Kindergarten Kapers

Sabrina’s first day of school turned into an unexpected adventure. She quickly learns the value of a good friend and problems with not so good friends. Her haven is the school library where she can read as many books as she wants.

“Such a sweet story of how reading can take us to unlimited destinations.”

—Mariana Evans, Instructional Coach, Lenore PK8

SABRINA RUNYON

A native of Mingo County, WV, Dr. Sabrina Runyon has been an educator for 30 years and was a principal for eight years and currently Mingo County’s PK-8 director, Title I and Title III director, County events coordinator. Married with two sons, she has a master’s degree from Salem International University and worked at Tug Valley High School and part-time at Southern WV Community and Technical College. She finished her doctoral studies at Phoenix University. Her first book, multi-award winning Sabrina’s Book, was inspired by her introductory poem to fellow first-year doctoral classmates.

KINDERGARTEN KAPERS

“Loved this little book. Excellent way to introduce children to perhaps lifestyles different from theirs. Highly recommended!”

—Janet Varney, Director of Special Education, Mingo County Schools

Sabrina Runyon ILLUSTRATED BY

Ashley Teets

Kindergarten Kapers The Sabrina Series

Sabrina Runyon I LLU S TRA TE D B Y

Ashley Teets

Kindergarten Kapers The Sabrina Series

by Sabrina Runyon illustrated by Ashley Teets copyright ©2021 Sabrina Runyon All rights reserved. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents, except where noted otherwise, are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any other resemblance to actual people, places or events is entirely coincidental. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any other form or for any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage system, without written permission from Headline Books.

To order additional copies of this book, or for book publishing information, or to contact the author: Headline Kids P. O. Box 52 Terra Alta, WV 26764 Email: mybook@headlinebooks.com www.headlinebooks.com Lucas Kelly—Design/Layout Published by Headline Books Headline Kids is an imprint of Headline Books ISBN-13: 9781951556327

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020943846

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

For my dad, a blessing to me!

Contents Author’s Note...............................................................................6 My First Kindergarten Class, a Friend, and a Haunted House..............................................8 Cars, a Baby, and Sugary Milk.................................................14 Saying Goodbye, Snowball Cakes, and Pop...........................18 A New School, Mrs. P., and Paddling.....................................23 Learning, Love, and the Library..............................................26 Problems with Scissors and My Report Card........................29 Kindergarten Survival Kit........................................................30

Author’s Note We all have memories that stick in our minds-good, bad, happy, or sad. These memories turn into stories that we tell when we get older. Growing up poor in the hills of West Virginia, I have plenty of stories to tell. My stories are dominated by things that happened at school and at home.

When I say “home” it isn’t like the song, “The House That Built Me,” where Miranda Lambert sings about growing up in a home and going back to it. We moved a lot in my younger years. I remember five houses before I started second grade.

Dad and Mom didn’t have the money to buy a home, so we rented—the cheaper, the better.

Because he didn’t graduate from high school, sometimes my dad had a job, and other times, he didn’t. When he did have a job, it was a low-paying one. Mom never had an official job outside the home. Her parents divorced when she was very young and her mother left the home. My mom told me,

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on several occasions she didn’t know how my siblings and I turned out so well because she didn’t have enough sense to raise children. But Mom was a good “teacher” who played with me and let me explore. She talked to me like I was a person, not like I was a baby. We only had one book in our home and she read it to me every day. This book helped with my vocabulary and sparked a desire in me to learn to read.

When Kindergarten arrived, I finally got the chance to turn that desire into a reality.

–Sabrina

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Chapter 1 My First Kindergarten Class, a Friend, and a Haunted House

The day is finally here! KINDERGARTEN! I may be just a teensy bit scared. But that’s because I don’t know what to expect… Logan Grade School, here I come!

First impression – the school is big! And tall…

The walls are dark and gray. There are a lot of children here—yay! My cousin, Mark, is in the same room as I am. My seat is next to a girl who has white hair with pretty bows in it. Her clothes are so pretty. She had a decorated pencil box. I don’t have a pencil box so the girl, Angie, is sharing with me, she’s nice.

Lunchtime! The lunchroom is huge and dull. My legs are barely long enough to get me over the bench. But the food is good, so I guess the looks of the place don’t matter.

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After school, I get to ride the bus home. Angie rides my bus—yes! We can sit together. We are best friends.

She lives in a beautiful house. I wonder what it looks like on the inside?

The house we rent is on the side of a hill, and it is haunted! For real. It is so spooky. I can hear things, but my parents say I have an overactive imagination. We aren’t allowed to open the door in our bedroom because there is an enclosed porch. It has stuff belonging to the landlord on the inside. Who has so much stuff? I am not sure what they are hiding in there… I just want to see what it is!

At least at this haunted house we have running water.

Last year, Mom had to pack water from our landlord’s well. I tried to help her out by licking my plate clean so she wouldn’t have to wash it. There was not a speck of food left on it!

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Mom argued that she still needed to wash it. I couldn’t get her to understand. Then at school, we started learning about things called germs…maybe I wasn’t as smart as I thought. But, hey, that was last year!

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Chapter 2 Cars, a Baby, and Sugary Milk

Something scary happened today. My dad was working on our old car, and it fell on him. We are always having car problems. Most of the time, the problem is that we don’t have a car that works. I had to help my dad up the steps to his bedroom. I hope he gets well soon.

Half the school year is over. It is January. I’m five, now. My mom is getting ready to go to the hospital to have another baby. I am watching one of the funniest shows on the television. I cannot quit laughing out loud.

Mom keeps trying to get me to be quiet so that I don’t wake my dad and brother, Danny, Jr. But I can’t help myself. So, Mom just threw a pillow at me and told me to laugh into it. The pillow isn’t helping! She thought it was pretty funny, too.

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Then, Mom had the baby. Everyone was sad because the doctor told my mom that my baby sister, Leslie, isn’t going to live. But, today, she is doing better, and she will get to come home, tomorrow. So, now I have a brother and a sister. Thank God I am the oldest. I hope this is the last baby!

Today, is a good day. My Aunt Elsie is here, and she had brought us some food. Cereal and milk, yum! I love milk and sugar—I don’t even need cereal in it. Sugary milk tastes so good! Sitting on the countertop in the kitchen, Mom and Elsie are making me put cereal in my bowl, too.

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Chapter 3 Saying Goodbye, Snowball Cakes, and Pop

It’s almost April, and we are moving. I have to change schools. I have been here for almost the entire school year. I have to say goodbye to my best friend, Angie. We will be best friends forever. After a few hugs from Angie, she has to get off the bus. My heart hurts.

Our new rented house is in an alley behind a row of small stores. Today, my dad surprised us with a bottle of RC Cola and a 2-pack of snowball cakes from one of the stores. I feel so rich because we rarely get to drink pop and eat cake.

My Uncle Kenny has moved in with us. Mom made him a place to sleep in a back room. He is a teenager. I don’t think things at his house are good. I am happy he is here with us. He always says that my mom is more 18

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like a mom to him than a sister because she practically raised him.

Uncle Mikey, my dad’s brother, also visits us often..

He lives within walking distance of our house. Mikey is a young man, too. He has long hair and wears a long trench coat. He always wants to hold my sister, Leslie.

Mom says that Leslie was her best baby, but Mikey has ruined her because he wakes her up to hold, and then when he leaves, she cries. So long to the best baby award, sister!

Here comes brother, running through the house, sliding on his socks. Oh, NO! He hit the corner of the living room table and his eye is bleeding! Mom and Dad have warned him about this!

Off to the doctor.

Danny had to get stitches! Mom says it will leave a scar. I am thankful he didn’t put his eye out!

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Chapter 4 A New School, Mrs. P., and Paddling

Lenore Grade School, here I come. The school is close to our house, so my dad can walk me there.

This school is smaller than my last one. It doesn’t have an upstairs. We are walking through an old furnace room to get to the hallway and classrooms.

There is a guy sitting in the furnace room. Dad tells me he is my great, great Uncle Goble. He is a friendly man with black hair.

There is a wooden desk in front of a big window where my teacher sits. Beside her, there were bookcases‌ full of books! I want to look at each one of them, but I have to sit at my table. Work! Work! Work! My new Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. P., means business.

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Time for a bathroom break! There is a bathroom connected to our classroom. I see that the other Kindergarten classroom is connected on the other side of the bathroom. I am minding my own business, washing my hands. Here comes a girl from the other kindergarten class. A new friend? Ouch! She is biting me on my arm! She is definitely not a friend…Who is this girl? I’m not a biter, but I am not going to let that go on without doing something to her. Before I could think too much, I am reaching my hand over and pinching the girl. My teacher saw the whole thing. Good! She can take care of that girl! Wait…I am getting paddled?! Mrs. P. paddled both of us. My teacher is going to think I am a mean girl…

She doesn’t put up with any foolishness. I just learned that the hard way. When she says that it is nap time, you better be quiet. Here I am on my first day, looking around to see if everyone is napping and my eyes stop suddenly.

Wow! Who is that on the mat next to the teacher’s desk?

He is so cute. He has black hair and is taller than I am. I don’t know his name, but, at the ripe old age of five, I am in LOVE! I didn’t get any napping done, but it is time to put up the mats.

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Chapter 5 Learning, Love, and the Library

I love to read and write, so I finish my work before the other students. Finally, the day that I have been waiting for arrives, -I get to choose a book from the bookshelves to take home to read! It’s our classroom library.

I can’t wait to read it to my mom. I will check out as many books as I can because my teacher said school is almost over. I also love to do Math. I pretend that I am a teacher. I write numbers on paper and show my pretend students how to work them out. I show my brother, too. My sister is too little. It is time for summer break. I haven’t been at this school long enough. I love it here. I don’t have a best friend like I did in Logan. That’s okay because Angie is still my best friend. I don’t have a phone at my house so I can’t call her. That does make me sad.

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Chapter 6 Problems with Scissors and My Report Card

The day is here—my final day of Kindergarten. We get to take our report cards home with us. The good news is that I survived Kindergarten!! I have my report card to prove it. There are a couple of notes on my report. Mrs. P wrote, “It would help if you would let her use scissors during the summer to cut paper, etc... She cannot use them very well.”

She doesn’t know that it is very difficult for my parents to help me because they are both right-handed, and I am left-handed! I might not be able to cut with scissors worth anything, but I earned all “1’s” on my report card. “1’s” mean “most of the time.” Mrs. P wrote that I am 3 feet, 8 inches tall and weigh 45 pounds. There is a typed note attached to my report card, dated, today, June 4, 1973. The note says, “Promoted to first grade!” 29

Kindergarten Survival Kit • Pencils

• Glue Sticks

• Paper

• Clorox Wipes

• Backpack

• Play Dough

• Lunch Box

• Box of Tissues

• Mix-and-match

• Scissors

back to school clothes • Gym Clothes (if needed)

• Jacket or Coat • Lined paper • A folder • Hand sanitizer • Pencil Box or Bag • Crayons • Erasers 30

• Extra change of clothes to keep at school • Slip-on Shoes (if they don’t know how to tie their shoes)

• Paint Brushes • Plastic Document Pouches • Gym Shoes • Dry erase markers

Extra Things to Remember: 1. Label your child’s personal items 2. Include an Emergency Information Card 3. Send Snacks and Lunch 4. Water bottle 5. Make sure they know their name, phone number, and home address 6. Face Mask/Shield

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For Parents Birth certificate Shot record Dental and eye exam Social security card

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Sabrina’s first day of school turned into an unexpected adventure. She quickly learns the value of a good friend and problems with not so good friends. Her haven is the school library where she can read as many books as she wants.

“Such a sweet story of how reading can take us to unlimited destinations.”

—Mariana Evans, Instructional Coach, Lenore PK8

SABRINA RUNYON

A native of Mingo County, WV, Dr. Sabrina Runyon has been an educator for 30 years and was a principal for eight years and currently Mingo County’s PK-8 director, Title I and Title III director, County events coordinator. Married with two sons, she has a master’s degree from Salem International University and worked at Tug Valley High School and part-time at Southern WV Community and Technical College. She finished her doctoral studies at Phoenix University. Her first book, multi-award winning Sabrina’s Book, was inspired by her introductory poem to fellow first-year doctoral classmates.

KINDERGARTEN KAPERS

“Loved this little book. Excellent way to introduce children to perhaps lifestyles different from theirs. Highly recommended!”

—Janet Varney, Director of Special Education, Mingo County Schools

Sabrina Runyon ILLUSTRATED BY

Ashley Teets