Foraging

When I was a kid, Euell Gibbons was a household name. Maybe it was the Grapenuts commercial where he looked fondly at that pine tree and drawled,"You know some parts are edible...", but whatever the case, old Euell was the punchline to many jokes. Later in life I was introduced to his book, Stalking the Blue-eyed Scallop, but even then, appreciation was not my primary response.

I'm not sure when I realized what a smart guy he was, but for years, I have been consciously cultivating my knowledge of the plants around me and what we can eat. Just tonight the neighbor kids and I spent a merry half hour trying to reach all the red bud blossoms we could from the tall tall trees in our courtyards, both to nibble on out of hand-- the pink buds are a little sweet-- and also to toss in our salad.

I kind of like the fact that they might look at a tree and think that some parts are edible, without a trace of irony.

Annual Riddle Poem Edition

Each year my students write riddle poems. Here are a few pretty good ones from this round:

I smell as though a thousand years
I can be sad and bring many fears
Romance, fantasy I'm sometimes called
I'm creative and with me people have bawled
I make new worlds that are real and fake
I am as great as my creator make
Many shapes and sizes, skinny or plump I do come in
But the real great treasure is the one within.
A book

i am clear as a diamond
no color or shape
too much of me is deadly
but if you dont have enough of me you can die
many people try to run away from me
and they just cant because i am too fast. 
what am i?
water

Good times never last,
I should never have let you go,
I'll never forget my careless mistake,
All the time I prayed for your reappearance,
But you never floated back home.
A balloon

It is fluffy in the inside,
soft on the out.
In the night it has a head,
But when the morning comes,
then it does not.
What is this?
A pillow

The Real Treasure:
Yes, I'm partially in gold,
and in some part of diamond
Look at what it takes to get victory.
Yes I'm somewhat in money.
Check in these things
and you will see
my true identity.

What Am I?????
Love

(The answers appear in ghost post below each riddle.)

Buyer's Remorse

The other day in class the attendance secretary came to fetch one of my students. His dad was there to pick him up for a doctor appointment. He gathered his belongings and then hesitated at the door. With a concerned expression he turned around and approached my desk. The other students were working quietly on an assignment, so he whispered his request. "Will you tell (here he named another student) to give me my money?"

It was my turn to be concerned. "Why does he have your money?" I asked.

"Because we traded," he explained.

I was confused. "What did you trade?"

"I gave him my money and he gave me those cards." He pointed to the table where a deck of cards still lay.

"We call that 'buying' when we trade money for something," I told him, and looking sternly at both boys, I continued, "and we don't use class time to conduct that kind of business."

"But I changed my mind," the first kid said with a slight whimper, "and I need my money back. My dad will be mad."

The card seller had the sense to look abashed, but he kept the cash in his pocket. I sighed and canceled the transaction. "Give him his money and get back to work."

Here and Now

We've reached a point in the year where some of the students are in the habit of seeking me out either before homeroom, at lunch, or after school. They just want to talk, or tell me something, or take a shot at the mini-hoop I have hanging by the door. I welcome this attention, both because building relationships is what we do, and I genuinely like all of my students. Also, it's kind of fun to hang out with kids.

Our interactions are interesting, entertaining, and enlightening, and they feel meaningful to me, but it's weird when I think about it, especially if I try to recall my own sixth grade experience. Chances are, these kids won't remember anything of what we say. They are growing and changing so quickly that even in a year or two, when they are in seventh and eighth grades, this time will seem like ancient history to them. Who knows what will stick?

I guess that's all the more reason to be present in the present.

Survey Says...

What's with all the surveys lately? It seems like everywhere you go to shop, once you've settled up at the register they pause before handing you your receipt and circle a little web address at the bottom. If you take the time to enter the string of characters into your browser and answer a few questions, you will be eligible to win a gift certificate. Some are worth a hundred bucks (not sure it's worth it, Staples), but today Home Depot was dangling five grand, and last week Sears was offering four thousand.

No matter the odds of winning, it becomes tempting to plan how you will spend your reward... new clothes, new carpet, new windows? That is, if you can find the time and patience to actually answer their questions.

M to the O to the Vs

We live in a pretty diverse area and it so happens that one of the movie theaters we most frequent is primarily staffed by young African-American people. The place was hopping this afternoon when I got in the concession line, and I was relieved when the girl at the register to my left waved me over. She efficiently took my order, swiped my new Stubs card (that's a whole 'nother post), delivered my popcorn and Dibs, and sent me on my way with a cheerful, "Enjoy your shi-zow!"

Yes, I laughed.

ZAP

It happens every year-- the sixth grade gets swept up in a silly social game called ZAP. The rules, as far as I can tell, involve one person writing the name of someone of the opposite sex on another person's palm along with ZAP on the top of the hand. The person who has been zapped has to guess whose name is on their palm within a set time or they will have to ask that named person "out", and the same is true if they look at the name before they guess correctly.

So far at our school we have never banned the game outright. The adults in the building, if they are aware of it at all, look the other way unless it becomes disruptive, and it always fades away after a few weeks, anyway. Besides the distraction that ZAP creates, however, I have a few other objections. First, what does that even mean to ask someone out in sixth grade? Second, everyone knows that the asking isn't sincere, so what's the point? Third, what if the other person says yes? And finally, there have been too many times I've seen somebody show the name on their palm to somebody else only for the response to be, "Ewwwwwww!" and a giggle. That's just mean, and I never hesitate to say so.

The popularity of ZAP is not really so surprising, though. When you think about why the kids would like such a dumb activity, it becomes clear that it allows these young adolescents to experiment with social roles and risks within the structure of a game. It's a safe way for them to practice for the emotionally perilous times ahead.

(Read a student's view on ZAP here.)