Our school sits in the countryside, just a few miles from the city limits. Our location entails sundry countryside phenomena, such as frogs and bugs. Bugs, in fact, have already disrupted my class once or twice. Seventh grade girls and countryside critters can be an earsplitting combination.
Last week, I walked around the classroom, checking homework and writing my initials on completed assignments. One of my students asked how I would find out whether or not they had done their homework, in the event of my absence from school. I informed my class that the bugs were my spies, who dutifully let me know whether or not my students have done their homework.
At the end of the same period, I wanted to use a picture of bison as a conversation starter and writing prompt. Unfortunately, several of my spies infiltrated my classroom and derailed my lesson plans. Here I had a conundrum: Should I allow students to kill my spies, thereby eliminating my unfinished-homework detection system; or should I allow my spies to live, thereby inciting a riot of seventh grade girls, jumping up on their chairs and screaming?
I changed their homework assignment from writing about the picture to writing about my spies. Two recommendations from my students struck me as noteworthy:
1) Use butterflies. 2) Put the spies on the ceiling.
2 comments:
I don't think I realized you were in 7th grade, and not high school. I think I remember you mentioning this last year now, but I'd forgotten.
Didn't you have an advising role as well in high-school, or am I disremembering that as well?
Great suggestions! What ROOM do you teach in??? I'm stayin' away!
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