Quote of the Year

I laughed so hard during class today.  While I was laughing, I was thinking, ‘I definitely need to link up this quote today.’

I keep a little journal of funny things that kids have said over the years.  There were plenty of entries when I was teaching primary grades, but this is by far the best 5th grade quote for my journal.

We have a character education program called Second Step.  We hold up a card with a picture on it and it has a scripted lesson on the back for us to use to lead a discussion.

This morning I asked my student how a girl in the picture was feeling.  I told them I wanted them to use evidence to back up their opinion.  The evidence could come from the situation I described,  from what they saw in the picture, or from their personal experiences.  I asked them to share with their partners and then asked for volunteers.

One very bright, serious, boy raised his hand.  “We think she feels….” He then turns to his partner and whispers, “What was the word?”

His partner whispered, “Constipated.”

He turned back to me and said confidently, “We think she feels constipated.”

I looked at the picture I was holding up to buy time to not start laughing.  Then, I turned to him and asked, “Really?  Why do you think she looks constipated?”

He turned back to his partner and then to me and said, “It means she has mixed emotions.”

I couldn’t help it.  I laughed.

“I think you meant conflicted.”

The students looked puzzled and I had a momentary debate with myself.  I decided that the two boys that started the conversation had a sense of humor and could handle it.  So, I shook my head and said, “I think I need to explain what constipated means.  You will laugh.  Constipated means you feel like you have to poop but you can’t.”

Of course, laughter erupted.

The boy who had been prompting his partner, turned red but had a huge smile.  He put his hands to his head and said, “Conflicted.  I definitely meant conflicted!”