Thursday, October 8, 2015

The Consequence


I was warned about 6th period. So, I was surprised when they actually settled to silence (with quite a bit of prompting from me). But the silence was tenuous. Every little thing broke it.

Monica seemed to be the center of the broken silences. She wasn't the only one talking, but when I clamped down on her, the rest of the class settled. Okay, then.

A boy walked into the room. He had a pass. For Monica. Oh, goody.

Monica packed up her stuff. Happily left. And the silences remained unbroken.

Ten minutes later Monica returned. She was ticked, and she had to tell the whole class her travails.

She had been called back to her 5th period class. Apparently, she had thrown some trash on the floor on her way out. The teacher called her back to pick up all the trash off his floor. And she was a bit put out by it.

I thought it was an excellent consequence for her actions. Luckily, the period (and day) was almost over, so I didn't have to hear about Monica's troubles any longer.

17 comments:

  1. Good for the teacher holding her accountable!! Wouldn't want to meet Monica in a dark alley though :)

    betty

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    1. True. But her math teacher doesn't put up with such things. Neither does her Spanish teacher.

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  2. These are my favorite kinds of teachers!!

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    1. I've had a chance to observe him in class. He is pretty good.

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  3. I can imagine she would've been ticked about being called all the way back to another class to pick up trash. But I hate people who litter so I'm glad.

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    1. And it was way on the other side of campus. (It's a bit of a hike.)

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  4. She sounds like a brat! Good for you and the other teacher for not letting her get away with too much.

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    Replies
    1. She is a bit of one. But she's in middle school now. They have a tendency to grow out of it.

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  5. I think that's good that she had to clean up her trash. But it sounds like she needs an attitude adjustment.

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  6. I would have been mad, too--and totally wrong. I can imagine being filled with that teenage self-righteousness. Sometimes consequences are necessary.

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  7. If she only knew what awaits in the real life. Picking up a piece of trash off the floor -- her offense, too -- is going to seem easy breezy in comparison. Gosh, the sense of self these kids have, amazing.

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    Replies
    1. Not all. She's a notable instance, but not all kids are like her.

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  8. Poor girl. Sounds like she was having a bad day, huh? Interesting, though, she managed to be the center of attention once again. It reminds me of a baby who has just learned that if she throws her toy down, mommy will pick it back up for her every time.

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  9. A diva in training! I'm glad the teacher held firm with her.

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  10. Oh I pity the boy who goes out with her. She seems to really need all the attention on her

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