Some of the teachers tried to warn me. I just didn’t quite believe how tough a final “fun day” could be.
I’m walking out to my classroom in the portables at 08:00am to find workmen boarding up the windows with 4x8 sheets of plywood.
“Securing the classrooms against the summer vandals” was the given explanation. The entire row of classrooms looked like foreclosed, abandoned housing units.
I thought it must make quite an impression for the parents of the graduating 6th graders to see the slum dwellings where their kids got their education. Couldn’t they have “secured” the classrooms for summer AFTER school?
The final day lesson plan:
- Clean the classroom
- Go the 6th graders “clap out” assembly
- Recess
- Show movie
- Lunch
- Stack desks and chairs
- Pass out report cards
- Go home at 1:20pm
This should have been an easy day and for the most part it was. The problems came during the movie in the classroom. Everyone was laying out on the floor because I had the kids stack desks and chairs right after recess. With the windows boarded up, the classroom was pitch black, movie perfect atmosphere. I turned out the lights and started the video.
Once my eyes adjusted to night vision, I noticed a couple of boys standing over by the teachers’ desk in the back of the room. Knowing that they were probably up to nothing good, I made my way back to where they were, only to see that one kid had my sunglasses that used to be in my backpack!!
“WHAT THE F-(remembering at the last fraction of a second that the next syllable would probably get me fired) ARE YOU TWO DOING! GIVE ME THOSE! HIT THE LIGHTS! TURN OFF THE VIDEO!”
“YOU!”, pointing at the kid with MY glasses, “GET OUT OF HERE NOW! OFFICE RIGHT NOW!” as I grabbed my glasses back.
I was so mad, I surprised myself. I could hardly talk to the office secretary to describe why I was sending the kid over. I was stunned that any kid would be going through my backpack in class. Even more stunned that he would do it while I was in the room. On the last day of school, even! I was so stunned that I even forgot about the second kid that was with him!
I went by the office at lunch time. Almost every chair available was occupied by a kid evicted from one classroom or another. The school secretary said it happens every year.
“The kids just go nuts the last week of school. We tried to warn you!”
Final Total: 78 of 180 days subbing.
2 comments:
We had our 5th grade ceremony. Our last day went like this:
8:45 announcements
9:30-11 ceremony
11-12 last minute classroom stuff, gifts, year book signing
12-2 party, water games, pizza,etc.
2-3:30 movie
I think the "movie" thing has lost its value. Kids watch movies all the time and have already seen what we can show. They'd rather bring their MP3s, Ipods or gaming systems.
Last day of school they figure they can get away with anything since there is "nothing the school can do"
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