Subbing on the last day before winter break is not for the faint of heart, but I'm not faint-hearted, especially when it comes to sixth grade. That, plus a friend asked me to cover his American history class while he was recovering from wrist surgery.
His homeroom was kind of a shitshow with half the kids absent and the other half dedicated to doing anything except what they were supposed to. And, first period was only slightly better as students "worked" to finish their posters on the Civil War. Finally, as an incentive, I offered anyone who completed their project, showed it to me, and made any changes I suggested the chance to play a game to win candy.
My gambit worked-- as a few students wrapped up the assignment and played the game, others locked in to get their chance, too. Then, about 20 minutes before the class ended, a student dropped her huge poster on the desk in front of me. "Here," she scoffed. "Can I play the game?"
I looked at the poster, which had no headings or illustrations, and advised her to add those requirements. She sighed loudly and whisked the poster away. In a minute, she was back. "Here," she repeated. "I'm done."
To my eye, the poster was unchanged. I looked up at her, but before I could speak, she said, "You said if we finish our posters, we can play the game."
"I said if you finish your poster and take my suggestions, you can play the game," I corrected her.
"I did take your suggestions," she told me. "I took them, and I threw them in the trash!"
"Oop!" I laughed, surprised by her audacious disrespect. "Good one! But you have to fix your poster if you want to play the game."
And she did.
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