genius

my students say some of the funniest things. this is irony at its finest. when a student gives an excellent answer, i'll compliment him with an exuberant, "yesssss!" and, being sincere, modest (ahem) obnoxious and a bit too proud, sometimes, he, the student, proclaims to the class, "i'm genius."

uh, excuse me?!?!
"you're genius?" i ask. smugly, he nods yes.
then, i write the sentence "i'm genius." on the board and ask the class to correct it. someone usually inserts an "a" in the sentence. "i'm a genius."
a-ha! i smile, that's right! remember, i tell them, if you are a genius, don't forget the "a!" it's silly how many times i have repeated this genius lesson. geniuses schmeniuses!