I teach 6th grade Math at a small school in the middle of nowhere, Ohio. Most of my days would be completely boring (it is Math, you know) if not broken up by some form of weird and unexpected behavior. I try to provide most of said behavior whenever I get the chance. I had a wonderful opportunity just the other day…
A bit of background first:
On the day prior to a test, we will often play a review game. The game of choice is usually review basketball, in which students try to answer before their opposition in order to score a point and then add to that total by shooting a tape ball into the trash can from various distances. I spice it up from time to time to keep things interesting. On the day in question, I had decided that the student who answered correctly would position himself about 15 feet from the front of the room and fling a http://www.wackyplanet.com/flying-monkey-toy.html towards a cardboard bulls eye that I have hanging above the chalkboard.
It is also well known among my students that I have an ongoing “war” with the teacher across the hall–Mrs. H. Mrs. H and I are actually very good friends, but we play up our feud between each other to the delight of students year after year. One of my students had been begging me to play some sort of prank on Mrs. Harris during his reading class, which is 3rd period. As I was playing the flying monkey review game, I looked out into the hallway to see this same student staring at me with arms raised. The look on his face communicated his need to have this prank played that day, and I was more than willing to oblige.
Now it’s important to note that I have had this same flying monkey for many years, and after having suffered through years of abuse from 11 and 12 year olds, it would no longer “screech” when it landed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOxHIDAbCIk Very awesome that youtube has a flying monkey product video, isn’t it?
So I run into the hallway and quickly fling the monkey with great force into Mrs. H’s room. The monkey sails across the room and smacks up against the curtains. I race back into my room, sit down, and go on to the next question as if nothing has happened. About 2 minutes later, a few youngsters are sent into the hallway for a bit of retaliation. They take aim at my head, and release the monkey with furious power. I duck and avoid the death blow, and the monkey slams into my filing cabinet.
I retrieve the monkey in a fake panic and place it on my desk in front of the class. Pretending that the monkey has suffered some physical damage, I begin to administer C.P.R. I push on the monkey’s tiny chest and blow the air of life into its mouth. My class is loving the show. I announce to the class that I fear that the monkey could not be saved. I then shoot the monkey up to the ceiling for one last “fling”, and I’ll be damned if that sucker didn’t let out the sweetest monkey scream I’ve ever heard.
My students were falling out of their seats in laughter as I sat there in disbelief.
