Cut to the Chase, Lady!

I asked a disruptive student to step outside for a moment.

"What did I do?" he asked belligerently.

"Who said you did anything?" I replied.

He scowled. I shrugged.

"I noticed that you weren't following the directions," I told him, "and it's noisy in our classroom. I wanted to see if you had any questions."

"They were talking to me!" he said about the other students at his table.

"It looked like there was a lot of conversation going on," I agreed, "between everybody," I added.

"That's why I don't know the directions," he said.

"Did you notice that I put your seat right near where I usually stand?" I asked him. "That's so if you have any questions, you can ask me and I will help you."

He gave a small nod.

"There are a lot of kids in our class," I told him, "and I need you to be doing what you're supposed to..."

I took a breath and he looked a little alarmed. We both knew I was winding up for the pep talk. He reached out and patted my shoulder.

"I get it!" he told me. "I'll pay attention!"

I laughed in surprise.

"Say, I promise," I said.

"I promise!" he answered. "Now what were we supposed to do?"