Mystery Trash

Back when I was a teenager, my mom would never have believed it if you had told her I would grow up to be a neat freak.  My room was forever a disaster area with piles of clean clothes, piles of dirty clothes, books, papers, and even the occasional leftover food item turned science experiment.  So, all you parents of teenage slobs out there…there is hope for your teenager yet!On the very first day of school, I begin instilling in my students an appreciation for the neat and organized wonder that is our classroom.  I ask them if they like the way the classroom looks right now, and tell them how long I worked to get it looking like this.  Then I explain that it is now up to all of us to work together and maintain this neat and orderly environment.  At the end of the day I announce, “It’s time for Mystery Trash!”  I walk around and write down three things that need to be picked up or straightened.  Of course, you have to be sneaky about it and not write it down right after you look at it.  That would be too easy.  One or two of the items will be something like a piece of paper or a pencil on the floor, but the third item must be a stumper that my students would probably never notice, like this…