Everyone makes mistakes. Teachers make mistakes. I make mistakes. That last line will invariably elicit a knowing grin from those few students who understand I'm being facetious, and blank stares from those who either don't get it or have momentarily tuned me out. But the point remains.
Teachers make mistaks.
And I'm not talking about just proofreading more carefully before heading to the copy machine in the faculty room. By this, I mean accept the fact that students, in my case eighth-graders, are still just kids. I think we'd all be better off if, sometimes, I were a tad more willing to bust a gut along with everyone else. Laughing, they are good at. That, and so many other things academic, could use some work.