"teacher's pet!"...man, i used to LOATHE that phrase. the general response was an urge to extend claws and go for the eyes. my burning glare cloaked the teensy, tiny bit of satisfaction that i tried to stamp down.
i've now seen the other side. yes, i have "pets." we all try to hide it, pretend as if all students are the same and we love the one that disrupts every lesson as much as the one that offers to erase the whiteboard. HA. not so much. i can only say "please get down off that chair and get to work" so many times before the urge to knock the chair out from under forms a slideshow of possibility in my brain.
but there's a growing stigma against recognizing those that excel in the classroom. the thought is it might "discourage" other students. my favorite quote on this comes from the movie the incredibles:
"but everyone's special, dash."
"that's just another way of saying no one is."
insight from cartoons...i love it.
so, in the interest of being fair, honest and encouraging, i try to pick my pets for many reasons. some for helpfulness, some for caring, some for the smile they bring, some for the academic standard they set in my classroom. and if anyone wants to take me to task for making these students feel special...well, bring it on. maybe one day the other students will wake up and realize that they too could get teased about being some teacher's pet.
they just have to TRY.
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