Interview Day

I.
I'm 5 minutes early
They are twenty minutes late

On the way to the East Bay
My tire was flat and I stopped.
Paid some nice kid quatro
For some air. Didn't have to pay
But I needed to get some positive vibes
For this exercise in negativity

So, how do you
               deal with
                   defiance?

Embrace it
That kid is pissed
That student is alive
I need to find out what makes her so.
Teenagers are defiant, their beings are defiant
Adults wish for that but must show
How to make defiance work.

II.
You advertise small classes and clock
In at thirty
Small for around here
Big for those who are never here

So, how do you deal
               with a student
               who is sixteen but reads
               like a fourth grader?

You cannot deal with that student.
Ask!
Is there something to work with?
Why is the student in trouble?
What are his interests?
Can he write a paragraph?
Have a paragraph about that baseball player
Or man in his neighborhood who works
The corner store that he has known forever
Familiar subjects can breed unfamiliar words
Phrases and accomplishments.

III.
They ask questions about putting out fires
Not about instruction. They are past instruction.
Planning is done for them leaving instruction
As a one shot video
Of a lesson less than indicative
Of originality
And quality.