- "Shawna's out today. She's getting her hair done by my mom." (I KNOW that hair braiding takes at least 8 hours, but it would never occur to me as a legitimate reason to KEEP YOUR CHILD FROM SCHOOL.)
- "Teacher, you're 30? My mom is 31." (The child was 12 or 13.)
- There was a boy named Darius in my class. The next period, Darius came back and told me his name was Darren. I thought I was losing my mind. The other kids did not register that anything was amiss. I asked Darren, "Weren't you already in here last period?" He said that he was not. He did not have the air of a student pulling a fast one; nor did he offer any explanation. I did not inquire further, because I did not want to be the insane white teacher to whom all the black kids looked alike.
When the classes changed, I found another teacher in the hall. "Are there twins in this grade?" I asked tentatively. "Yes," she replied, "And for some reason the parents thought it was a good idea to name them 'Darius' and 'Darren.'" "Good, I'm not losing my mind," I replied. She answered, "Some days I can almost tell them apart." - Today, the vice principal threw an ice cream sundae party for the fifteen kids in 6th grade who are passing all of their classes. Achievement!
Arizonans Know BS When They See It
1 year ago
3 comments:
Although Darius and Darren and Shawna need you more, I understand wanting the 'burbs. It probably feels more possible there, eh?
I want to teach, not to be a prison warden. Just managing behavior all day is awful, and it makes me start thinking extremely cynical thoughts.
Yeah, I don't think I even have the patience to teach that age. The worst part is, the longer we (as a society) put off actually teaching ALL kids, the more kids end up getting no teaching at all. I hate the idea of abandoning Darius & Darren and the kids in the CPS.
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