Class Color Day

Today was a great day at school.  It was class color day.  For those of you not in a school regularly any more, that means that each grade is assigned a color to wear.

Our school, high school especially, goes all out.  Face paint, head to toe color.  Lots of fun.

Well, our elementary didn't give a color to the staff like the HS did.  In the JH/HS the color for the staff was red.  In the elementary, there was no color for the staff.  So many dressed in the color of whom they teach.

Well, I teach all 8 grade levels in our elementary (PreK - 6).  So what did I do?  Naturally, I wore all 8 colors!

This will NOT surprise those of you who know me even a little.  I am all about the enjoyment of the kids when it comes to these days.  I wear my jammies and slippers on Pajama day.  I do crazy things to my hair for crazy hair day.  So today - I wore a rainbow of colors!

Now, another NOT surprising thing, I made sure it clashed as much as possible, that it looked as crazy and silly as I could.

Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of my "lovely" outfit, but I will attempt to describe it for you.

Right Foot - bright purple sock
Left Foot - neon green sock
Both feet - red/maroon sandals
Bottom half - a red skirt
Top half - a grey t-shirt with a yellow tank over the top and then a blue tank over the top of that.
Hair - pigtails with orange and black hair decorations

So yep, I kind of looked like a clown!

But you should have seen the joy on the faces of the kids.  (and the shock and disbelief on the faces of the staff)  Kids would see me and just giggle.

When asked by kids why I would do such a thing the answer was simple.  I teach all of the kids, how could I possibly pick just ONE color to represent who I am?  And besides, that would be favoring one grade over another and I love every grade I teach.  So the natural decision was that I had to somehow wear all 8 colors and wear them proudly because I am proud to be a part of each of the grades!

Funny enough - the 6th graders thought THEIR color should have had a larger showing since "they" are the best.  ha ha ha.

What possessed me to do such a silly thing?  What was the benefit to me?

Kids seeing that it's okay to dress silly or to stand out in a crowd.  That you don't have to blend in with everyone around you to be okay.  That it is okay to be exactly who you are and what you want to be.

I think the two most fun moments both occurred with 6th grade students.  My 6th graders came to class today and as they entered one boy froze and stared at me with a "what in the world" look on his face.  I said, "I'm taking it you didn't see me in the hall this morning."  He just shook his head.  Made my day - the total shock and then pure joy on his face was what I needed to know that I had made the right decision in my ensemble for the day!

About 45 minutes later I was walking by another 6th grade classroom, they were winding down a work time because it was nearly recess time.  As I walked by a boy raised his head to see who was walking by and did a true double take.  I just about wet my pants laughing at his reaction.  I stopped, walked back and popped into the room to see if he was okay and to explain my clothing choice.  He loved it.

After school I needed to pop over to the HS to talk to another teacher.  The kids there reacted just as wonderfully as the elementary kids.  However, they were also dressed rather clown-like, so I fit right in!  The best look was 3 girls sitting in the hallway near the front office.  They looked at me and looked down, not sure what to say or do.  I looked at them and said, "Don't worry, I'm not losing it, it was color day in the elementary as well and they didn't give the staff a color.  So I wore EVERY color."  They laughed and smiled and said, "Cool."  So even the HS kids got a kick out of my quirkiness.

Taking the safe way, although sometimes is easier, isn't being true to yourself.  My message, through my outfit, to the students today was that it's okay to be who you want to be.  It's okay to be outside of the norm.  Be willing to do what you want or be who you want.  Don't let the reaction of others deter you from enjoying life and having fun.  Be true to yourself and you will truly find happiness.  Don't let the "energy vampires" suck the enjoyment out of you.

I had a great day today, being me!  I hope you also had a fabulous day!