Crazy Kids

So many people when I tell them I teach sixth grade always look at me with a look of horror or disgust...then they tell me they don't know how I do it! Today was proof as to why I teach kids this age...they are hysterical! We have been working on a fairy tale unit for the past two weeks. We studied the elements of a fairy tale and read many examples. Then I gave them the task to choose a famous fairy tale and retell it giving it a modern twist or simply speaking from someone else's point of view. They were to perform their plays today for the class. Let me just say that several times I was crying because I was laughing so hard. I had everything from Pinkylina (the retelling of Thumbelina) to Little Red Rider in the Hood (you can guess what that was from!). I had a group do a modern version of The Wizard of Oz and the three that accompanied Dorothy to the city of Oz were Brittney Spears (who had lost her voice and wanted it back-played by a little boy with a shaved head...), Flava Flav (who had lost his clock), and Shia Le Buf (who lived in a junkyard and couldn't find his transformers). Too funny! 5th period came a shocker-a girl who was to play 'Lil Wayne in her group's retelling of Litle Red Rider in the Hood came with her face painted brown. When I stopped her outside to ask what she was doing, she just replied, "I am supposed to be a gangster!" I was horrified, especially knowing parents of all ethnicities were in my classroom waiting to begin. I mean did she not hear about that similar incident with the Beta's?? They didn't fare so well in that situation. On a random note of the day at the end of 3rd period, I sent 2 of my boys who always want to take my trash out to the dumpster because my trash was overflowing. They decided to take a detour to the dumpster and went down into the basement of Drake. They claim that Mrs. Vakakes told them to go down to the basement to put away some props, they dropped the box of trash, some pieces fell into a room, and when they went to retrieve it, all of a sudden the door shut and they were locked in. They were locked in...for 20 minutes. You have to understand that the basement of Drake is a very scary place. It is dark and no one uses it for much of anything! Much less, I would never send a kid in the basement for any reason. Not only were they not where they were supposed to be, but they lied when they were finally found. They screamed and beat on the door for 20 minutes!! The teacher that found them said that when she let them out they had been crying so hard that snot was running down their cheeks and neck. They had been totally traumatized. We decided being locked in was punishment enough. One thing is for sure...I will never let them take the trash to the dumpster ever again!