The moment I swore in the classroom (part 2), by @90_Maz

This post answers the second part of the 17th question from my TeacherToolkit Thinking page of Thunks. You can see my other top-Thunks here.

Thunk 17: Describe the moment you swore in the classroom, by @90_Maz.

Answer below:

There have, sadly, been many moments when I’ve been caught out swearing in the classroom – mostly after a weekend with the ice-hockey boys; even now they are still teaching me new words!

“…I’d tried every single, positive management strategy I knew…”

Many years ago, as an NQT in a rather challenging school, I took my fair share of classes with behaviour issues. Around about now, October half term, I’d had more than enough of one year 10 pupil. Let’s call him Lloyd… I’d tried every single, positive management strategy I knew, and still was getting nowhere with him. Exasperated, I said;

‘Lloyd, stop being a bloody nuisance and do some work!’

Well, being a Southerner with rounded-vowels, working in a school in the Midlands (I’d already had the graph/bath conversation with this group), I got laughed at…

‘Miss, what’s blaady mean?

Do you mean bludy?’ came back the reply.

‘It doesn’t matter how I say it,’ I retorted, ‘you are being a nuisance and I need you to leave the lesson.’

He did, laughing down the corridor as he went.

Years later, I’ve never used that word in a lesson again. ‘F*ck’ came out loud and clear the day I was given a CRO tube in a damaged holder. While I was plugging in the wires, the tube detached itself from the holder, bounced and shattered.

“…students once again took pity on my southern pronunciation and spent the next ten minutes trying to get me to say it ‘right’.”

Do you know how far glass can travel under a vacuum? Once we’d cleaned up, my class of year 11 students once again took pity on my southern pronunciation and spent the next ten minutes trying to get me to say it ‘right’. ‘It rhymes with book, miss’ was perhaps the least helpful suggestion.

Now I work in a special school, I save the swearing for the staff room!

Written by @90Maz, edited and posted by @TeacherToolkit.

Marion Frankland is currently teacher in charge of science, at a school for pupils with severe learning difficulties. She was previously a Physics AST and spends her spare time helping to run an ice hockey team. Her blog is here.

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• The moment I swore in the classroom (Part 1), by @_JPMason (teachertoolkit.me)
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