Leggings are Not Pants....and Other Life Lessons from the Ninth Grade Center

As I finish up my time at the BD NGC, I am amazed at how much these kids don't know. I will share with you a few things that I have tried to teach them, aside from algebra.

1. Leggings are not pants. This is an epidemic. At the middle school, we treated leggings like tights, which I feel is appropriate. The school dress code contains a standard fingertip length rule on all skirts or shorts, however apparently at the elementary school, as long as you were wearing leggings you were OK. Now I can see how this would be OK for little girls, but these girls are no longer little. Now they are in high school and have no business walking around with no pants on.

2. You are too young to have a tattoo. I have seen entirely too many 9th graders with tattoos. When I challenged a couple of boys on whether they would still want a paw print on their shoulder in 20 years they could see my point. But how was it legal for somebody to tattoo stars on a 15-year-old's breast? That's borderline pedophilia.

3. Maternity leave from high school is not a real thing. I had to stifle a laugh when the kids told me this girl was on maternity leave. Thanks to MTV's 16 and Pregnant, we know that teenagers are capable of conceiving and bearing children, but the education system has yet to create an official absence policy for student mothers.

4. Apparently being a superintendent is where the money is. This was obviously the water cooler talk of the day. As an employee of Wayne Township (10 more days), I should not say anything bad about the district, but I couldn't resist. What are they gonna do to me? http://www.indystar.com/article/20110128/LOCAL1804/101280341/-1M-payout-ex-superintendent-upsets-Wayne-School-Board?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News I don't any think elaboration is necessary.

I'll leave it at that. Shondell out.