Classroom Humor

My students, although they consistently annoy me, do from time-to-time amuse me with their wit.

If you have heard me talk about my classes this year, you have certainly heard about a particularly difficult group of students that I have to deal with daily. This group of students gives me trouble for a variety of reasons; not the least of which is the amount of truly strong, yet clashing personalities present in the class.

Last semester, one of those students simply cracked me up. I have a few whiteboards that I let students use to take notes on from time to time, and there were a few students in the back of the room who were simply pretending I didn't exist, all of them huddled in a four-person circle laughing and cutting up while I was trying to get the class's attention. I stated, as I often do, "When I ask for your attention it doesn't just mean get quite, it also means I should see your eyes looking at me so I know your a paying attention."

This particular student had his back to me and was doodling on the white board. I decided to continue with instructions for the rest of the class and deal with this student after class. About a minute later, this student quickly places the white board on his shoulders, facing me. Now staring at me are two large eyes with long, curly eyelashes, elaborately drawn on the white board. It had been a long day, and I simply cracked up in mid-sentence.

Unfortunately, I think this just encouraged him...