A newspaper is born.

I teach reading, that much you know. In a small district, most teachers of core subjects are forced to get to teach an "elective" as well. (Elective here having a much looser implication than in actuality. It's something I HAVE to teach and the student HAS to take. Elective. HAHA) So, last semester I taught a sixth grade art class. We mostly worked on pencil sketching and the like. Once the semester changed, the course was changed to "journalism" and a new batch of kids was shuffled into the original bunch. It was decided that our class would give birth to a school newspaper for our middle school campus. It's something I've honestly always wanted to do, but I just never really got it off of the ground for one reason or another. We've been at work in this new class since Tuesday, and I don't think I've ever had so much fun (and that's saying something because I always have fun) or had kids so excited about what they're doing. Not only that, I've had kids not in the class begging me to get them into the class. Heehee. What, you ask, does one write about in a middle school paper? Well, so far we have columns called The Current Rushes In (Miss 7th Grade SmartyPants came up with that title for her current event column), The Fashion Police, Food 411, The Funny Bone, Book Nook, and Sportsworld..just to name a few. It's great fun! Our first issue should hit the masses a week from tomorrow. Good times!
In other middle school news, I had a group of kids who created a book club that needed a sponsor (i.e. someone to bring donuts when they meet and make sure they don't kill each other or burn the library down,) so we're having fun with that too. It's the biggest bunch of misfits you've ever seen. Totally not the academic kids, but man, are they taking it seriously. They meet every other Friday morning before school (I bring the donuts,) and they discuss the latest books they're reading. We've decided on a novel to read as a group, so we'll be starting that at our next meeting. Oh, and at every meeting we PASS THE TORCH. THE TORCH being a ruler with an Ace of Spades playing card taped to it and THE TORCH written on on the ruler in Sharpie. Ya know, I don't know what the story is behind it. With this age group, it's best to just not ask. At each meeting, THE TORCH is passed to the next person who presides over the next meeting (i.e. bosses the other kids around.)
Is there anything out there greater than a middle schooler? I don't think so.