One Little "P" Makes a Huge Difference

This long weekend went by in a whirlwind of events.  It consisted of making a test, grading journals, spending a night in Ashland, the Homecoming football game where my best friend walked out as Homecoming Queen, a really lame night at home, working in the nursery at church, and a wedding vow renewal celebration...oh and more grading.  

My last "college weekend" was a little bittersweet.  After this semester of being at home and teaching every day like it's my job, I finally realized that I am not really a student anymore.  It was nice to see my friends since I won't be seeing them again until December, but I also felt relieved that I do not have to be on campus anymore unless I choose to visit.  Another realization I came to is that life moves on without me there.  It doesn't really matter to anyone whether I stay or go, which is fine because it never really felt like my place anyways (until I got my own dorm room but that's a different story.)  I am really going to miss my two best friends, but besides that I have been dying to leave since I got there and I'm not sad about it. 


Now on to the interesting stuff.... 


I gave the students some interesting journal prompts this time around and I was really excited to see what they came up with.  I was not disappointed.  If you could be related to any famous person, who would it be and why? A pretty solid prompt if you ask me.  It relates to the book we're reading, The Maze of Bones, because the main characters find out that a whole bunch of famous people are their relatives.  Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Peyton Hillis, Tony Hawk, Rob Drydek were the most popular with the 5th graders.  Also, Cody Simpson came up quite a few times but I have to admit I have not even the slightest idea who that is. 


There were also a few rappers that had some pretty high representation in the journals.  This is where the importance of that extra "p" comes in. 


"I would be related to Nicki Minaj. Becuse she is awesome. And she is awesome at raping.""If I could I would be related to Lil Wayne. Because he is a beasty raper and makes a lot of money." 

Ok, please tell me you noticed the words RAPING and RAPER!  Obviously I knew what the students meant, but wouldn't that be a red flag for you?!  One little letter makes a world of difference.  Sure, some people may say rap and rape go hand in hand (Lil Wayne was in jail for a reason?), but my innocent students did not make that spelling mistake on purpose.  The missing "p" is funny and endearing right now, but it also makes me want to do so much better at helping students excel in spelling.  I will be having a talk with students about words with double letters before I leave.  Perhaps it is immature for me to even make a big deal about this situation, but give me a break.  I have been around 5th graders for awhile and laughter is important.  


   


I'm coming up on my last week at Erwine Intermediate School with my lovely 5th graders.  I'm starting to think that I chose the wrong profession and here's why: I get easily attached to people.  I have only spent five weeks with these students.  It has been more than enough time to get to know each and every one of them. The weeks have been challenging and frustrating.  Some days I have even wanted to pull my hair out. However, to think that I won't get to work with these teachers, or teach this group of students again makes me want to cry.  I am terrible at letting go, which is not really the best quality for a teacher to have since I'll have to let go of a group of students every year once I have a job.  Crap. 


*Side note: Am I allowed to use the word "crap" if I can't let my students say it?