Click here to read blog: I Have Something You Don't Have
It's quite a conversation piece, this reflecting ball of tiny mirrors and from the first day of school, my class has asked questions about it. Questions like: What is that? Why do you have that? Can I touch it? How does it work? Comments like: I wish I had one of those in my room. That is so cool. I thought teachers weren't supposed to hang things from the ceiling. (The last comment being said by a future fire chief. Obv.)
I just shrug at their questions and nod my head at their comments. I intentionally don't say much about it. It is just there. Weeks pass and it doesn't do anything. It isn't used for anything. But the students never forget it's there. They write about it sometimes in their writer's notebook. They practice their cursive letters: d-i-s-c-o b-a-l-l. They look up at it when on the back carpet during reading discussions. They wait.
So, today, with just twenty minutes left to go in our day as they sat hunched over their chess boards intently playing, I decided it was time. I stealthily walked to my desk and clicked from the "Solo Piano Music" station currently playing on Pandora to "Disco Radio". Earth, Wind & Fire. Perfect. Suddenly every single one of them stopped in their tracks. They may be little in size, but they can pick up on something new in a nanosecond.
"Disco!" screeched one little boy as he jumped to his feet, chess pieces toppling, and instantly did a pretty good impression of John Travolta in Saturday Night Live stretching his arm in the air with one finger pointing to the ceiling. Almost in unison, up jumped several more doing some pretty impressive dance moves. Their smiles and laughter were in complete contrast to the quiet and calm chess playing from just seconds before. It was almost as if a switch had been turned on.
I laughed and danced along a bit with them. "This," I said pausing for effect as I pointed to the mirror ball, "is disco!"
"Turn the lights out and make it spin around," commanded one little boy as he danced over to me.
"Yeah. Do that," joined in some others.
"Oh, that doesn't happen until later," I told them, acting as mysteriously as I could.
"Let's have a dance party every Friday!" one suggested to the nods of the other dancers. "But it has to be disco!"
But we were running out of time. The bell would be ringing in ten minutes and we had to clean up.
"Don't turn it off!" begged one little one, panic setting in. So I asked them to clean up and and I kept the music playing. It was one of the highlights of my week, that's for sure, watching them laugh and pick up chess pieces while not missing a beat.
Someone better call a doctor, cuz I think we've caught the fever in my room. The disco fever.
Good thing I have a mirror ball.
Play Some Disco
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