Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Nate,
Thank you for taking time to write me a letter and telling me a little bit about
yourself. I really liked the personalized note paper you used with your picture and
your name. I think I might want to get some like that one day.
It made me smile when I saw that you enjoy playing basketball and soccer. I
dont play currently, but growing up I played competitive soccer. I was a defender
and played on the Poway Vaqueros. I also thought it was neat that your favorite
subject is math. That was always my favorite subject. I am glad we have some
things in common.
You asked me some questions, so I want to make sure I answer them for you
in case I dont get the opportunity to while we are in class. You asked me why I want
to be a teacher and that is a great question. I have wanted to be a teacher since I
was a young girl. I originally thought I wanted to teach math at a local high school,
but as I got older I realized that I really love to be around the elementary school age
kids like yourself. I hope I can make an impact on every student that I have each
year, even you and your classmates. You also asked me if anyone in my family is a
teacher. I do have a teacher in my family. My mom is a second grade teacher at a
nearby school called Willow Grove Elementary School.
It was lovely to learn about you having a younger sister, Naomi. I also have a
younger sibling, Kevin, my brother, who is 2 and a half years younger than me. I
really enjoyed being the older sibling. You have a lot of responsibility to set a good
example for little Naomi, but I am sure you will be a great big brother!
The last question you asked me was about the college I go to. I am currently
at a school called National University. That is the school where I am learning to be a
teacher. Before I went to that college, I went to California State University San
Marcos where I learned a lot about business.
I think that answered all your questions. If you have any other questions you
can ask me any time. Thank you again, Nate, for writing to me. It was very
thoughtful and I really appreciated it. I look forward to getting to know you even
better each day.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Lauren,
Thank you for writing me such a wonderful letter. Your cursive is outstanding!
It was so great to learn a little bit about you. I found it very interesting that you like
so many of our school subjects. That is great to hear and I am sure since you enjoy
math, writing, and reading that you are an excellent student, especially in these
areas. Math was always my favorite subject so we have something in common.
It was so fun to hear about your triplet sisters. I dont think I have ever known
anyone who has triplets in their family. It must be a fun home with 3 little girls to
play with all the time. I know I mentioned it to you in class, but I love that your
mom shared with you how she picked your name. It is a beautiful name, indeed.
Speaking of your mom, she sounds like a very smart lady since she was reminding
you about how hard you need to study to become a veterinarian. That is such a
special job, and we need more people to care for all our wonderful pets.
You asked me some questions and I want to make sure I answer them all for
you so you can get to know me better. When I am not teaching, I love to spend time
with my family and my friends. I often go visit my parents because my favorite dogs
live there. I also like to go to the gym. I am always trying to be as healthy as
possible to set a good example for all my students. Lastly, I really enjoy some quiet
time watching a little TV. I have been so busy with teaching and college that
sometimes just laying around is a real treat.
I wanted to be a teacher when I was a young girl, about your age actually. As
I got older I thought I might want to teach my favorite subject, math, to some high
school students. Finally, I decided that I really love working with elementary school
age students and so far I feel like I am the luckiest girl in the world since I love
going to work each day. Teaching is just fun for me. I strive to make an impact on all
my students, especially you and your classmates.
I think I answered all of your questions for now, but if you think of any more
you are welcomed to ask at any time. Thank you again, Lauren, for writing to me. It
was so special to receive such wonderful letters.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Priya,
Thank you very much for typing out such a wonderful letter to me. It was so
nice to hear that you enjoyed having a student teacher last year, and I am glad I get
to be your student teacher this year.
You mentioned that your favorite subject is writing. That is such a great
favorite subject because you will be doing a lot of that your whole life! My favorite
subject has always been math.
I learned from your letter that the number 1 rule, the only rule as I
understand it, is like 100 rules put together. That was a fantastic way to describe
how important that 1 rule is. I also loved hearing what you enjoyed about having a
student teacher. You are totally correct; student teachers learn a lot from you. I look
forward to you teaching me the remainder of your third grade year. It is so sweet
that you treat student teachers like new students. Sometimes being in a new
environment is a little bit scary, even for adults, so I am so lucky to have such a
thoughtful student to help me out in my new classroom.
There were quite a few questions in your letter, so here are my answers. You
asked me what my favorite animal is and I have to tell you that my favorite animal
in the whole world is dogs. They are just so sweet and they make you feel so special
when you come home and they are excited to see you. So to answer your other
question, if I had to pick one pet to have an entire house filled with them it would
definitely be dogs. What a fun question.
You also asked me about what inspired me to be a teacher. I had some really
amazing teachers when I was growing up and I think I realized when I was really
young, about your age, that I was meant to be a teacher. I am not sure what grade I
will be teaching yet, but any grade level in elementary school will be a joy for me.
So far, I have been in Kindergarten and I loved working with those little boys and
girls. They really make me laugh each day, and I already find myself laughing at you
silly third graders too! Each day with a laugh is a good day to me.
I actually was born in California, but all the way in northern California near
San Francisco. I moved down here with my family when I was still a baby, so I have
basically lived here in San Diego my whole life. I am about to turn 30 years old in
May. And my favorite color changes all the time, but right now it is probably coral or
mint green. Purple is a great color so I can see why it is your favorite.
It was neat to hear you play softball. I never played softball, but I did play one
year of baseball with the boys team when I was 11. After that year I switched to
soccer and it has been my favorite sport ever since.

I hope I answered all your questions, but if you have any more you can come
ask me any time. Thank you again, Pryia, for sharing all that lovely information
about yourself and for taking the time to write me a letter. I felt so special.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Isaac,
Thank you very much for writing me a letter. It was so nice to learn a little bit
about you. Your letter was so sweet because you told me about how you have a
very nice mom and 2 brothers. You are so lucky to have such a wonderful mom and
2 more boys to play with at home. Just like you, I also have a very special mom and
I have 1 younger brother named Kevin. It is neat that all the kids in your family have
names that start with I and in my family both my brother and I have names that
start with K.
You remind me of my brother, Kevin. Just like you, he likes to play Xbox and
he likes Ramen soup. I have heard of people eating their Ramen soup with no water,
but I have never tried it. It sounds a little crazy to me, but if you think it is good
maybe I can try it one day. I do not have an Xbox at home, but I used to play on my
brothers Wii when we lived in the same home. I loved to play the dance game with
my little cousin and with my family. Even my mom would play with us sometimes.
It is so neat that you have 2 lizards at home. I am also happy to hear they are
in a cage! I have never had my own lizard, but one time when I was in 6 th grade, my
middle school teacher had a Gecko lizard in her class. She used to let students take
it home and when it was my turn I was so excited. It was the kind of lizard that had
the tail that is very fatty and squishy. Well, I was holding it and being very nice and
all the sudden it bit my finger and made me bleed! After that I stayed away from
lizards.
I dont live at home with my mom and dad anymore, so my dogs still live at
their home. I make sure to go see them very often because I just love my doggies.
We have 2 of them and their names are Hailey and Harper.
I am not sure I have a favorite food, but I really enjoy eating very healthy. It
was great to hear you like apples. They are so delicious!
I really appreciate that you wrote me such a wonderful letter, Isaac. Thank
you for taking the time to do that. I look forward to learning more about you each
day.

Best,

Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Tanay,
I was delighted to get such a nice letter from you. Thank you for taking time
to write to me so I can learn about you. It was interesting to hear that you just came
to Stone Ranch Elementary School a month ago. Challenges make you a stronger
and smarter student so I am glad that you have enjoyed the challenge. It is nice to
know that we are both new to the school. I came to Stone Ranch Elementary School
in the end of January. If there is anything you still find too challenging, please make
sure you let me know so I can help you out as best I can. School was sometimes
challenging for me, but in a good way. I found that if I studied and payed attention
in class that I always did very well. It just takes effort and hard work to be
successful.
The bathroom passes are definitely something I needed to learn about. I also
didnt know that you change seats every month. I hope I can learn everyones
names quickly before you all get moved around again. It is a good thing it is still the
beginning of April so that I have time to learn them all.
I saw that your weakness is writing. That will be the challenge for me to help
you with your writing. I would love to hear more about why you find it challenging.
Teaching is something that I knew I wanted to do since I was about your age. I
was always pretending to be a teacher to all the little boys in my neighborhood
when I was young. I would give them homework and then reward them with
stickers. As I got older I decided I still did want to be a teacher, so now I am
finishing up at my University so that I can be like Ms. Morshead and have my very
own classroom someday.
Thank you again, Tanay, for writing your letter to me. I liked your cursive and
how you told me about yourself and the important things I need to know in our
classroom. I look forward to getting to know you a little more each day.

Best,
Ms. Murphy
P.S. My first name is Kelli.

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Sinead,
Hello there and thank you for writing such a wonderful letter to me. I really
enjoyed your letter because I learned so much about you in just 1 page. It sure
sounds like you are an amazing student since you get to go to Math Challenge every
Tuesday and also since your My Maps score was a 236. That is very impressive. It
seems to me that all the students look up to you. I am excited to learn from you as
well.
Singing is something I am definitely not very good at, but I too enjoy drawing.
My brother is a better artist than I am, but I love to be crafty. We also share an
interest in technology. When I went to college for my Bachelors degree, my major
was related to technology. I, however, am not as good at science, but I always did
well in science because I was good at studying and I liked to do the experiments.
It was neat to hear that we have something else in common with our
birthdays. You mentioned that your birthday fell on Easter this year and I have a
holiday birthday as well. My birthday is May 11 th which falls on Mothers day every
couple of years. I was actually born on Mothers Day.
In my free time I really like to hang out with my friends and family. When I am
not hanging out with them you might see me working out at the gym, or even just
relaxing on the couch watching some television. With so much work for school and
teaching, I feel like I am always busy, but we are so lucky to have Spring Break next
week to relax. I currently am attending National University because I am working
towards earning my Masters Degree and my Teaching Credential. Before I went to
National University, I went to California State University San Marcos. That is where I
learned a lot about technology.

Kindergartners are a lot of fun. They are really silly and need a lot of help. I
would say most of the time they behave very nice, but they do have some days
where they are more naughty instead. I was lucky to have such a special group of
students and they really showed me how special it is to be a teacher. I am sure I will
learn a ton from you and your classmates. I can already tell that the students in B4
are some of the best on campus.
Thank you again, Sinead, for taking time to write to me. I am lucky to get to
learn from such a sweet and smart girl. I look forward to work each day because of
students just like you who put a smile on my face.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Dishti,
I was really amazed by your well typed and informative letter to me. Thank
you for taking the time to write to me. It was nice to hear that you like student
teachers and are happy to have one. I hope I can be very helpful to you and I can
already tell that you are going to teach me a ton. I am so lucky to get to be in your
class after being in Kindergarten. It is nice to see the different classrooms and to
meet so many wonderful students. Your class and my kindergarten class will be the
only 2 classrooms I get to learn in, so they are very important to me.
It was helpful to learn about all the things you learn about in 3 rd grade. I cant
believe you have already finished so many units. I am so bummed that I missed the
read aloud for Charlottes Web. I remember reading that book and watching the
movie when I was in elementary school. I would have loved to read that again with
you. I have never had the opportunity to read Little House in the Big Woods, so
maybe you can tell me about it one of these days. It is great to hear how much you
love reading. I can understand why you like fiction books. I certainly like reading
books with more adventure also. Unfortunately, I have a hard time making time to
read right now. I have been very busy with work and school, so all my reading is for
homework. In the summer I will really enjoy having time off to read more often.
I can already tell that I am going to learn so much from you. In just 2 days
you have really stood out to me with your contributions to class discussions. I

appreciate you taking the time to write me a letter. It had great information in it so
thank you again, Dishti. I look forward to getting to know you better each day.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Kristin,
Thank you so much for writing me such a nice letter. I really enjoyed reading
it and learning about you. You are right, I did have fun in Mr. Delos Santos class, but
I can already tell I am going to enjoy learning from you and your classmates in B4.
I am so bummed that I didnt get to go on the field trips with you and your
class. I have been to the Birch Aquarium before, but I would have really enjoyed
going with you guys. I remember seeing the fish and sharks there. I even love how
they let you touch some of the creatures. I sometimes am scared to go in the ocean,
so it is nice that I can see much of what the ocean has in it behind the glass. The
jellyfish are my favorite to look at, but they are creepy looking! LEGOLAND must
have been an awesome trip too! I have only been there one time and it was so long
ago that I forget what they have there. It is neat that you were able to attend a
workshop and built Lego cars. I am so jealous. That sounds like it really was epic!
I look forward to learning from you and all your classmates in B4. Thank you
again, Kristin, for taking time to write me such a nice letter. I look forward to getting
to know you better each day in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear Dutch,
Thank you for being so sweet and writing me a letter. I really appreciate that
took the time to tell me about yourself. I am glad you know the subject in school
that you need to work on. The great thing about reading, is that you can practice on
your own. It is getting close to the end of the school year, so I will help as much as I
can, but I bet you can get a lot of practice reading over the summer break to help
prepare you for 4th grade.
I liked learning about your family. What a lucky guy to have such a big family.
I know that my mom, dad, and brother are so special to me so I bet having a step
mom and also your moms boyfriend around is even better! So many people to
cheer you on in all your accomplishments. I especially loved how you took the time
to tell me your nicknames. Maybe I will use those when I am talking to you in class.
When I was in school, mostly high school, I had coaches and teachers call me by my
last name. My friends also gave me nicknames.
I currently go to a school called National University. This is the second college
I will be obtaining a degree from. I also went to California State University San
Marcos. My school program now is helping me to become a teacher which is a job I
knew I wanted since I was your age. I was able to teach in a kindergarten class for 9
weeks, and now I am so excited to be in your class to learn from you and your
classmates. My mom is also a teacher for a second grade class at Willow Grove

Elementary School. I am so lucky to have another teacher in my family so I can

learn from her too.
You are so lucky to live close to the school. I live about 25 minutes away in a
city called Escondido. I wonder if you have ever been there. Many people go there
because there is a big mall there to shop at and there is also a big sports park there.
So far from meeting you 2 days ago I can tell you like soccer. I also really like soccer.
It is my favorite sport. I used to play when I was younger, but I dont have time to
play anymore. Maybe I will start to play again because it is so much fun and I miss
being on the pitch.
Thank you again, Dutchman, for writing a letter to me. I look forward to
getting to know you more each day at school.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Dear James,
Howdy! Thank you for writing to me such a lovely letter. I was able to learn so
much about you already just from your writing. It was so special since you wrote it
all in cursive. I bet that took extra time and I appreciate the hard work.
I was so happy to see that we have something in common. I could tell by your
clothes, but your letter confirmed to me that your favorite sport is soccer. Soccer is
my favorite sport also. I played soccer when I was younger on the Poway Vaqueros. I
loved playing in tournaments and collecting all the pins. I bet you have quite a few
of these too.
Writing can be a tough challenge, but I am glad you recognize that it is the
area that you need to work on most. You will continue to get a lot of practice writing
every year. I bet you will eventually feel like an expert! My favorite subject is math.
Dogs are so much fun. I love how they greet you when you get home after a
long day at school. You are so lucky to have 4 of them. I miss my 2 dogs, Hailey and
Harper. They live with my mom and dad. I go to visit them very often.

It is so exciting that your family is expanding. I think you are going to love
being a big brother to little miss Ava Rose. That is such a pretty name. I am curious
to know if you helped to pick that name out. She is going to be born at the perfect
time of the year when you are home from school and can help take care of her. She
is lucky to have 2 older brothers to learn from. Just like you I have 1 brother. We
arent twins though. I am older than him by two and a half years. I loved being his
big sister because I was able to teach him so much. I am older than him, but he is
much taller than me now. My mom is a second grade teacher at Willow Grove
Elementary School. I am lucky to have a teacher for a mom so I can learn from her
as much as I learn from you in class.
I really like that you have a nickname. I hope you dont mind if I call you
Jimmy sometimes. I really like the name James and Jimmy is a great name too. I
have had many nicknames over the years. When I played soccer the players and my
coach called me Murphy. In high school, many of my friends called me Kelbel,
Kellibelly, or Murph. I still have a friend that calls me Kellibean (Get it?? Instead of
Jellybean..). My first name is Kelli so thats where they made those nicknames from.
Thank you again, Jimmy, for taking time to write me such a wonderful letter. I
look forward to learning from you in class and hopefully I can help you with your
writing. So far I am already impressed with it.

Best,
Ms. Murphy aka. Murph ;)

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Tyler,
Thank you so much for taking time to write me a letter about yourself and for
informing me that you can earn candy if your desks and cubbies are clean. I really
enjoyed learning about you. Just like you, I have a sibling. He is two and a half years
younger than me and his name is Kevin. Even though he is younger, he is much
taller than me now.
Just like you, I also started at Stone Ranch in an elementary school, although,
I started as a teacher and not a student. I would love if you would tell me who your
kindergarten teacher was. I might know him or her too! I really like the color blue
just like you, but my favorite color right now is probably a Coral color.
My first name is Kelli. I was interested to read that your name is Jedd, but that
you go by the name Tyler. Is Tyler your middle name? Were you named after
someone? Maybe you and I can chat about this more in class sometime.

It was neat to hear about all the things you like to do when you are not at
school. When I was your age, I really liked to play outside and have sleep overs with
my friends also. I have heard of the show Fuller House, but I have not been able to
watch it yet. I was a huge fan of Full House when I was younger though, so I
definitely should look for the show on my T.V. When I am not at school with your
class, I like to spend time with my family and friends. I enjoy going to the gym too.
Sometimes I just want to be lazy from all my work and school and enjoy sitting on
the couch relaxing and catching up on some of my favorite T.V. shows.
I have 2 dogs, but they live at my mom and dads home. I miss them a lot,
but I make sure to go visit them often. Their names are Hailey and Harper. They
always put a smile on my face.
Thank you again, Tyler, for writing me. I hope I can learn even more about
you each day in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Jayden,
Thank you very much for writing me such a nice letter and informing me
about the 2 very important binders that we have in our classroom. I hope that I
dont see your name often in either binder! I was lucky enough to get to know
you a little better yesterday at lunch with Thien-Nam and Ms. Morshead, but I am
still thankful for your letter.
To answer some of your questions, I became interested in becoming a teacher
when I was about your age. When I got a little older I thought I might try something
else instead and so I worked for a long time in finance counting lots of money at a
bank. That wasnt so fun anymore and I realized it would be best for me to go to
work each day at a place I love to be at and teaching would allow me to love my
job. I have so much fun talking with all the students and helping them learn and

grow. I was also very inspired by the work that my mom does. She is also a teacher
for a second grade class at a nearby school called Willow Grove Elementary School.
So far, teaching is fun each day. I spent a lot of time with a kindergarten class
before I came to B4 and they showed me how exciting it can be to be a teacher. I
am very excited now to be a part of your class. I think you and your classmates can
teach me a lot and I hope I can be a great teacher for you. I hope you dont mind
that you will have 2 teachers for the rest of the school year.
I really look forward to getting to know you better each and every day in
class. Thank you again, Jayden, for taking time to type out such an informative
letter.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Katie,
Thank you so much for taking time to write me such a lovely letter and in
cursive! That must have taken quite some time since it was such lovely writing. I
really appreciate it. It was wonderful to hear about you. I was also very excited to
meet you and all your classmates. Hopefully you dont mind if I stay with you and
your class until the end of the year.
You asked if I had a choice in choosing your class and the truthful answer is
no. I just got really lucky I guess! My first placement for student teaching was with
the kindergartners and they were a lot of fun, but I have a feeling I will learn a lot

from you and your fellow classmates. I want to be a teacher very badly because I
love to be around young kids like yourself. It is so exciting to me when I can see all
the improvements you make over the year. I also wanted to be a teacher because
every single day is a little different. At my old job it was the same thing every day. I
worked in a bank for a long time so all I did was count money, lots of money, all day.
Then I switched and did other boring stuff all day. To me, being at the school and in
the classroom is so fun. We can do all different subjects and we can talk about new
things each day. I love it! I am lucky that I found a job that doesnt feel like a boring
old job.
It was so interesting to hear that you have 3 houses! What a lucky girl to be
able to visit multiple houses, especially since you got to live with your grandma for
a while. I always loved to visit with my grandmas when I was your age. The best
part was I got to eat treats I didnt usually get at my home with my mom and dad
and both my grandmas had large swimming pools. I spent lots of time splashing
around and going down the water slides.
Space is going to be such a fun unit, so I am glad that is your favorite. I am
certainly glad we are learning about space because I havent learned about it in a
long time and I need to refresh my brain.
I have already enjoyed getting to know you better each day, Katie. I love
hearing that you and your mom ride your bikes to Jamba Juice. I wish I lived close
enough so I could join you. Jamba Juice is delicious! I am looking forward to getting
to know you even better the remainder of the year. Thank you again, Katie, for
sharing all this wonderful information with me. You are a joy to have in class. I am
truly lucky!

Best,
Ms. Murphy
P.S. You asked what my first name is and it is Kelli.

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Layla,
Thank you so much for taking time to write me such a wonderful letter all in
cursive. I am sure that took you quite some time to write in that beautiful cursive. I
especially liked the hearts and stars. I am glad you are enjoying third grade so far.

You are almost ready to move on to fourth grade! I cant believe it is almost the end
of the school year. I am sure you are ready for summer. It was also really nice to
hear that you do your homework every night. You sound like such a great,
hardworking student. It is a bummer sometimes when computers dont work like
they are supposed to. I have had that happen before too. I am sure if you know that
you are having computer problems that you could stay after school and work on one
of the computers in the family room.
It is funny, I had your little sister, Aniah, and she didnt mention to me that
you girls have 3 pets. When we are in class one of these days I would love for you to
tell me more about the pets that you have.
My favorite subject is math. I have enjoyed math since I was little and I am
not sure why. I guess I like to solve problems. You asked me what I thought about
coming to third grade and I am really excited about it. I know that I am going to
learn so much from you and your classmates. I also am really excited to learn from
Ms. Morshead because I have heard from so many people about what a great
teacher she is. Just like you do, I will be learning each and every day. Mr. Ds class
was a lot of fun. The kids in his class are outstanding students and they helped
show me how fun teaching can be.
Thank you again, Layla, for taking time out of your evening to write me a
letter. I really enjoyed learning a little more about you and I look forward to learning
more about you each day in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Parav,

Thank you very much for taking time to type me out such a wonderful and
informative letter. I hope you dont mind that I sit next to you some days and share
your desk. I am sure I will get to know you even better that way. I cant believe you
are reading 175 page books! That seems like a lot of pages, but I am very proud of
you. You will have to tell me which book has been your favorite so far. We have the
same favorite subject of math. I dont know exactly why I like math the most, but
Im glad you enjoy it also.
I was interested to see that it is important to you to not get hurt. It made me
think that maybe you got injured at school one time before. You will have to tell me
more about why this is so important to you in class some time. Just so you know, it
is important to me that you dont get hurt either. I am delighted to hear that your
behavior is important to you. That is also something important to me. So far I can
tell you have good behavior in the classroom. I am glad to see that. Some of my
kindergarteners in my old class didnt have good behavior, but the whole B4 class
has been excellent so far in my first week.
I enjoyed learning about the noise meter in the class. Now that I know how to
use it I will make sure I am referencing it during out activities when it is my turn to
teach. That was very helpful information and I appreciate you explaining it to me.
Also, I can see that the must-dos and the can-dos are very important also. Im glad
you told me more about them.
Just like you, I have a brother, but I am older than him by two and a half
years. You are lucky to have an older brother to learn from. My brother is 27 and
even though he is younger than me, he is much taller than I am now.
Thank you again, Parav, for taking time to type me a letter and for sharing
your desk with me. I look forward to getting to know you even better each day in
class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Ethan,
Thank you so much for writing me such a great letter. I really liked the cool
font you used. It sounds like you are a really good reader. There is this one author
named Nicholas Sparks, and I enjoy his books very much. They all take place in
North Carolina. I am not sure why he does that, but they are all there. I like to think
about what it might be like in North Carolina since I have never been there before. I
have never heard of the series that you like Herobrine Goes to School. I will try to
read one or 2 of those books before I finish the school year so I know what you are
enjoying. If you like it, there is a good chance I might like it also. It is excellent that
your favorite subject is reading. My favorite subject is math. I am excited to get to
teach you and your classmates math.
It is so neat to learn that you like haiku poems. Maybe you can share with me
some that you have written. I am not sure I have a favorite type of poem, but
maybe a Lyric or a Ballad because those are typically found in songs and I love to
listen to music, especially Country music.
Thank you again, Ethan, for teaching me a little bit about yourself and for
taking time to type me out such a nice letter. I really appreciate it. I hope I can get
to know you even better over the next several weeks in school. It is almost time for
summer already!

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Thien-Nam,
Thank you very much for writing me such an informative and nice letter. I am
glad you told me about your glasses. It would be so hard to be a student and not be
able to see! I sometimes wear my glasses to school too, but most days I wear
contacts. It was interesting to learn that you enjoy working independently. I will try
to remember that when I am planning our learning. I am also glad you like science. I
think our current unit about Earth Science is really going to be one you like. I can
tell you are already knowledgeable about some of the planets and that is great.
Crab meat dumplings are something I have never had. I dont really like any
foods with seafood. I have always been a very picky eater which was frustrating for
my parents when I was your age. Just like you, I have one younger brother. His
name is Kevin. Even though he is two and a half years younger than me, he is taller
than me now so you would never know he is younger.
I do like to read books, but lately I have been so busy with reading books for
my college classes that I dont have a lot of free time to read books of my choice.
Most of my reading is for learning how to teach you and the rest of the students. I
find it interesting though since I love to learn how to teach. I am really looking
forward to learning from you, your classmates, and Ms. Morshead so that I can
become a super teacher in my own classroom.
When I was your age I knew I wanted to be a teacher. As I got older I thought
maybe I would try something else and see if I liked it so I worked in a bank for a
long time, but that wasnt fun for me. Teaching doesnt even feel like work, it feels
like fun so that is why it is going to be such a great job for me. I find it very
interesting that you want to be a scientist. Your reason is a really good one. I always
enjoy science in school because students get to do some experimenting which is
usually pretty fun. Im glad you already have an idea of what you want to do. I was
wondering if you have any scientists in your family that inspired you. Maybe one of
these days in class you can let me know.
I am really looking forward to getting to know you better. I hope you enjoy
having me in class. Again, thank you, Thien-Nam, for writing me such a wonderful
letter.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Rayhan,
Thank you so much for writing me such a wonderful letter. I really enjoyed
learning about you. I can understand why P.E. is your favorite subject. I love to work
out and be active so we have that in common. I would say my favorite subject is
math though. After school is when I get my P.E. in. It was nice to see that you enjoy
reading in your free time. Drawing is really fun. I am glad you will be doing more of
that during summer vacation. I am not the best artist, but I sure do like to be
creative as often as I can. In my kindergarten class I used to draw pictures on the
board for them to understand better. Some of them would chuckle at my drawings,
but they always told me it was ok and that they liked my art work. Maybe one of
these days I can see some of your drawings.
Football is a sport I love to watch. I never played, but my boyfriend played
college football so we watch a lot of college games on T.V. 2 years ago we even flew
to Gainesville, Florida, to watch the Florida Gators play the South Carolina
Gamecocks. We had amazing seats in the 5th row and we were cheering so loud for
our Gators, but unfortunately they lost that game. It was one of my favorite
experiences to go to a big college football game. Maybe if you enjoy football enough
you will play in high school. If we get a chance to talk in class, I would love to hear if
you play now.
I was delighted to hear about your baby cousin. It sounds like you enjoy your
cousins. Since you are the oldest you have a lot of responsibility to be a good
example for the younger ones. I am sure you will be a great big cousin. I have many
cousins. I have 3 from my dads side of the family and we are all stepping stone
ages. The oldest is 30, I am 29, the next youngest is 28, and my brother is 27. The
four of us always hung out in the summer time at our grandparents home. On my
moms side of the family I have 10 cousins. We are all different ages. The youngest
is 2 and the oldest is 36!
Thank you again, Rayhan, for typing your letter to me. I really enjoyed
hearing about you and I look forward to getting to know you better in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Kayden,
Thank you so much for taking time to type me out such a wonderful and
insightful letter. It was so great to learn all about you. I thought it was really funny
that you dont like the color pink. I like pink sometimes, but my favorite color is
coral right now. Sometimes my favorite color changes. Blue is a nice color so I can
see why you like it.
When I was reading about the ice creams you like I was wishing I had a huge
bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. That is by far my favorite flavor. I
also enjoy mint chocolate chip. Yummy! I havent had real ice cream in a while. I
started to like frozen yogurt a little more since I can add my own delicious toppings.
Your brother sounds like he must be a smarty pants! UCSD is an amazing
school and becoming a doctor means a lot of studying and hard work. He sounds
like a great role model.
It was so helpful that you told me all about the trimester celebrations. Class
celebrations are so fun and something I am excited to be a part of. I sure hope all
the students in B4 stay above the line so everyone gets to enjoy the last trimester
celebration. You asked about kindergarten consequences and its a little different for
them. When they were in trouble as a class, I would ask them to put all their
materials down on their desk and cross their arms and rest their arms and head
down on the desk. They had to sit there quietly and think about their behavior. They
really dont like to sit still or sit quietly so they tried to be good as much as possible
so they didnt have to put their heads down. Hopefully we dont ever have to do
that in our classroom! I absolutely know Ms. Hankins. She is such a great teacher for
all her students and has been an outstanding teacher for me during my student
teaching. I am lucky to know her and I bet you feel the same. I love how clean she
keeps her classroom! That is a tough task with 26 five year olds trying to make a
mess all day.
My favorite books are the ones that are written by Nicholas Sparks. I dont
know what it is about his books, but I enjoy reading them. They have a little bit of
mystery or action to them, but they are all love stories. They are completely
opposite of your favorite series, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and The Hunger
Games. I want to try to read The Hunger Games series this summer. I have seen all
the movies, but never had a chance to read the books and I think the books are
usually better than the movies.

I want to thank you again, Kayden, for such an awesome letter. I learned so
much about you and I appreciate the time you spent creating it for me. I hope that I
can get to know you even better in class as the year moves on.

Best,
Ms. Murphy
P.S. My first name is Kelli.

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Sharon,
Thank you very much for your sweet letter. I am so happy that Aniah told you
about me. She is one of the sweetest girls I met in kindergarten so I am sure she is
a great neighbor and friend to you too. I am glad you were able to know who I was
before I got to the class. I hope you and your classmates will enjoy me as much as
my kindergartners did. They still run up and give me hugs daily and it makes me
very happy. I can tell B4 is a terrific classroom and I am so excited to learn from you
all.
You can ask me questions anytime since you have one million of them.
Hopefully I answer the ones you wanted to know right away in this letter. I really
liked learning about you. You and I have something in common since I am also new
to the school this school year. I have noticed that SRES has really nice students so it
makes it fun to work with them all. Im glad your goal is to make more friends. You
are so sweet, I can tell already, so that should be an easy task for you. I just heard
today from my other class that student council might add a buddy bench. Maybe
that will be something you are interested in and can take advantage of.
Silly mistakes will continue to happen all throughout your education. I am
glad you want to work on them, but dont beat yourself up for them. That is how we
learn. Now is the time to focus on them so that when you get older you dont make
them as much. I can tell you are a smarty pants so this will probably be an easier
task than you realize.
I am proud of you for being part of the student council. I tried to be part of
the student council when I was your age. I wanted to be the treasurer. It is always
good when you can be involved in school activities like that one. I also was part of
Safety Patrol. When you are involved like that you will meet many people and
sooner or later you will have tons of friends. In college I did something similar so
that I would make sure I was involved in school activities. Once I did that it became
impossible to walk from one side of the school to the other without seeing someone
I knew. It made school so fun because I felt so confident and comfortable. I hope
you find the same feelings by involving yourself in school activities.

My current college is called National University. I am obtaining both my

Masters Degree and my teaching credential. Before I went to my current school, I
went to Cal State University San Marcos. That is where I got my Bachelors degree. I
wanted to be a teacher since I was your age, but when I got older I thought I might
try something else. After 11 years of working, I decided that I didnt enjoy my job
each day so I decided to follow my heart and become a teacher. I just love working
with students and I really want to be an inspiring teacher and one that helps
students to enjoy school and learning.
I loved working in Mr. Ds class. I was nervous at first to work with such young
students, but they were so fun. I can already tell that B4 is going to be just as fun
and teach me so much. I am lucky to have been placed in Ms. Morsheads class. I
hope to get a job at Stone Ranch when I finish my program, but there is no way of
knowing where I will end up. I will have to interview for a job and there may or may
not be openings at SRES. I really hope there is one so I can stay at this wonderful
school.
I hope I answered all your questions, but if you think of more feel free to ask
me. Thank you again for such a wonderful letter. I enjoyed it very much.
Best,
Ms. Murphy
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Dear Maansi,
Thank you so much for taking time to write me such a lovely letter all in
cursive. You have beautiful writing. I really enjoyed spending time at lunch with you
today. I feel like I got to know you better, which is great. You are always smiling and
that is awesome. I was so delighted to learn that you want to be a teacher one day.
Teaching is a job that doesnt feel like work to me. I spent 11 years working in the
banking industry and I didnt enjoy going to work. When I wake up in the morning
now I am excited and happy to come to work. I am so lucky to have been placed in
B4. I can tell the students are all so wonderful and I know I will learn a lot from you
and your classmates as well as from Ms. Morshead.
I am glad you arent moving too far away which would make you leave the
school. Moving is really exciting, and it is also a lot of work. I hope you are ready to
help with packing and unpacking. I just moved in October to a new place that has a
set of stairs and that was not very fun. It was sure a good workout going up and
down the stairs so many times.
I love that you play softball! I had a best friend in high school that played
softball and she even went on to play in college. Her whole education was paid for
because she was so good she earned a sports scholarship. I wonder if you will
continue to play in high school and maybe even college. I played soccer in high
school, but I didnt play in college. I loved soccer though. Sometimes I want to play
again, so maybe when I have more time when I am not working and going to school
at night I can find a team and play again.

You are so lucky to have a mom that owns a Chiropractic office. She must be
a really hard worker and it sounds like you spend some time in her office which is
great for you to see her in action. My mom is a really great teacher of a second
grade class at Willow Grove Elementary School. Her school is only about 5 or 10
minutes away from our school. We talk about teacher stuff every morning on our
way to work. I am very close to my mom. Speaking of family, I saw your sister from
afar the other day. She was yelling hi to you or to Ms. Morshead. That is so cute. I
am sure you are such a great big sister.
I sure hope I can learn all the students in the class before you guys move
seats again. I think I will have them all learned by the end of my second week. Yours
is one of the ones I already know though. Thank you for saying it so many times for
me. I love that you have a unique name. I have never heard it before.
Thank you again, Maansi, for writing me such a lovely letter. I especially
enjoyed the star stickers. Since I wanted to be a teacher when I was your age, I had
a whole collection of stickers and I handed them out to all my neighbors after I gave
them fake homework. I hope I get to learn even more about you in class during
the end of this school year.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Jason,
Thank you very much for writing me a letter. I enjoyed learning a little bit
about you, but hope I can get to know you even more in class. I will be with the
class until the end of the school year. I hope you dont mind that you will have 2
teachers. I am excited to learn from you and your classmates as well as Ms.
Morshead.
I learned that you like knights and dinosaurs. I dont think I have ever met
anyone who likes dinosaurs more than my little brother. He isnt little anymore
because he is 27, but when he was a little boy he had so many dinosaur toys.
Everything you could think of, he had it. They were all different sizes. From his love
of dinosaurs, I learned a lot about them too. I am not sure I can remember it all now,
so you might have to refresh my memory sometime in class. My kindergarteners
were pretty impressed that I knew quite a few dinosaur names.
I started my first placement in the kindergarten class and then my second
placement is your class so you guys are the last class to teach me before I become
a teacher of my own classroom. I think I got lucky to have your class since you guys
seem so awesome already.

Contact lenses are something you and I have in common. I wear mine every
day too, unless I am being lazy, and then I wear my glasses. I am glad you told me
about needing to sit close to the screen though so I can make sure there is always
room for you up there. I noticed that sometimes it is hard to see what is on the
screen unless the light is off. You make sure to let me know if you ever have any
trouble while I am teaching.
I hope that I can get to know you even more as the school year goes on. I
really appreciate you taking time to type me a letter. Thank you again, Jason, for
doing that.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Adrianna,
Thank you for writing me such a nice letter. I really appreciate you doing that
for me. I enjoyed learning about you. It sounds like we have something in common
since we are both new to Stone Ranch. I started in January, so I think you probably
have been there a little longer.
It is great that you enjoy the monkey bars so much. I cant believe such a
little girl can make it all the way to the 3rd bar! You will have to show me one of
these days on the playground. When I was your age, I used to spend a lot of time on
the bars too. All my friends would take turns and we often had blisters on our hands
from the bars. That didnt stop us from having fun.
Thank you for teaching me about science and for telling me about the things
you have learned so far in class. I am glad that you like Ms. Morshead and I will do
my best to make sure that you enjoy my teaching as well. I am so happy that we are
starting fractions because math is my favorite subject.

My kindergartners were wonderful. I miss them a lot already, but I am lucky

to have B4 to learn from. I can tell that you and your classmates are going to teach
me so much. I hope that I can get to know you better before the end of the year.
Feel free to ask me any questions that come in your head.
Thank you again, Adrianna, for your letter.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear Ryan,
Thank you for taking time to type me out such a wonderful letter. It was full of
very helpful information. My favorite part of your letter is that you said that you love
going to school because you think it is fun and you get to learn something new. That
is exactly what I love about school too! I learn something every day and I really like
that each day is a little different. We always have new things to learn about. I am so
lucky to get to learn from you and your classmates as well as Ms. Morshead.
I cant believe that recess and lunch are your favorite parts of the day. You
arent even doing any of the learning that you like during that part. It must be
because you enjoy playing with all your friends. I used to enjoy my recess and lunch
time too when I was your age.

I am glad that you told me about how you are supposed to WOW (walk on
white). I had never heard of that before. Maybe when we are in class you can tell
me a little bit more about that.
Thank you again, Ryan, for writing me a letter. I really enjoyed it and I am
hoping that I can get to know you better each day I am in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Dear William,
Thank you for taking time to write me such a nice letter. I feel so special that
the whole class did that for me so that I could learn about everyone and about the
classroom. It was especially helpful that you told me about the Oak Valley tutors
that come to help in the classroom with math, and telling time. I think it is so neat
that they are allowed to spend part of their day at our school.
If your favorite book is Star Wars, does that mean you have seen all the
movies too? Maybe you can tell me more about this in class one of these days. I
have never seen any of the movies from start to finish, or read any of the books. My
dad and my brother enjoy them though.

My favorite subject is math. It has been that way since I was young. I dont
think I have a favorite book, but I do like the books by the author Nicholas Sparks.
He writes a lot of love stories that are all based in North Carolina. I am not sure why
he does that, but every book has a setting somewhere there. I have never been
there so it is fun to picture what it is like.
I really wanted to be a teacher because I enjoy working with kids like yourself.
I also like that each day is a little different. We cover the same topics, but each day
we can learn something new in each area. I
Kindergarten with Mr. Delos Santos was really fun. The students were really
sweet to me. I can already tell that I am going to enjoy being a part of B4. You and
your classmates have made my transition to 3rd grade an easy one. I know I am
going to learn so much.
I wish I would have been able to go on the LEGOLAND field trip with you and
the class. That sounds like a ton of fun. I have only been there 1 time and it was so
long ago that I forget what it was like. Maybe when I have my own classroom I will
be able to go on a field trip with my class there.
Thank you again, William, for writing to me. I hope I was able to answer all
your questions. I look forward to getting to know you better each day in class.

Best,
Ms. Murphy