369. Just an other day on the job

 I am geared up to be encouraging and caring and open and yet demanding and professional. Just writing that makes me tired but that's what I am supposed to do in my job. So here I am standing there after having gone round the class writing with my red pen and my worst handwriting 1 Merit followed by a messy signature - that probably shows a deeply perturbed mind - in the books of the students who have duly completed their homework tasks. Everyone is wondering about the red squiggles, the ones who have them looking satisfied and the ones who haven't wondering what this is all about.

As I have finished walking around the classroom I stand behind the desk and start explaining the Merit system and to illustrate my point I talk about the British school system and move on to how JK Rowling used this system as an inspiration for her books. I must have said something like she didn't invent it, it exists and she used it in her books. Something along those lines, I cannot remember, I wasn't paying that much attention to the way I was putting it. 

'That's how some schools work, the house system, the house points, JK Rowling used it for her books. It inspired her, she used it but she did not invent all that.' 

Then suddenly this boy on the right hand side - who is about 15 years old - gets animated. He has a keen sharp glitter of interest in his eyes as he turns on his seat and shouts out in a really loud voice.

'Oooh! So they really have schools for witchcraft in England then?'

He looks so happy about this I can only try to laugh as little as possible but one of the girls burst out laughing out loud, a few join in but I remain unsure about the others.