Tag Archives: Ryan

A Crown Of Glory

Posted on by
2

Anabelle asked a question about loving God more than anything. As a teacher, I believe  great questions are a gift from the student. It gives us the privilege to share, though our experiences, and compliments us, through them showing interest in the subject matter we are passionate about teaching. Questions help us to learn and grow. Matthew 7:7 teaches us to, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

With Anabelle’s question, I was able to share with our class, my personal story. Years ago, while giving my four year old daughter a shower, this thought came to me. “Whom do you love more?” I stopped for a second, as I thought about that. So, I started to pray, “Lord, I love you more. You gave her to me and without that gift I would not have her.” As my daughter got out of the shower, she looked up at me and asked, “Mommy, who do you love more, me or God.” I smiled, and thanked God for preparing me for that question. As I knelt down and looked into her eyes, I said, “Honey, I love God more.” As her eyes widened, I continued with, “Because God gave you to me. If He didn’t, I wouldn’t have you. And, I am so grateful that He has blessed me with your love!” With that she smiled.

As we age, the more we can share. With experiences, come a greater understanding. As each day unfolds, I find myself relating more to Proverbs 16:31, “Gray hair is a crown of glory…” And you can’t buy that! “For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.” Psalm 92:4

To my students:

Through all our class’s great moments this year, I had the wonderful opportunity to get to know Alexa, Lucas, Ryan, Chase, Nicholas, Joseph, Anabelle, Adrienne, Lily, Dominic, Colin, Gianni, Siena, Anjali, Isabella, Sebastian, Ella, Ian, Matthew, Nicolas, Mark & Ben. God made all of you very special. Just remember always to say, “Present” when your name is called, because you are a gift! I will miss you all very much, as you move up to the second grade and prepare for your first Holy Communion. May God bless you always!

“Continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”     2 Timothy 3:14-15

Many blessings,

Deanna Danielle

Here is our latest and greatest iMovie, on YouTube.
You can view it at:
201 Boulevard 2014
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98Lih3Feitk

photo 2

Class of 20014, you did a great job! Keep up the good work!

A Leader, A Hero, A Life Changer

Posted on by
1

I’ve heard it said, “Inside every child is a leader, a hero, a life changer.” I have to say, my class proved that to be true. As we filmed 201 Boulevard, our 2014 class video, I saw some extremely impressive moments. Picture this. Twenty first-graders, after a long day in school, arrived at religious studies class. When I took them to the pre-K classroom, they were surrounded by a huge collection of “old-fashioned” toys, just imagine, blocks, cars, action figures, puppets, dolls, doll houses, forts, legos, etc! And me, with script and a little video camera in hand, trying to capture their attention in less then an hour and a half!

Nonetheless, through all the craziness, I saw the leader, the hero, the life changer who wowed me as I looked around and through the small lens of my camara. As Nicolas got up to read his lines, and hesitated a bit, Ryan jumped up to help him. When I asked Gianni to read, Ella came to me asking to read with him because his sister wasn’t there to help him. Ella’s a twin, and so is Gianni. Ryan, too, is also a twin. I don’t want to forget to mention, the continued leadership of all the kids helping not only each other learn their lines, but also helping me, make this film happen. The compassion that I saw was more then mature, it simply blew me away.

When I view life, this is how I believe it should be, with each of us using our God given gifts  to serve one another. The best part about film, is you don’t miss a moment. I’m very proud of my first grade class, with all of their big hearts. They did an excellent job! Speaking of which, I would like to like wish all the Moms a very blessed Mother’s Day. In you all is the little girl who became the great leader, the super hero, the life changer and I want you to know that, your doing a great job!!

“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her; “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” Proverbs 31:25-30

“See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” Matthew 18:10

May God bless you always,

Deanna Danielle

Artwork done by Gianni

Artwork done by Gianni

 

Easter Blessings

Posted on by
2

For our last class before Easter break, I thought it would be fun if we had an Easter Egg Hunt. As we entered the classroom, Chase and Ryan were the first to notice some hidden eggs. Their eyes widened and a look came over their faces that expressed, THIS IS GREAT! At that, they yelled out “Eggs,” pointing to the ones they saw. The next thing I knew, the whole class, like little chicks on the loose, were off and running. My natural instincts came into play; a quick “Uh uh,” slang for, “Don’t do it; stop right where you are.” It was like a game of freeze tag. They all stopped mid motion. I said, “Come back to the door, prayer first.”

I find it best to first huddle together on our knees in prayer before they go to their seats. It’s the best place to thank God and pray for everyone we love, and to pray for each other. Also, to introduce our lesson for the day and new classmates. At that point, I welcomed Nicolas. We now have twenty first-graders in our class.

Today, I read our class, The Story of Easter. The story was about a little girl named Alice who loved to read her favorite Bible stories. One day, when Alice was sitting in her garden reading, a giant screen appeared before her. As Alice got up and walked through the screen, she entered the land of the Bible, and had the privilege to walk though the story of Easter. It was here that she saw how much God loves us. How, through Jesus and His death on the Cross, “He gave His life to purchase freedom for everyone.” 1 Timothy 2:6

As I spread this great love of our Lord to our class, it is my prayer that they will always hold on to this awesome truth. The Cross–there is so much to be said about it. What man could think in God way? None. Only through the Holy Spirit of God, could we understand. Why did God the Father choose a cross, with all the other ways to die, why a cross? That is the simplicity of God’s love, found anywhere and everywhere. It’s the arms stretched out to hug and hold, comfort and love anyone who choses to come into them. If only we would.

“May the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26

Easter Blessing today and always,

Deanna Danielle

 

Image