Be Weird

Be human

Teaching is weird. More specifically, humans are weird, and teachers spend their days trapped in a room with a bunch of little humans. Weird things happen.

Fierce Feats of Problem Solving

I shared a classroom with an English teacher over a decade ago who did something he called “Fierce Fridays.” I don’t remember the details, it was some type of close reading routine. And to get students excited, each Friday he would show a picture of something “fierce.”

Fast forward to today.

I adapted the idea into what I call “Fierce Feats of Problem Solving.” I wrote a few months ago about how I incorporate math puzzles, games, and problem solving activities into my classes. Before we do these, I frame the activities as “Fierce Feats of Problem Solving” and show students a picture of something fierce.

The first fierce picture of the year is always this one:

I use all sorts of pictures. Humans, animals. Whatever. If it looks vaguely fierce, it’s in.

Over time, students started contributing. They send me pictures of their pets, or their younger siblings, or weird memes. I’ve accumulated a massive collection of fierce photos. Now I sometimes get stuff like this in my email inbox:

I think a student opened this weird double baby picture on their cracked Chromebook screen, then took a picture with their phone and sent it to me. I don’t know what it means. Probably my fault for showing a picture of a fierce baby.

If You’re Not Cracking...

Like many teachers, I love lame little catchphrases. Something I say sometimes is “Let’s get cracking,” as in “Let’s get started.” I think that’s a pretty normal phrase. Check me for a second here. Am I right? Does “get cracking” mean “get started” in this context?

My students this year told me that “cracking” actually means “to do crack.”

Now let’s be clear. My students are wrong. That is not what “cracking” means. I will not let a bunch of 12-year-olds change the meaning of a cherished phrase.

So I turned it into a little call-and-response. As class starts and students sit down to begin their Do Now, I say, “Let’s get cracking! If you’re not cracking...” and students (reluctantly) respond, “you’re lacking!”

Bootytickled

Ok this one is really weird. Brace yourself.

My students recently started saying “bootytickled.” Bootytickled seems to be a synonym for “bothered,” so “Bro why you so bootytickled” would mean something similar to,“Hello friend, why is this bothering you so much?”

Anyway, students started saying that word. I requested they not say it. Seems reasonable, right? This is math class. We should be talking about math, not booties.

A student wondered aloud why I was so bootytickled by the word bootytickled. I observed that it was, in fact, a bit ironic. Turns out many of my students don’t know what “ironic” means, so I taught a little impromptu lesson about irony. I thought I was being clever. Teachable moment, amirite?

This was a mistake. By engaging sincerely with the idea of being bootytickled, I gave the word legitimacy. Now I can’t eradicate it.

Like many teachers I get frustrated or annoyed on a pretty regular basis. Word has spread. When Mr. Kane gets annoyed, make a joke about him being bootytickled.

Happily, this faded after a few weeks and students went back to making 6-7 jokes. But for a while, any time I was visibly annoyed with something, a student would comment that I was bootytickled. For me, it became a kindof weird little reminder. I would get annoyed at someone flipping their water bottle. A student would say, “Mister why you so bootytickled?” And I would say to myself, “Hey, I’m not going to let this bother me.” I would take a little moment to find serenity, push down the annoyance, take the water bottle, and keep teaching.

Be Weird

I don’t recommend copying what I do. Every teacher is weird in their own way. Let your personality shine through in whatever way works for you.

I do think there’s a lesson here. Lean into weirdness. Be human.

One of my perpetually unpopular opinions is that school is good. Age-graded classrooms, one-size-fits-all curriculum, and factory-model schools are easy to hate. Hate them if you like! School is far from perfect, but it’s the best we have. It’s the worst way of educating ever invented…except for all the others.

I think one key reason is the weirdness. A bunch of kids are required to come to my class every day and I give them some math to do. For 50 minutes they’re stuck with me and I’m stuck with them. All the inside jokes and weird little moments are what change an obligation into a ritual. Am I a complete loser in my students’ minds? Absolutely. But I’m a complete loser who students are, more often than not, willing to work hard for. That sounds pretty cool to me.