Expect the Honest to Goodness Unexpected!

For an introductory lesson with a new group in one of my classes, I gave the kids a graphic organizer asking them about their families, their favorite subjects in school, their favorite books, their favorite things to do outside of school, and what their goals were.  The lesson was flawless. All the students were eager to talk about themselves and to hear a little bit about me. All was fine until the end when one of the boys shared that his goal was to stop picking his nose. I expected to hear a chorus of "Ewww!" after this one. Instead, the rest of the group showed him some support by saying, " Yea, that's a good one for you!" Then one of the group members looked at me and stated, "He really does need to make that his goal!" It just proves to me that even after fifteen years of being an at-home Dad to four kids of my own, and equal time in the education system, when I'm with kids, I need to expect the honest to goodness unexpected!