Words of Wisdom

Youth is wasted on the young.

Tuesday 8 April 2008

Best Shot Monday: The Turtle, or is it a Tortoise?


This is the best I have to offer from last week. It's the only photo I can post from our trip to the zoo with year 9! I must say I love the striking green of the pond weed and who can resist a turtle anyway?

The zoo trip was relatively painfree I am relieved to report after last year when we had to send someone back to school in a taxi for deliberately throwing a small hard object at another student's face! No, this year the most trying part was the amount of walking we had to do from one end of town to the other as we took in a tourism walk, a walk through the Rainforest Conservatory of the Botanic Gardens and finally the Rainforest Immersion Display at the zoo.

As on most school excursions, the students had a booklet to fill in which required them answering questions along the route. Well, typically, I lost count of the number of times I had to suggest to a pupil that they get their booklet out of their bag and fill in the answers which I was in the process of supplying! Yes, you read right. Students nowadays do not FIND the answers to questions on a field trip, they are given them by the teacher and the only challenging thing they have to do is write them down quickly enough to be ready when the teacher goes on to the next question! It's pathetic but if you didn't do it they wouldn't write a thing down!!!! I sometimes wonder, even with all the amazing quality 'sights' we have to experience nowadays, whether we should bother leaving the classroom. After our 'set' walks the kids were given 40 minutes free time to wander the zoo and get the answers to some 'bonus' questions. This enabled them to look at some of the other 'non' rainforest animals such as the ever popular meerkats. We teachers headed to the central cafe rendezvous point to await their return for lunch only to find the tables full of our pupils after 15 minutes. Apparently that's all the zoo you need to see at 14. :-)

This week I have the dubious privilege of 'volunteering' for the Year 10 Geography 'Coastal' excursion to wonderful places like Hallett Cove just south of the city. This group are the hideous year nines from last year and as the dread day approaches I find myself wondering if the terrible gastric bug reputedly lurking in Adelaide's environs at present, is not currently incubating in my lower digestive tract. I feel sure it must be. Surely.

What could be so bad about a day trip to the beach I hear you ask? You do not know these students. These are the group involved in the notorious 'Water Bomb' outing last year. The group who, on their camp earlier this year managed 2 broken ankles, a sprained wrist and to shut down the swimming pool by throwing cow 'pats' in the water. The group who walked away from the dining hall leaving more food on the floor and walls than either in their bellies or on their plates. The group who argued blind with me that a single Wikipedia reference was a sufficient bibliography for a research essay and that there was no need to reference 'books' as the teacher wouldn't be able to 'check up' on them!!!!!!!

Wish me luck. I am sure it will be an eventful day. I only pray we don't have to fill in any police reports afterwards.

Click over to 'Mother May I' where the gang will be sharing some inspirational photography with, hopefully, minimal police presence.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love the greens in that picture. very cute

Jaimee said...

Wow, the colors in that are amazing.

Dawn said...

You're right, I can't resist a turtle. I love green photos!!

Maya said...

I love the green too!

Anonymous said...

I can feel the warmth of that photo. So good for the kids to get in touch with nature... you're a good Mommy. You spent more time talking and enjoying the zoo with her than taking photos!

Blueberry said...

the turtle picture is great! love the color.

good luck with that trip... those kids sound more than a little challenging!!

Maggie said...

I love the turtle picture!

And oh my, that upcoming trip...I will cross my fingers for you that it is as painless as possible!

chaoticfamily said...

Fabulous turtle shot or tortoise??? Very sweet and green - lovely...

Arizaphale said...

Hmmm now you mention it.... I assumed cos it was in the water that it was a turtle but looking closely...I think you might be right!!!

Anonymous said...

Nice photos. I'm looking forward to checking out some of the places you describe.

I'm sure that a field trip to even the nicest place could be ruined by the wrong set of students!

Anonymous said...

You must blog a copy of any and all police reports.....err, I mean summarize the wonderful day you are sure to have with your Geography Year 10s!!!
BEST OF LUCK to you. Would it be wrong to admit I did giggle a little while reading your post?
Elisa

Andi said...

Elisa, I too did giggle a little bit, but only because I know of whom she speaks...whatever the country, hellions come from the pit of hell! I sincerely wish you the best!

kim said...

The turtle photo is great. i love that vibrant green, too.
Sounds like the zoo trip went much better than the beach trip. :')