In Class

This week one of my classes came back from six weeks off, during which time they were studying for a middle school midterm exams, which is a major deal. Even the elementary school midterm requires the kids to study for a few hours a day for several weeks. The middle school kids have to take time off from learning just to study full time for this thing.

I asked the kids how they did (only two of them at this point; not sure where the other two are), and the girl said she didn't want to tell me her score. I asked if she did badly, and she said well, her rank in the school was pretty good--third out of like 2-300 students--but she was disappointed with her score. I figured it was one of those tests where everyone does badly, and on the bell curve, the highest scores are still abysmal. So I said, was it below 70, and she laughed and figured that it would be okay to tell me. She got a 95. PerCENT? I asked incredulously. Yeah, she said. I told her to loosen up.

Yesterday a kid came into class and said, don't ask me for my homework. I asked why, and he said his mom got to it (this is Gyu-ho, a kid whose home life seems, from what he tells me, somewhat tragic, possibly bordering on what would qualify him to be removed from home in the States). I asked what happened and he said he got a test back with a bad grade and his mom ripped up a couple of his notebooks and his math books and told him, there, study like that. I asked why the hell she did that, and he elaborated that she screamed at him that she spends a bunch of money for him to get A's, so he can get into a good high school, and he doesn't do it. I asked him what his grade was and he said a B. I told him that his mom is psycho and to tell her I said to take a chill pill.

Finally, today one of my cute little first graders said, I eat ice cream, but I'm still hot! Then I laughed, and he milked it for a while. He said the same thing again, except with ten ice creams, then, When I'm hot at home, I put off my shirt. It's okay to do it at home, because no one sees. The tiny kids in this class speak better than the majority of the rest of my classes. It's kind of silly and sad.