Train Expert at work

I thought it was any normal Friday at school. I showed up a little more dressed up than usual because the 4th grade was doing a holiday show and their parents had been invited. I walked into a classroom of kids covered in pajamas; they were enjoying relaxing for the holidays because when they return to school they will have to study hard to pass the FCATs (Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test).

The kids have been busy decorating cookies and making snowflakes. They got to trace each other, cut out the funky shapes, and write a poem on it. Due to a misunderstanding, the body-poems were only displayed in the hall for a day. No Christmas party would be complete without pizza and candy. The kids were watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas and these children movies are becoming more adult each time I get exposed to them; crazy this movie came out in 2000 and this was my first time seeing it.

I helped the teachers pass out the antlers, elf hats, Christmas tiaras and reindeer pillowcase outfits. Two girls got to be Christmas trees. I went to get good seats for the show. The 4th grade came in and sang their song. Then the violin music class played a song. After that, the music teacher led the cafeteria in a few Christmas tunes including ones from Mexico, France, and one about Hanukkah. A few of the ten parents that showed up left early; the kids too began to get bored.

With the Mexican theme, a teacher picked a name from a basket for a kid to come up and hit a pinata. Candy went everywhere and kids charged for it. We got them calmed back down and then sent them back to class. Each class would get a chance to meet the Train Expert in room 9. He was able to ride different passenger train lines before they all became Amtrak. He has riden a train from Thailand to Malaysia and still knows of a few places in the U.S. with steam-powered trains.

One of the teachers is friends with the Train Expert and asked him to come in to help the kids learn more about trains. The kids will get to watch Polar Express in their pajamas and will later use what they learned about trains to create an illustrated story of their own. The train in the model was doing better at going backwards than it was forwards. Here the Train Expert is trying to fix that issue. I like the idea of incorporating real-life stories with hands-on models.

The kids could use a break from all adulterated cartoons; not that they are good for adults either. The Grinch eats beer bottles and face plants into a girls boobs; perhaps some bachelor’s idea of a good time but this is at school when kids should be learning things that will make them successful in life not how to be the next joke on YouTube. Before I left for the day I got invited to their skate party tonight. Not sure I will go but am grateful the school is doing something to help get these kids exercising before the holiday weight gain.