SCENE 1, INTERIOR. AFTERNOON, CLASSROOM. The class has just completed a lesson on heredity. They’ve put away their Science notebooks and are heading out to recess. One boy lingers behind the others. When the room clears, he approaches his teacher.
JOEY: Mr. Z, is it really true?
TEACHER: Is what really true?
JOEY: That our genes really decide who we are? You know, our hair color, how tall we are, and all that stuff?
TEACHER: Yep. There were about 70 trillion different ways you could have turned out.
[Pause].
JOEY: I think I got ripped off…
[The teacher stares at the boy for a second].
TEACHER: Ripped off? Now why on earth would you say that?
JOEY: [Whispered]. I don’t think I got a brain.
[The teacher grins].
TEACHER: Well, you know what? I hear that brains are overrated anyhow; you probably don’t really even need one.
[Pause].
JOEY: Well, I still think I got ripped off. [Pause]. Hey, there’s always brain transplants, right? Maybe I could get yours!
TEACHER: And take the risk of you learning all my teacher secrets? I don’t think so.
JOEY: Now THAT would be awesome.
TEACHER: Get used to rip-offs...
Fade to black.
I remember having a few teachers that I had a great rapport with..One was my 3rd grade teacher... I once called her 'mom'....bet u don't want joey calling u 'dad'?
ReplyDeleteC - Actually, I've been called Dad, Mom, and even Grandpa once.
ReplyDeletehttp://teachinfourth.blogspot.com/2009/05/moments-with-joey-hello-my-name-is-joey.html
HAH HA!! I love these chats with the students! So cute....and love your answers. It's such a nice thing to remember a teacher that you loved in school.
ReplyDeleteI come from a family of teachers....my grandpa....my uncle....and my dad. You sound like one awesome teacher :)
ReplyDeleteHa! I can so see him saying this.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the laugh to jumpstart my morning.
We can't all have everything in life.
ReplyDeleteI think I need a brain transplant, too.
ReplyDeleteTell Joey it doesn't matter who's brain he had, he'll lose it when he becomes a teenager anyway. ;)
ReplyDeleteoh my... I've just spent the past 20 minutes reading through your MWJ posts... and I'm nowhere near done! hmmmm... I wonder how often my kid would become Joey if he were in your class next year (probably FAR too often!)
ReplyDeletePoor Joey, next time you'll have to tell him that would be a body transplant vs brain. But then I don't think he understand....
ReplyDeleteCute Joey! He'll think he has a brain when he turns 14, but the rest of the world will wonder what the crap happened to him. And then when he is about 21 or 22, he'll get it back.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! That is funny.
ReplyDeleteHow funny!! I love this series! My son is going into 5th grade and I can totally hear him saying these things!
ReplyDeleteOh yes, brains are TOTALLY overrated. Almost no men on planet earth have them. :)
ReplyDeleteI think I was going to have a brain transplant that was interrupted half way through. If I had any brain function left, I would probably be able to tell you more about it.
ReplyDeleteGood luck guarding the secret teacher secrets from ripped off students!
The whole genes thing totally blew my mind when we learned about it in school. It still kinda does, but I love Joey's thinking and whispering to you about how he doubts he has a brain.
ReplyDeleteMy little guy informed me that our brain is no bigger than our own two fists put together.
I think kids are smarter than they look.
I love the connection and obvious comfort between teacher and student.
ReplyDeleteThat Joey is always thinking, so, of course, he has a brain.
ReplyDeleteLove those Joey stories!
I really like Joey.
ReplyDeleteI think you do too.
Will there be a new Joey next year?
I think I had this same student...
ReplyDeleteIt is always a good thing to freak 'em out a bit too, isn't it?
I think scientists and doctors are trying to perfect brain transplants. They are first going to try it on Pauly Shore and a weasel.
ReplyDeleteJoey is the bomb, with or without a brain.
ReplyDeleteJust tell him he's safe if there's ever a zombie invasion. He's lucky that way.
ReplyDeleteI think it's awesome that you record those funny student things. Kids say the best stuff, and yet you can forget them so fast. I wish I'd written down more of my students' funnyisms.
ReplyDelete