essay headache!

there were times last year that i gave spontaneous in-class essay assignments. it didn't happen very often, perhaps, once every 3-4 months when i felt my students needed more of a writing emphasis/push. for me, i wanted to make sure that my writing lessons were actually beneficial.

during one such occasion, my student roy, may have pushed himself to what he felt must've been his limit. at the completion of his essay, he said two things that i thought were so amusing that i wrote them down on a post-it. while cleaning my papers, to my delight, i have found those quotes!

"the essay made me have a headache!"

"teacher, i almost died doing this."

now that i read them over again,  they don't sound nearly as funny as they did when roy originally sighed those words, with a furrow in his brows and shaking his hands, cramped from writing. during class time, roy was usually an overly enthusiastic student but most of the time, he forgot to be mindful and spoke out too often, cutting other students off. he was a student that definitely tested my patience, but, also a student that i wanted to make fully sure he understood my intentions and reasons for a peaceful class. i'm pretty sure he got it most of the time and now that i'm reflecting on his personality, i am remembering how he was funny without knowing how funny he was. i hope that i told him then, how much i liked his jokes. i still smile thinking of them and of him.