Elective Memory

I subbed for an elementary school's PE class for the first time this week. I was a little nervous, being the kid that was terrible at all things "sport" (my parents used to make me play soccer... a few seasons of that mess and they realized I was destined to be their "musically inclined" child). This nervousness was compounded by the fact that when I arrived, there were no plans for the day.

What I did have, however, was a whistle, an ipod with some wicked speakers, and a closet full of props. I poked around the hanging jumpropes, industrial-sized plastic trash bins full of basketballs, and shelves of balls, tennis rackets, and other plastic playthings. I eventually set up a sweet obstacle course race:

1.) Pick up the hula-hoop and put it your body through it.

2.) Run to the scooter. Get on your tummy and snake through the cones (this turned out to be way harder than I had anticipated for the kids, but they liked it, and it made the course take a long time to get through, thereby making my timing perfect for each class).

3.) At the end of the cones, make a basket. If, after 5 tries, you haven't made a basket, you may move on.

4.) Get on your bottom on the scooter and snake back.

5.) Slap the hand of the next person in line. Sit down when you're done. The team with everyone sitting down first gets... wait for it... a BUG STICKER!!! You'd be amazed at how cool they think that is.

Of course, I made up a warm-up and stretch routine as well, just by remembering what we did when I was in school. The kids seemed to know all the stretches I was doing, so that worked out.

I had so much fun! I'm doing it again this week.

*******

Last week, I subbed for a junior high math teacher, who also happened to be a music teacher. Being a "music kid", I was excited. The instrictions to her music class were to create a program cover for the concert coming up. At the end of class, a group of boys were giggling over one of the finished products. Knowing that something was wrong, I confiscated it and put it on the desk to read later. It was so funny that I kept it. Here it is in painstaking detail:

FRONT COVER:

It's the [school name] shitty MUSIC BAND!!!!!!

Check, check, check it out

DAAAAWWWWWGGG!!!!!!!!

INSIDE LEFT:

Two hours of ear-bleeding music from kids!!! Isn't it cute that they think they have talent :):):).

Make sure to spend all of your money on our overpriced snacks.

INSIDE RIGHT:

It's what you pushed your kids into!!!!!

CHOIR

BAND and shittiest of all...

...MARIMBA.

And remember, you have to be there to tell them they don't suck!!!!!

Incerdibly insightful, for a 6th grader, if you ask me. I guess some kids hate music as much as I hated PE.