ready and listening with her eyes on me. She almost always has her hand up to participate in class and share her ideas or answer questions. Drew always helps when we need chairs put up or extra help picking up trash in class. When it comes to working on her own, Drew has the desire to do well and carefully follows directions and checks her work to be sure it is complete and correct. Drew is a great asset to our classroom."

I am so very proud to call her my daughter.

As Ms. Norwood told me when she contacted me about Drew being inducted into the Hall of Fame....she is just a great kid! That she is....that she is!