On Tuesdays, Two Writing Teachers hosts the Slice of Life. Everyone is welcome to share writing and comment on others in this special community.
I walked down the hall this afternoon to check my mailbox, and I overheard an interaction between a teacher and a student. The kind that sometimes happens at the end of the day, maybe more often toward the end of the week than on a Tuesday. The kind that happens when a student says or does one more thing than frayed teacher nerves can handle. I didn't mean to hear or listen. I just did.
When I walked back toward my office, a student-- my guess was the nerve-frayer-- was in the hall bouncing a tennis ball against the wall. I stopped and tossed it back and forth with him. I'm not sure I should have. Was it positive reinforcement for bad behavior? Maybe. But he's a kid I've watched move through the grades worrying teachers.
We kept tossing the ball back and forth, and he was impressed with the different ways I could catch. He's a wide receiver on the football team, and I think he's pretty good, so his compliments meant something. Catching's important to him. He's been in trouble a lot with his dad, so he was worried about the call home that his teacher had promised before she had him leave class and hang out in the hallway. We talked about whether he might be in less trouble if he broke the news to his dad before the phone rang. He thought maybe.
Tonight I'm thinking about him. Tomorrow, I'll check in.