Go Ahead ... Try to Make a Mistake

Make a mistake with a first grader, and you can pretty much slough it off, letting it trickle away unnoticed.  

But with a third grader?  Not so much.  I now have eighteen new personal assistants in my life.  These kids could charge for their services.  

Don't even think about making any kind of technological snafu on the giant smart board, because they will sniff it out and point it out in three seconds or less. 

"Mrs. Leal...um...you might want to minimize that screen.  Here.  Let me show you..."

"That's not how you get there (impatient, trying-to-be-polite sigh).  It should be in your Favorites file."

Then a few grumblings and looks my way that clearly said, Who let her in here?  And, My second grade teacher knew way more than this bozo.

I get up at 5:00 a.m., but I might have to bump it back to 4 if I want to stay ahead of this game.

But it's worth it with this group.  I can already tell.  They won me over from the very first second, because they may love books and writing as much as I do.  

It's so quiet when I'm reading aloud Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, that you can almost hear all eighteen of their heartbeats.  They laugh and look crestfallen at all the right places.  When Charlie Bucket's family was starving, they had expressions of devastation.  And when Charlie found the Golden Ticket, they gave a collective gasp that could have been heard from down the hallway.

I can't wait to read what they write today.  I'm dying to hear what happens with the alien spacecraft and the next chapter of "Man Vs. Vampire".  Eight is definitely not too early to think about a writing career.

And they can always put themselves through college with their personal assistant gigs.