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I have this little punk-ass kid in my 9th grade class who is made up of about 95% attitude along with 5 % hot air. He persists in speaking ghetto-English, even when I've admonished them several times about speaking proper English (i.e. grammatically correct, as they would write, not colloquial) in my class.
To combat this, I simply ignore him when he asks me questions incorrectly. This means that every day we go through the same ritual:
Punk-Ass: "Ms. B: what time it is?"
Me: *pretends no one spoke*
Punk-Ass: "MS. B! What time it is?!"
Me: *looks at him pointedly, says nothing*
Punk-Ass: "What?! What time it is?"
Me: *continues on with the lesson*
The other students always get exasperated with him, asking him to say "What time is it?" but he never does. So they eventually find out the time from another classmate to shut him up.
Yesterday was a bad day for him. He'd been suspended and then gotten into arguments with teachers who were threatening to suspend him again. He was just exhausted and not in the mood to be his usual punk-ass self. In this atmosphere, the following exchange took place:
Punk-Ass: "Ms. B? What time is it?"
Me: *looked up, with dawning surprise and glee* "It's 11:16," I stated, slowly and clearly.
Punk-Ass: "Oh, okay."
Me: "Class. I want everyone to notice that [Punk-Ass] just asked me what time it is by saying, 'What time is it?'"
Everyone was shocked and Punk-Ass started trying to back-pedal. Another student raised his hands to clap.
Me: "That's right, everyone! Give [Punk-Ass] a big round of applause!"
And we all applauded him. He hated that, but he bore it with surprising good nature. It cheered me immensely.
* * *
Yesterday, a student that shall be known as Self-Important-Twerp-Gangsta-Wannabe-Thief-Rich-Boy (or SITGWTRB for short), tried to tell me that one of my better students was absent because she had an interview at Hooters.
I couldn't believe this was actually true. First off, the student in question wouldn't miss school for that. Secondly, does Hooters even hire under-aged girls? I mean, that just seems wrong to me. They advertise the attraction of their girls as part of the biz, and I just can't see the company encouraging the ogling of jailbait. And, thirdly, I had to consider the source: this was SITGWTRB talking.
Anyway, my thoughts were mixed. It's not that I go to Hooters that often or think the food is spectacular, but knowing one of my high school students worked there would definitely ensure that I never went. I shared this opinion with Andy.
This morning, the student in question broke out of her first period class to run and find me. She wanted me to know, immediately, that she absolutely had not interviewed at Hooters yesterday. I laughed and told her I really didn't think that was the case. Privately, I was relieved.
* * *
Silent Slim is tall, dark, and as you may have guessed: silent. I don't think he likes me very much. I know he doesn't like or respect my class. He hasn't put an iota of effort toward doing any decent amount of work this semester: in fact, he seems to be trying very hard to fail.
He's the student who, according to his mother, actually wrote his research paper... and then turned in someone else's with his name on top. When the student who did actually write the paper had me help him with his revisions the day before, and turned in his own paper.
He got a talking to last Thursday from our administrator. She told him that he really needed to put some work in this last quarter so that he wouldn't fail. He missed about three-four weeks at the beginning (not sure why), so I've been exceedingly nice and agreed to let him make up all his quizzes without penalty. He agreed with the principle and me that he would do his required readings over the weekend and be ready to make up his quizzes this week.
On Tuesday, I asked him what he'd read. He had read the last three stories in The Things They Carried. I reminded him that he needed to read the entire book. He acted surprised. I told him he could take the quizzes tomorrow, but he really needed to read tonight. He said he would.
Wednesday, he hadn't done any more reading. I was impatient and still trying to work with him, so I let it slide. I told him that Thursday was the absolute last day he could take the quizzes as their test is on Tuesday. I insisted that he do his readings.
Today, he walked into my classroom (late, as usual, because he always has to be chased into my class). I held out the quizzes to him in a sheaf. He turned around and walked out of my room. Without a word. A moment later, I heard him complaining to the office lady that I was asking him to do work for which he was unprepared. She ordered him back into my class, telling him that it was better to try than not to do anything at all.
He took my quizzes. He went to his seat at the back of the class, dropped the quizzes onto the floor, and proceeded to settle into a snooze.
I held my tongue. I waited as two other students took make-up quizzes. Ten minutes passed. I finally called out to him, "[Silent Slim]." No response. "[Silent Slim!]" He stirred. "You either need to work on those quizzes or turn them in."
He muttered something. "I can't hear you, [Silent Slim]. Either turn in your quizzes or actually try to take them."
He grabbed them off the floor and shoved them across the table at another student. They flew everywhere, so that the other student had to gather them up and bring them to me. He was too kind.
Silent Slim hadn't written anything on the quizzes. My red 0's were very angry looking as I scrawled them out.
Coming Soon:
Students enrage English teacher to the point that she casts down her textbook upon the table with a mighty crash!
Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" about Shirley and her husband, Tessie! Lottery decided by a game involving a black ball, wherein the ball morphs into a stone!
Student asks to leave because "nothing's going on" when there are two more classes to go! Student claims "everyone else is leaving"!
To combat this, I simply ignore him when he asks me questions incorrectly. This means that every day we go through the same ritual:
Punk-Ass: "Ms. B: what time it is?"
Me: *pretends no one spoke*
Punk-Ass: "MS. B! What time it is?!"
Me: *looks at him pointedly, says nothing*
Punk-Ass: "What?! What time it is?"
Me: *continues on with the lesson*
The other students always get exasperated with him, asking him to say "What time is it?" but he never does. So they eventually find out the time from another classmate to shut him up.
Yesterday was a bad day for him. He'd been suspended and then gotten into arguments with teachers who were threatening to suspend him again. He was just exhausted and not in the mood to be his usual punk-ass self. In this atmosphere, the following exchange took place:
Punk-Ass: "Ms. B? What time is it?"
Me: *looked up, with dawning surprise and glee* "It's 11:16," I stated, slowly and clearly.
Punk-Ass: "Oh, okay."
Me: "Class. I want everyone to notice that [Punk-Ass] just asked me what time it is by saying, 'What time is it?'"
Everyone was shocked and Punk-Ass started trying to back-pedal. Another student raised his hands to clap.
Me: "That's right, everyone! Give [Punk-Ass] a big round of applause!"
And we all applauded him. He hated that, but he bore it with surprising good nature. It cheered me immensely.
Yesterday, a student that shall be known as Self-Important-Twerp-Gangsta-Wannabe-Thief-Rich-Boy (or SITGWTRB for short), tried to tell me that one of my better students was absent because she had an interview at Hooters.
I couldn't believe this was actually true. First off, the student in question wouldn't miss school for that. Secondly, does Hooters even hire under-aged girls? I mean, that just seems wrong to me. They advertise the attraction of their girls as part of the biz, and I just can't see the company encouraging the ogling of jailbait. And, thirdly, I had to consider the source: this was SITGWTRB talking.
Anyway, my thoughts were mixed. It's not that I go to Hooters that often or think the food is spectacular, but knowing one of my high school students worked there would definitely ensure that I never went. I shared this opinion with Andy.
This morning, the student in question broke out of her first period class to run and find me. She wanted me to know, immediately, that she absolutely had not interviewed at Hooters yesterday. I laughed and told her I really didn't think that was the case. Privately, I was relieved.
Silent Slim is tall, dark, and as you may have guessed: silent. I don't think he likes me very much. I know he doesn't like or respect my class. He hasn't put an iota of effort toward doing any decent amount of work this semester: in fact, he seems to be trying very hard to fail.
He's the student who, according to his mother, actually wrote his research paper... and then turned in someone else's with his name on top. When the student who did actually write the paper had me help him with his revisions the day before, and turned in his own paper.
He got a talking to last Thursday from our administrator. She told him that he really needed to put some work in this last quarter so that he wouldn't fail. He missed about three-four weeks at the beginning (not sure why), so I've been exceedingly nice and agreed to let him make up all his quizzes without penalty. He agreed with the principle and me that he would do his required readings over the weekend and be ready to make up his quizzes this week.
On Tuesday, I asked him what he'd read. He had read the last three stories in The Things They Carried. I reminded him that he needed to read the entire book. He acted surprised. I told him he could take the quizzes tomorrow, but he really needed to read tonight. He said he would.
Wednesday, he hadn't done any more reading. I was impatient and still trying to work with him, so I let it slide. I told him that Thursday was the absolute last day he could take the quizzes as their test is on Tuesday. I insisted that he do his readings.
Today, he walked into my classroom (late, as usual, because he always has to be chased into my class). I held out the quizzes to him in a sheaf. He turned around and walked out of my room. Without a word. A moment later, I heard him complaining to the office lady that I was asking him to do work for which he was unprepared. She ordered him back into my class, telling him that it was better to try than not to do anything at all.
He took my quizzes. He went to his seat at the back of the class, dropped the quizzes onto the floor, and proceeded to settle into a snooze.
I held my tongue. I waited as two other students took make-up quizzes. Ten minutes passed. I finally called out to him, "[Silent Slim]." No response. "[Silent Slim!]" He stirred. "You either need to work on those quizzes or turn them in."
He muttered something. "I can't hear you, [Silent Slim]. Either turn in your quizzes or actually try to take them."
He grabbed them off the floor and shoved them across the table at another student. They flew everywhere, so that the other student had to gather them up and bring them to me. He was too kind.
Silent Slim hadn't written anything on the quizzes. My red 0's were very angry looking as I scrawled them out.
Coming Soon:
Students enrage English teacher to the point that she casts down her textbook upon the table with a mighty crash!
Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" about Shirley and her husband, Tessie! Lottery decided by a game involving a black ball, wherein the ball morphs into a stone!
Student asks to leave because "nothing's going on" when there are two more classes to go! Student claims "everyone else is leaving"!