IF YOU HAD BEEN A FLY ON MY CLASSROOM WALL
If you had been a fly on my classroom wall, you would have heard me give the following RULES FOR A FIELD TRIP in my own fourth grade language:
"Ladies and gentlemen. We are going downtown to the Kentucky Folklife Festival, and there is going to be a WHOOOOOLLLLLLEEEE WAD [insert the kids' giggles here ... for whatever reason, they always giggle when I say wad] of people down there. It is super-duper important that you stay with your group. That means, ladies and gentlemen, that even if ... are you listening to this? Even if a pink elephant with purple polka dots marches by, and it looks like it might be cool to see, you need to stay with the group!"
"Yes ma'am," was their response.
"Okay. Also, we are trying to be responsible fourth graders today. That means, if you plan to schlep some what-not-and-so-forth down to the festival, you are responsible for that what-not-and-so-forth. Miss Murray doesn't schlep what-not-and-so-forth. Ms. C isn't going to schlep your what-not-and-so-forth. Ms. R and Ms. M aren't going to schlep what-not-and-so-forth either."
"Yes ma'am," they say in unison.
"Also, we aren't going down there to fiddly-dink. We need to remember our manners and show the presenters and vendors down there that our school is AWESOME [I always sing that word awesome in an operatic voice]. "
"Yes, ma'am."
"Okay, let's review the pink elephant rule. If Mrs. C. is going one way and a pink elephant with purple polka dots is going another way, who do you follow?"
"MRS. C!"
"Very good!"
"If J's mom is going one way, and a pink elephant with purple polka dots is going the other way, which one are you going to follow?"
"J's mom!"
"And, ladies and gentlemen, what are we not down there to do?"
"We aren't down there to fiddly-dink!"
"Excellent. What do we do with our what-not-and-so-forth?"
"We are going to carry our what-not-and-so-forth!"
A hand goes up at this point.
"Yes, Z."
"What if one of us falls off the Singing Bridge and into the river?"
"Do you think we will be walking on the Singing Bridge in a manner that would make us fall off and into the river?"
"Nope."
"Okay then."
You gotta love a field trip ...
"Ladies and gentlemen. We are going downtown to the Kentucky Folklife Festival, and there is going to be a WHOOOOOLLLLLLEEEE WAD [insert the kids' giggles here ... for whatever reason, they always giggle when I say wad] of people down there. It is super-duper important that you stay with your group. That means, ladies and gentlemen, that even if ... are you listening to this? Even if a pink elephant with purple polka dots marches by, and it looks like it might be cool to see, you need to stay with the group!"
"Yes ma'am," was their response.
"Okay. Also, we are trying to be responsible fourth graders today. That means, if you plan to schlep some what-not-and-so-forth down to the festival, you are responsible for that what-not-and-so-forth. Miss Murray doesn't schlep what-not-and-so-forth. Ms. C isn't going to schlep your what-not-and-so-forth. Ms. R and Ms. M aren't going to schlep what-not-and-so-forth either."
"Yes ma'am," they say in unison.
"Also, we aren't going down there to fiddly-dink. We need to remember our manners and show the presenters and vendors down there that our school is AWESOME [I always sing that word awesome in an operatic voice]. "
"Yes, ma'am."
"Okay, let's review the pink elephant rule. If Mrs. C. is going one way and a pink elephant with purple polka dots is going another way, who do you follow?"
"MRS. C!"
"Very good!"
"If J's mom is going one way, and a pink elephant with purple polka dots is going the other way, which one are you going to follow?"
"J's mom!"
"And, ladies and gentlemen, what are we not down there to do?"
"We aren't down there to fiddly-dink!"
"Excellent. What do we do with our what-not-and-so-forth?"
"We are going to carry our what-not-and-so-forth!"
A hand goes up at this point.
"Yes, Z."
"What if one of us falls off the Singing Bridge and into the river?"
"Do you think we will be walking on the Singing Bridge in a manner that would make us fall off and into the river?"
"Nope."
"Okay then."
You gotta love a field trip ...
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