My year eight class is too big and contains too many 'characters', too many fussy girls and not enough nice quiet, studious young people. It's awful because there are a number of pupils who take up far too much of my time and attention meaning there must be one or two children I have hardly ever spoken to.
On Tuesday one of the 'characters' managed to fall off her chair five minutes from the end and bump her head. She couldn't understand why I was unimpressed. I don't shout and scream at kids when I'm annoyed with them but I do get really sarcastic. I pointed out to her that the vast majority of children can make it through a whole lesson without even coming close to falling off their chairs. She wasn't amused and was even less amused when I wouldn't let her go to the medical room, eventually she stormed off on her own accord.
Now, if a nice quiet kid had bumped their head whilst picking up something that had fallen on the floor then I probably would have let them go have it checked out but seeing as she'd been causing as much fuss as possible all lesson I wasn't about to let her have her way.
It turns out that she had actually split her head open. So with hindsight it might have been an idea to send her away and I feel sorry for her on that count. But when someone says they hate you, you aren't exactly going to let them have so much as an inch. We've now drawn a line under the whole debacle, with a little help from one of the assistant heads.
I just hope it's knocked some sense into her.
2008-01-12 @ 11:45