Sunday, June 20, 2010

Word Tally

I've often wondered what I sound like during the day. While I'm convinced that students simply hear the whaa-wha-wha-whaaa that the Charlie Brown characters hear when adults speak, I'm pretty sure I simply repeat two words throughout the day.

The first is "no."
As in:
"No, you may not sit wherever you want to sit."
"No, you can not eat your lunch at your desk."
"No, you will not choose a friend to take with you to the bathroom."

But, the one that must get the most use has to be the word, "stop."
As in:
"Stop working and put your math books away so we can go to lunch."
"Stop touching things on other people's desks."
"Stop calling people names."
"Stop talking while I'm talking."
"Stop worrying about what everyone else is doing and worry about what you need to do."
And, at the point of exhaustion, usually when a kid is arguing with me about a consequence, is:
"Stop! Just....stop!"

Years of reading and expanding my vocabulary, and I find that I really only need two words. Go figure.

1 comment:

  1. I hear you! These sound similar to phrases I utter as a sub, especially with younger children. "Focus on your work," is a big one in the older grades.

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