What's crackalackin?

A paper bag from our lab

This week has been pretty interesting. In Chemistry we’ve been doing a little biochemistry (which I often find is more relevant and therefore more interesting) and learning about carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. We did a lab on Monday in which they had to determine whether foods contain fat by rubbing a small amount on a brown paper bag. Foods that contain fat will leave a translucent mark on the bag even after it is dry. For extra credit all the students could bring in a food to test. As kids were calling out what they brought, I compiled a list on the board. Of course I was doing a billion things at once, like I always am, and so I was not fully focused on my spelling. I heard some laughter from a couple of troublemakers in the back and turned around. They were laughing on pointing at the board. I looked at what I had written. It said “Bong.” I was trying to write “Bongo” a popular chip-like snack here, but I guess I just missed the O. Of course it was those two boys who noticed, too. When I asked them to write what they did over the weekend one time, one of these very same boys wrote “Smoked Chilled out.” As soon as I realized what I had done, I corrected it, but I couldn’t stop laughing about for about 5 minutes while I finished filling in the list on the board. The 3 of us just had our own private little joke session for few minutes there. I got things back on track and I think all the kids enjoyed the lab.

Also this week I introduced the phrase “What’s crackalackin?” to on of my freshman. This freshman boy is one of those who has not lost all his baby fat yet and still looks like a cute little boy. He has a cute laugh and is always smiling and giggling about something. I would describe him as roly poly. Quinn shares these sentiments and commented once, “He’s so cute and roly poly! I just want to push him down a hill!” much to Amber's and my amusement. Anyway he loved the new phrase. Every two minutes (no joke) in class he would raise his hand and ask me, “Hey Ms. Abby, what’s crackalackin?” and then erupt in a fit of cute giggles. I stopped calling on him, but this did not deter him from asking, nor detract from his amusement. I couldn’t help but laugh even though after about the 10^th time I was getting a little annoyed. Every day this week he has walked into class and asked me what’s crackalackin.

In biology, we have been learning about mitosis and meiosis (the processes by which new cells and gametes are formed). I also taught them a little bit about what happens if a baby is born from a gamete that does not have the correct number of chromosomes. For example, people with Down Syndrome have an extra chromosome number 21. There are also some very severe disorders children can be born with if they have chromosomal abnormalities. This got me thinking about abortion and the reasons that people are for or against abortion. Could 15-year-old kids handle a discussion about abortion? Especially coming from a culture that is so deeply religious and where it is taboo to talk about anything that remotely has to do with sex? I thought I would give it a try.

Before the discussion I had each of them write 2 paragraphs about their opinion on abortion. I thought it would be good for them to have time to formulate their own thoughts before diving in to a discussion. Before I told them what the topic was I told some students we were going to be writing and received the expected groans in return. “Don’t worry! It’s going to be interesting!” I quickly added. One girl looked at me and said very genuinely, “All your lessons are interesting! Your class is always so interesting.” It’s not just me that thinks so then!

When they started writing I could tell from their faces and the questions they were asking me that some of them were really thinking. One student kept asking me thoughtful questions and then commented, “This is the only time I ever ask questions. This is so interesting.” The same student asked me at the end of class if he could finish it for homework, and I asked why he hadn’t finished in class like everyone else. He replied, “I just have so many thoughts in my head. There’s too much. I just need to go home and finish.” I let him finish it for homework.

The next day we had small group discussions in class. I wanted the groups to be smaller so that everyone could hear and so all the students would be more comfortable sharing their opinions. I wrote “Discussion Rules” on the board that included things like, “Respect everyone’s opinion.” As I wrote rule number four, “Keep your hands to yourself,” I started to question whether these students were, in fact, mature enough to handle this. As they started talking I walked around and joined in the discussions, prompting them with comments like, “What about rape?” or “What if pregnancy endangers the mother’s health?” Most students started the discussion by saying that rape should always be illegal no matter what, citing that it was wrong in God’s eyes. This was pretty much what I was expecting. However, when I started asking tougher questions, a lot of them changed their minds. A few surprised me by saying that the woman should always have the right to choose no matter what. A couple kids were obviously very uncomfortable and/or giggly and claimed they didn’t know what they thought. Overall, though, things went very well. The best part was that I could tell they were actually thinking and using their brains. Kids here are not often asked their opinions about anything and are just told what is right and wrong. It was refreshing to see them formulate and express their own opinions, as well as process the opinions of others.