Talk About Middle Schoolers...

They say middle school is a child's most difficult time. They want to act like adults, but still have the immature, kid-like side to them hiding beneath their "macho man" persona. They think they're "all that" and "too cool for school" yet they're extremely engaged in activities that have meaning into their personal lives (note for inner city teachers: this means "thinking like them" when you're planning lessons and making homework). 


So, today in class - actually, the SAME class period - I was able to witness both sides of the middle schooler: the immature side and the "OMG-I'm- sooo- like-an-adult" side. 


Okay, here's a run down on what happened: 


Scene: Room 203, 3rd Period
Description of class: my 3rd period is a very well behaved class... I definitely need that because I have to teach 3 pre-algbera classes in a row 1st, 2nd and 3rd periods, so an extremely well behaved 3rd period is absolutely essential. My 3rd period also has some kids that I ABSOLUTELY adore but act out a lot/ display a TON of personality constantly in class. Here's where this story comes in. 
Lead in: We were discussing how to determine if a number is a rational number or if it is an irrational number, when one of my students (Let's call him Miguel) passed some seriously noticeable "gas". 
The event: Two of the boys in my 3rd period (they're really good students but sometimes come off as rude and definitely pose some behavior challenges because of their energy), let's call them Jose and Ryan, started getting up and SCREAMING "Miguel farted in class! Miguel farted in class! Miguel farted in class!". The other kids started getting riled up too, and starting clustering around Miguel's desk taunting him. ohh poor Miguel... but thankfully, just a few seconds before my AP and the security guard came up to my room to see what all the noise was about, I had all my students settled down and we continued with the lesson. My AP was knocked dead when he saw no signs of any trouble going on in my room. (teacher note: split seconds really count - you must be up on your feet faster than lightning to be a teacher, especially an untenured first year teacher). 


But what was really interesting was what happened about fifteen minutes after the incident... 


Scene: Room 203, last five minutes of 3rd period
Class: After the discussion, students began a poster activity where they teamed up in groups of 4 or 5 to create a poster on poster paper on one of the different number sets (real numbers, whole numbers, integers, etc) to present to the class tomorrow. Jose and Ryan paired up together and finished their poster a little bit beforehand. So, Ryan and Jose spent a few minutes to write an apology letter to Miguel for the way they acted. They even passed around the letter and got signatures from classmates confirming their genuine regret of the incident. Then, in the short one and a half minutes before the bell was scheduled to ring, they read their letter OUT LOUD to the entire class! 


I am so proud of Jose and Ryan for what they did, that I decided that what they had done to "pay" for their actions towards Miguel was wayyy better than what a one-on-one conference with me would've produced. It fills me with joy to see the development and transition of personas and characteristics that my students go through - in just one 45 minute class period. 


I would've never thought this when I first applied for a job in New York or at any time before this school year, but middle schoolers rock! I am so glad to be able to work with my kids on a daily basis.