(As part of our degree program we are required to go on a total of three placements, the first of which must be in a school. For my first placement I am put in a grade seven classroom. The kids have just started learning how to use a computer program that allows them to make bridges. In addition to there being a placement student (me) in the class, there is also an EA. This woman is crazy. She is seriously always two seconds away from being raging pissed. The students fear this woman; they find her hilarious, but are respectful. The students are assigned to use this pretty neat bridge building program to make a bridge that follows certain criteria. If they are able to successfully create said bridge, they are to print it out and hand it in and head outside. All is going well with the world, until this one kid, that is. Obviously, despite knowing how to use computers, he was never taught the proper etiquette. By that, I mean if your document doesn’t come out the first time you click print, don’t just keep clicking it fifty million times. However, he doesn’t know this. Not until the EA from hell goes over to the printer to see why it is going nuts.)
EA: “WHOSE BRIDGE IS THIS?! ONE! THAT’S HOW MANY COPIES YOU NEED TO PRINT! JUST ONE! WHOSE IS THIS, HUH? I WANT AN ANSWER NOW!”
(I notice the student responsible as his face turns the colour of snow and I’m pretty sure I can see the sweat drops from where I stand. I discreetly slink over, hands in pockets, and without making eye contact drop a little advice.)
Me: “So for future notice, if it doesn’t print the first time, just give it a minute, all right?”
Kid: “Uh… yeah… um…” *sweats*
Me: “I would suggest slowly making your way outside now and uh… don’t make any sudden moves.”
Kid: “But my… ?”
Me: *smiles* “Unless you want to go fetch it yourself, I’d suggest leaving it to me.”
(The kid then walked out of class like he was miming a burglar from an old black and white film. I then went up to the EA, who was so pissed at this point that she was spitting all over the place, pretended I had no clue who would do such a thing, snuck one of the fifty sheets, put the kid’s name on it, and slipped it into the middle of the pile. I’m pretty sure it was this incident that made me suddenly become this kid’s hero. And I can assure you this kid never clicked that print button more than once. In fact, I think he was afraid of the printer for a while.)
