Forgetting to Copy the Questions

7th grade life science. The assignment was a review sheet. They were to answer 21 questions from chapters 13 & 14 in preparation for a quiz the next day.

I only had a class set of the review sheet. That meant that I needed to get the questions back at the end of every period so the next class would have access to them. This happens frequently enough that the students are used to the procedure.

It turns out that the assignment was a bit longer than the class period. But I had a solution for that.

At about the last 10 minutes of class, I announced to each class that they should stop working and copy the remainder of the questions so that they could finish them up for homework. The assignment was due the next day. Too many of them didn't seem to be following my instructions, but I gave them plenty of warning, so it's not like they couldn't be expected to finish.

After all the students had left and I was packing up to go home, a student came back into the room. He explained that he hadn't copied down the questions, so he wondered if I would let him take a picture of the page so he could finish the questions at home.

On the one hand, I wanted to growl at him. I told his class to copy the questions. Why hadn't he done that?

On the other hand, he came back to class after school to fix his mistake. He wasn't in the last class either, so that meant that he took the time and trouble to return to an earlier class when he could be on his way home. That demonstrated some responsibility. At least he was thinking.

Both thoughts hit me at the same time. I debated.

Then I remembered one salient fact: he was a 7th grader. I let him take the picture.