The Daily Menu

One of the most interesting elements of teaching is the way that a class develops a personality. It takes a few weeks at the start of each school year and you never really know what combination of events will make the group gel, but once it happens, then we become something of a family, with inside jokes and mutual affection for one another.

Pretty much every day my second period U.S. History class begins with a class review of the contents of Mike's lunch bag. Though it's only 9:15, Mike usually eats a portion of his lunch during class. His classmates often try to get a share and this once resulted in Mike licking his string cheese to protect against theft ----- a disgusting but effective preventative.

Today's lunch was the usual combination of tasty treats. We took a photo and then had a class vote ---- we agreed that Mike could eat his egg salad but we made him sit in the corner by an open window so that the funky smell wouldn't linger.

Once that was settled, we had a nice discussion on the origins of the Vietnam War. School ends in a few weeks and I won't see second period every day. But they will linger in my mind. I'll remember some of the jokes that we made, the day we listened to 70s music for the whole period, the class's horror the day Kellen called me M-Dawg (though it made me laugh), and the way this unlikely group could sustain a thoughtful and challenging discussion.

And, of course, I'll remember Mike's lunch bag.