S is for

I was working with a small group of my refugee students awhile back on reading (they are all about 3 grade levels behind the rest of the students.)  I was playing a game with them where they had to turn over an alphabet card and as fast as they could tell me 1) letter name 2) letter sound 3) action to go with the letter 4) a word that starts with that sound.
So there's this kid from Somalia and we'll call him "A" (just to picture this child, he wears a blue track suit almost daily, with a pin striped suit jacket over it.  He has a goofy grin with great big front teeth, he is always smiling, and he has great big smooth, black curls of hair, but it's very thin and has a receding hair line look to it.)  So the game has been going at a faster and faster pace and A turns over an "S" card.  He quickly says, all in succession "S, sssssss," wiggles his finger like a snake, "SEX!"  The rest of us stare at him and he throws his hands up and says "what????"  I had to do everything I could to not pee my pants.
Those refugees are a challenge and a half, but they do make my day!

 

On a less cute, but still funny note, I had to give a white slip to another boy the other day for stealing (for those of you not versed in the school scene, a white slip is a small, official note from the teacher that states the date, time, student name, reason for white slip, teacher signature, and a place for parent signature.  It has 2 carbon copies so that the parent, teacher and principal all keep one copy.  Very official, very undesirable for a student.  The boy I gave it to had stolen my tape dispenser, along with the tape in it, in addition to some other supplies off of my desk.  The only reason I found out who it was, was because another student was at his house playing and saw the stuff in the kid's room.  I called the mom who said "OH, is that why your name is all over it?   He told me you gave all that stuff as a prize for being good."  DUH!  Anyway....at the school I teach in this is a pretty typical day.  So on the white slip under reason I wrote "stole supplies from the teacher."  I sent it home and he brought it back signed.  However, something had changed.  He had crossed out the word "stolen" and replaced it, in very KID handwriting, with the word "borrowed." HAHAHAHA.