Hairy Situation

April is National Poetry Month.  To celebrate at school, we spend the month learning about different poets, types of poems, and how to write poems.  I am teaching my kindergarteners, first, and second graders about Shel Silverstein.  We are reading a short book about his life and what inspired him to write poetry.

I googled a great photo of Shel and showed it to my first graders.  We studied the photo intently.  They talked extensively about one physical trait… his lack of hair. 

The first grade boys found the fact that Shel had no hair hilarious.  They laughed even harder when they learned the term for having no hair is “bald”, and they joked endlessly about Shel being bald.  I casually commented, “You know that one day you will be bald, right?”

A chorus of “no way” and “uh-uh” ensued. 

“Yup,” I said.  “You will all be bald just like Shel when you get old.”

One of my littlest first graders defiantly responded, “I will NEVER be bald.”

“You don’t know that,” I said.

“Oh yes, I do,” he said confidently.

“How do you know that?” I asked.

“Because,” he said very seriously, “I'll get a weave.”

I stand corrected.