Tag Team Tattle Tales...

OG22-G4

I usually like the 3^rd to 5^th grade levels. The kids are usually excited to be in school and usually seem to like to learn new stuff.

Maybe not so much at the end of the year.

Today’s 4^th grade lesson plan:

• Play the DVD video “Holes” or “The Incredibles”
• Lunch
• Math: Let them select and do any number of the fun “work sheets”.
• Silent Reading
• Make Father’s Day Certificates for Monday
• PE: Free play (45 minutes)
• Dismiss:

Whether it is the end of the school year or there is nothing more they have to cover or a teacher’s fear that the substitute teacher will “teach it wrong” or the lack of time to plan an actual academic lesson for the day, these kids had nothing substantial to learn or accomplish today.

There was no reason for these kids to be in school today except maybe the lack of daycare while the parents work.

My job today was to show up as the legally required adult while the kids were in a school building.

In essence, I’m the baby sitter.

Seventy-seven cents an hour per kid. That’s what I earned today for babysitting.

Highlights of my day:

1. Continually separating two pairs of tag teaming tattle tale girls who were determined to convince me that the “other” pair of girls should be punished for “passing notes”, “saying things”, “bothering us”, etc.

2. Trying to keep three earring-studded gangsta wannabe boys off the table tops and who were egging on the tag team tattlers to increasing levels of mischief.

That was it.

Nothing to see here. Nothing of substance learned today.

The only exciting moment (for them) was when the word “jackass” was uttered during the movie. They all turned to look to see what my reaction to the “bad word” would be. I couldn’t tell if they were disappointed or not with my “no reaction”.

The kids would probably have had more education today simply staying home watching the National Geographic channel.