My Chat With Benjamin

Benjamin is dragged to the back of the classroom by the teacher and placed next to me with strict instruction to, "Just sit there! Just sit there next to Miss Hansen and don't move! Do you hear me? Don't move!" Ben had been up to his old tricks again... wandering around the classroom, leaving the classroom without permission, hiding in the closet, laying on the floor and interrupting the class discussion with, "This is boring! I'm way too smart for this!"

So Ben was sent to sit next to me as Mrs. Ord led the rest of the class to their very first P.E. class. Ben tries to get up.

"Uh, I don't think so Buddy." (I call all the kids Buddy. "All y'all look the same!")
"Ugh!"
"So, what's up, man?" (Another way of avoiding the fact that I forget his name.)
"Sometimes I just want to kick Mrs. Ord."
"That's not okay. We don't kick teachers. We don't even talk about kicking teachers. That's not cool. She's here to help you learn."
"But I already know everything. She's not teaching me anything."
"Oh, is that so?"
"Yes. I'm an excellent reader and I already know all of my times tables."
"Interesting."
"Ya, that's all I do at home too. I just read. I'm way better at reading than all of these kids."
"Huh." (He's in the orange reading group. The lowest.) "How about your writing? Are you good at writing?"
"Ya, really good. I'm better than my 14 year old sister."
"Really." (I've seen him write. All his letters are backwards. I have to sit next to him or else he gets frustrated and just stops.)
"Ya. I'm way too smart for this class. I want to be in the second grade."
"You will be."
"Really?"
"Yep. Right after you finish the first grade."
"Grr! I'm too smart for the first grade and nobody believes me!"

I start to talk to him about his family, why he always hides in the closet and how being smart also includes being nice to people and obeying your teacher when his eyes glaze over and he starts to get up. I grab his arm and lead him back down to his chair...

"Where were you going?"
"I just want to go in the closet."
"Why?"
"Because I just want to read my books by myself."
"You just stopped listening to me and started moving towards the closet. Do you do that a lot? Do you get distracted easily?"
"Ya. But then if I try I can start listening again."
"Huh."
"Ya. I just do what I want. I'm too smart for this. I should be in a private school."

Benjamin is a special boy. What would make him think he's the smartest first grader ever? I mean, everybody knows that I'm the smartest first grader ever! Obviously! Kids these days!