A Pep Rally Two-Fer

With high school football season underway, on Fridays we're on a pep rally schedule at our school. The ceremonies begin during the last class of the day, when the marching band actually marches through the hallways, playing the fight song and other numbers to jazz the students up. The problem with this, of course, is that after the band leaves and before the students are actually called to the gym, it's impossible to keep them settled down. After the band came through on Friday, I was trying to give the students a reminder about a writing assignment that was due the next week when I heard a furious knocking at my door. As I walked to open it, one of my students shouted, "DON'T OPEN THAT! HE'S GOING TO SHOOT YOU!"

I scowled at him. "That's not funny, Jim. You don't even JOKE about something like that..."

As I'm scolding the kid for making an inappropriate joke, I open the door and two of my fellow TEACHERS race by my door holding laser pointers, with which they "shot" me, making zapping noises.

Yes, I apologized to Jim.

* * *

It's important to know how to relate not just to kids in general, but to specific kids. Some kids will take every thing you say personally. Others -- especially the high school boys -- actually respond better if you jibe them a little once in a while. As the pep rally ended, we closed with "The Horse." As every high school student and teacher in America knows, this song includes a segment where you are required to spell out the name of your mascot. (How schools with a mascot like the Banana Slugs handle it is beyond me...)

The band and cheerleaders help us through our mascot: T! I! G! E! R! S!

As we're cheering, I notice one of my students who's been struggling -- honestly trying, but struggling -- cheering along. So I decide I'm going to pick on him just a little. As the song ends, I go up to him and say, "Kevin, it makes me feel good to hear you spelling something right."

Kevin smiled, and said with total sincerity, "I said 'J' instead of 'G'."