Charlie and Friends

In my classroom we have a class pet. Not a real one of course, I do work with 4 year olds after all. So they get to take the class pet home for a week, and take care of him. Charlie is my class pet this year (far left). It is a huge thing for the kids in my class. They all can't wait to take Charlie home! Now to be fair, I take Charlie home for the Christmas vacation. The kids have all taken Charlie home and taken photos of him and them in different places. One even took Charlie to Disneyland! So for Christmas, I take photos of Charlie decorating the tree and playing with his other forest friends (photo). Kaleigh and Cole are really the ones who come up with the poses and they enjoy having Charlie at home. Charlie also takes a bath while he is home and gets nice and clean for the next round of kids. You would be surprised at how important it is to these kids to get Charlie! They ask every week, "is it my turn yet?" They learn patience and I basically let those take it first that are not asking. If they ask too often or they demand it, they go last. I have noticed that less and less are bugging me with the question when we get to the Charlie book. The book is one I wrote to go with the Chipmunk. I read it right before the next child takes Charlie home. It is a fun way for the kids to know who gets to take Charlie that day. Well, until Christmas is over, Charlie will be at our house. Merry Christmas Charlie!