What's In Your Pocket?

I’ve heard that you can tell a lot about a woman by the contents of her purse, but what I never thought about is the same can be true for a five-year-old. I am always intrigued by the objects that come out of these little people’s pockets.

There is one student in my class who is particularly known for little goodies coming out every day. On any given day you can guarantee that he will have something in his pockets. Yesterday was a harmonica, the day before that was a Nintendo DS screen cleaning cloth, and today was a toothbrush. I couldn’t even guess what tomorrow's pocket surprise will bring, as it’s always a completely random and surprising object that never has any relation to the previous days.

I'm sure you can imagine these objects becoming a distraction, yet I still allow them bring their own toys from home. However, they are warned that if they are not careful, it may get locked up in the “Distraction Box” (or for those who like to mispronounce it the “restraction box”) where their cherished belongings will be safely kept until the end of the day.

Keep in mind that this box is no bigger than a shoebox. In a moment that was completely unrelated to the subject of the distraction box, I told one of my munchkins today that their continuous sounds were becoming a distraction to their classmates. “You better stop, or you’ll get put in the distraction box!” a friend shouted. I had to laugh with the cleverness of the thought, which implied the knowledge that all distractions end up there. No, I have not ever tried to stuff one of those five-year-olds in a box, although I guess some days it seems like an excellent idea! :)