Zombies

Killing Zombies

Athabasca Community High School, Fort Chip, Alberta

Kids, who teachers can't handle (gr 1-6) often get sent to me for their "time out".  Some refuse to come and wander the the school, sometimes for days, like zombies seeking dark spaces.  Others come to kmy room cooperate and have fun.  Zack, from grade one, was driving his teacher crazy. He came to my room eventually and we played some games which ultimately led to some reading activities and then as a finale I had him sort my markers and throw out the dried out ones.  Later I gathered them up so the next kid could do the same sorting job.  I always put in a few good markers for quality control of the exercise.  Zack did well and proudly went back to class boasting of his accomplishment and was good for the rest of the day.

On the other hand, today I did speech therapy over a video conference link to Edmonton.  Matthew, ECS, can not do L or S sounds and has difficulty with the other 38 sounds in the English language. He was getting frustrated and kept putting his finger over the lens.  I told him, quite seriously, that when he does that Karen, the therapist in Edmonton, can't see or breathe; so he stopped blocking the lens. I gave him a potatoe head and every time he got a sound right I let him dismember the body, sometimes violence is its own reward.

As I walked back to my class, Lacy the grade 3 teacher and her teacher's aid were carying the limp body of a student to the office.  I think the girl was non compliant, like many kids here.  I offered to grab an end, but things were under control.  I am no longer shocked or even surprised to see such scenes in the halls.

Still later, another grade two student explained to me in some detail how to kill zombies.  I inquiried as to how that was possible as zombies are already dead.  He thought I was quite stupid, but maybe I'm just a very literal thinker...but every day I learn one more thing than I forget and that math is not half bad.