The Daley Laugh - Tales of an Elementary School Teacher

Welcome to The Daley Laugh! Have you ever sat in class and watched a classmate do something so insane that you couldn't help but laugh? This blog gives me, the teacher, an opportunity to laugh without losing my job or breaking the child's spirit. Be advised all names have been changed to protect the guilty. Hope you enjoy my blog and laugh as much as I do.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Short A and I: A Lesson on Profanity

A new school year is here and I am already chock full of hilarious stories.  This class is definitely going to keep me on my toes.  They are very cute, full of personality and hilarious!  That's just the way I like them!

Where should I begin????  There is so much to share and we've just finished the second week of school!  Our story begins during a Language Arts Literacy lesson.  We were about to begin our scavenger hunt for words with a short a or short i sound.  Before we began, I figured I should assess prior knowledge.   I must admit I was very excited about my lesson.  I spent so much time planning and just knew that it would run perfectly.  However, I have been teaching for quite some time and know not to expect perfection from any lesson.  Anything can happen!  I could just summarize how the lesson went, but I figured you would appreciate it more if I gave you a script of how the lesson transpired.

Me:  Alright boys and girls! Can anyone give me some examples of words with short a or i?
Child #1:  How about apple?
Me:  Very good!  Apple has a short a sound. 
Child #2:  Astronaut?
Me:  Nice job!
Child #3:  Witch.
Child #4:  D**k (I'm too much of a lady to type out the entire word.)!
Me: stares blankly at the child while the others say, "OOOOOOOOOO!"
Child #5:  OOOOOO! You said a nasty word!
Me:  Okay!  That word does have the short i sound.  However can we find another word with the short i sound?  Ummmm...Cathy?  Can I see you in the hallway for a moment?

If I didn't know that the perfectly planned lesson never goes the way you expect it, I learned that day.  When I think that I've experienced everything in a classroom, I'm knocked down a peg or two and realize that there is so much more to learn.

Let's just say that I was at a loss for words.  I was completely blindsided.  To be quite honest with you, I wanted to laugh hysterically!  I must say I did a nice job maintaining my composure!


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