Monthly Archives: February 2013
First Hour
They were incorporating adjective clauses into a paragraph when he wrote, “When I was in the 10th grade I fell in love with a stripper.” I don’t care if he was just trying to be funny or for real, the … Continue reading
Earliest Memory
Ten minutes remained in our longest period of the day and my two students paused their gossip, folded their hands, and looked expectantly at me. These are the moments that count, so I wracked my brain for a good question. … Continue reading
Coming Back
Whispers in the hallways. Students exchange furtive glances, staff spout off know-it-all remarks in the work room,”They’ll never come back! Not after that.” I know now to shrug it off. They will be back, sooner than we think. Four days … Continue reading
Merry-go-Round
The first time I heard this song, I knew it would come to mean a lot to me because of the town I grew up in and the stories I hear every month. Today another boy from the town four … Continue reading
Growing Brains
We started out as a class of four. The two weak ones, dare I say seemingly unproficient ones, took the two back corners. Mr. Tough Guy sat between them and sized me up for two days. A gangling white boy obsessed with … Continue reading
The Banana Suit
Apparently I forgot to explain what a banana suit is. Picture the jumpsuit to the left in bright yellow, that’s a banana suit. As part of our incentive program, we grant our offenders status levels for good performance, or drop their … Continue reading
Jury Duty
It was like a scene out of “Disorder in the Court” by The Three Stooges: Where do you work? What do you do? Where do you work? What do you do? Begrudgingly I answered the call for Jury Duty on Monday. Normally I shake … Continue reading
President’s Day
Last year the girls confused me by asking why we celebrate President’s Day. They thought the holiday is for the sitting president. After being corrected, they replied, “We should celebrate Reagan’s birthday.” Looking at the variety of girls before me, … Continue reading
Ignore-ance
I’ve touched upon this before, but if I go back a year in my journals I find: One thing I’m learning to do is ignore, another skill you can’t use in ordinary classrooms. Ignore the rapping, the tapping, the napping. Ignore … Continue reading
A Ten Syllable Name and a Little Hope
Near the end of last semester a new offender showed up with a ten-syllable-long name longer than he stood tall. A nondescript face except for the appearance that he just walked away from a swarm of bees–and the bees won, he … Continue reading
Hey, Miss! 