Friday, January 17, 2025
I told my fourth-grade class in media today that Mrs. Simons was home not feeling well. Someone asked if she would be there tomorrow. There was a roar that tomorrow is Saturday, no one would be there. The girl shrugged and said, “I might be here.”
Well played. No one likes their tiny error blown ridiculously out of proportion.
I wondered, “But what if you came tomorrow–“
“The doors would be locked!!”
Take 17 seconds to think about this. What if the doors weren’t locked? What if you could get in?
Uproar.
“I’m counting 17 seconds while you think your best thoughts about being alone in the school.”
“1…2….3….4…” There were lots of whisperings – “I already know..”, “I have the best ideas…” as well as groanings, “School on Saturday?!” “15….16….17! What do you think? What would you do?”
“Run. Everywhere.”
“Shoot hoops for hours.”
“3-D print stuff.”
“Buy pizza in the cafeteria and eat it all.”
Buy pizza. Even all alone, he was expecting to pay for his pizza.
“Go in the music room and sing so loud!”
“Roll on the mats.”
“Go in the art room and, and I don’t know, but art.”
“3-D print art.”
“Take the indi-cars to the gym and make the biggest track of all time.”
OoOoOOOOoOoO! I think that would be awesome. I would do that. I knew if I said that out loud talking them out of it would take the rest of our time, so I didn’t say that was a great idea. But it was.
“Go in every teacher’s room and eat all the candy.”
There it is. A very strong idea. Every teacher has candy, and every kid knows where it is.
“Go super fast up and down all the halls in my wheelchair.”
“I would 3-D print you a track.”
Yes! No speed limit, no one to run into.
“Go all the places I am not allowed to go.”“
“YESSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!” everyone shouted in agreement.
“Where aren’t you allowed to go?”
“Back behind in the kitchen.”
“In the room with all the paper.”
“The teacher’s lounge!!”
I think the roof of the school shifted from the shouts of agreement.
“YES! THE TEACHER’S LOUNGE!!!!”
I thought of the teacher’s lounge episode of the show Recess and tantalized, “You know, there is a hot tub in there.”
They howled with excitement! A hot tub!! That was beyond what they were even imagining. I added that there was a pool, too, but no one heard me because it was so loud. One kid stood up and shouted, “There isn’t a hot tub! I’ve been there. I carried something there –“
I conceded that there was no hot tub before the kid continued, “But there IS a soda machine!”
More howls of delight.
“I would drink soda!”
“I would 3-print a soda machine.”
“There’s already a soda machine.”
“I would 3-D print the soda.”
“That would be so cool!”
I thought about it this afternoon while driving between schools. It doesn’t take much to thrill a kid. Adults think of things that would thrill them and have kids do that. Sometimes it works, because the idea is thrilling for everyone. Sometimes, a soda at school is all you need.
