Laugh Lines March 2006

A Coke and a Smile
We were discussing the Battle of the Alamo in my fourth grade classroom. Since we live in San Antonio, most of my students have visited the semi-remodeled Alamo. When I asked if they had any questions, one of my students, as serious as can be, asked, "If they didn't have electricity back in the times of the Alamo, then why did they have Coke machines?"
Lauren Weeks
San Anotonio, TX

Neither Right nor Wrong
I asked my students to join the following sentences using neither-nor: "John does not like English." "Jane does not like English either." One student came up with this sentence: "John likes neither English nor Jane."
Abdullah A. Al-Barakat
Irbid, Jordan

A Really Small House
I introduced a new book to one of my guided reading groups and the children were discussing the story elements. We predicted what might happen in the story, who the characters were and the story's possible problem. On the first page was a picture of a farmhouse in winter. I asked Ronald where the farmhouse might be. I expected his answer to be "in the country." He responded, "on the page." We all had a good laugh!
Diane Fogel
Richland, MI

Nice Name Calling
I was talking to my second grade special education students about the subject of name calling. I used myself as an example since I am overweight, and told them how children would call me fat all the time when I was in school. My purpose was to encourage them to ignore those kinds of things and not to be coaxed into a battle of name calling. At that point one of my best and sweetest students spoke up and said, "Ah, Mrs. Martin, you are not fat. To me you are just big and tasty." To this day his homeroom teacher calls me Mrs. Big and Tasty.
Sonya Martin
Collins, MS

No Relief in Sight
I was teaching my sixth graders some art terms and asked if anyone knew the name of the art form that is flat with a carved surface ("relief"). I hinted that it is like 2D because it's flat on the back surface and 3D because it's carved on the front. One of my students quickly raised his hand and confidently answered, "2½D."
Debbie McGrath
Oakdale, NY

What's in a Name?
I read my third graders a beautifully illustrated version of Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." I explained that Robert Frost was a very important poet and that they would surely hear more from him as they got older. Later in the week, I read a fun Christmas story that mentioned Jack Frost. Here in central Florida, Jack Frost isn't someone we hear much about and most of the students looked confused. I stopped and asked if anyone had any idea who Jack Frost might be. One of my brightest little boys confidently raised his hand an announced that Jack must be Robert's brother.
Amy Phillips
Winter Haven, FL