A Christmas Celebration

Our last day of school before Christmas break was a ton of fun!  There's so much to learn in second grade, and usually we are working hard all day long.  It was so nice to have a few hours to just be kids and enjoy each other and the season.  Our morning began by going down to the middle school.  A very patient and brave group of 8th grade girls were ready to help us make gingerbread houses.

After all that hard work, we (carefully) walked back to our classroom.  I wish I had taken pictures along the way.  One by one, the gingerbread houses collapsed!  By the time we made it back to our room, we had plates piled with graham crackers and M&Ms. 
Next we went to the gym to collect and sort all the food drive items and sing a few songs.  Our class donated a whopping 96 items!  I was sorting food and didn't get any pics of the kids, but I did get a couple shots of our fantastic staff!

Finally we went back to the classroom to watch The Polar Express.  We had just enough time to see the entire movie.  While we watched, we enjoyed a hot chocolate bar and cookies.  (Yes, I'm totally to blame for the suger high your children came home with! )