I have a student teacher.

When I told my 17 year old that my student teacher was starting today, he said incredulously, “they approved you for that?”

“I am a veteran teacher,” I explained to him.

In my first year again.

Today after recess, or maybe after lunch — the time runs together — we were getting started on — well something. But there was a chirping.

The second-graders asked, “What is that? A cricket?”

I thought it might be my quiet writing music from writing, so I muted my computer but the chirp kept chirping.

Indeed, it was a cricket.

Earlier, still at home, enjoying my coffee, I had stumbled upon an “I love bugs song” that had promise for school. See the other day at recess some kids were stomping on a bug outside. We had a chat about that. So a song would be so good.

I like bugs, and I’ll tell you why. They’re alive and so am I.
Bugs.
I like grasshopers cause frogs eat em
I like bees cause flowers need em
I like spiders
I like slugs
I like caterpillars
I like bugs…

But when I listened to the whole song I wasn’t so sure. There’s a line about hating crowds, loving people and not being down with the plague…

But when there was a cricket in my room, I wished I had memorized that song.

Maybe we could make up another line.

I like crickets and I’ll tell you why. They’re alive and so am I
Crickets
chirp chirp
Crickets

Instead of singing, I reminded the kids that we don’t hurt bugs. We are STAR students. We show kindness to all creatures great and small.

When the class went to their special, my student teacher and I tried to find the cricket.

Okay, fine. It was mostly him. I let him find the cricket.

When he found it, he asked if he should take it outside.

“It’s actually really big,” he said.

I told him that it was up to him. If he felt comfortable doing it he could, but he certainly didn’t have to carry a giant cricket outside on his first day of second-grade.

“When you tell this story in 20 years about your first day with your mentor teacher, please make sure you include the part where I told you it was totally up to you.”

I mean, this is a story you tell right? Your first day student teaching?

Well, it’s a story I’m telling at least.

As for my student teacher, he survived his first day in second-grade, and he helped a giant cricket survive second-grade too — by taking it outside.