Some kids have some very annoying habits. One boy growls regularly. A certain girl eats paper, including Kleenex. (Wouldn't that stick to your tongue in an uncomfortable way?) A few in each class constantly kick their feet on the metal basket beneath the desk chairs, creating a sound that is far from relaxing. Others have no personal space boundaries.
They want everything to be fair and even. They are good at sharing.
Some get stressed over standardized testing and regular school work: Fourth grade can be a huge step up in expectations placed on them. At my school, fourth grade means moving to an "upstairs" classroom (fourth through sixth grades are upstairs), which is a BIG deal, because the younger grades have no reason to ever come upstairs before that. It also means generally harder, and more independent, work. While they may have slid by and gotten A's in third grade, they have to learn a lot more in fourth grade, sometimes resulting in a dreaded first B on the report card.
The girls start writing notes back and forth around November. Boys are sometimes involved in the note writing too. Some of them say they are "going out." They don't actually go anywhere, and I don't know that it involves anything except saying you are going out with so-and-so, and then breaking up. One good thing: this process does not bring about any crying yet.
Fourth grade is the year of THE Movie. You know, the one about puberty.
They are still young enough to cry on Halloween if someone accidentally (or accidentally-on-purpose) knocks off their fairy wing or whatever.
Many of the girls and boys have body odor by this time of year. Afternoons can be stinky in the classroom.
Some of them have no pencil. Every day.
A lot of the boys (mine, at least) are hyper and lose things.
The boys still come to school with bed head. The girls do not.
They are, of course, deeply saddened if a hamster dies. One child may announce in class, My hamster died last night. And then another may say, My mom died last year. This happened in our science teacher's class.
I find them to be quite lovable. They are still young enough that they are just not cool. At all! They are cute, annoying, heart-breaking and hilarious.
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