I faced the firing squad today, aka my students. Twasn't as bad as I thought it would be. They had almost amusing concerns, but reframing my brain into a 12-year-old's, I think I would have the same questions. The one I got the most, however, threw me for a loop - "Will the new teacher rearrange and redecorate the room?" I couldn't figure out why this was such a concern... but I think that would be the end of their collective rope. They are trying to handle the idea of a new teacher, but if she came in and redecorated the classroom - now THAT would be going too far. :)

A sampling of other questions I received... but take them with the understanding that they are 12 or 13, and have little to no experience with children. Even adults ask these silly questions sometimes:
Does he speak?
Will he speak with an accent?
Does he know Russian? Will he know Russian?
How old is he?
Why is he a boy? (actually meant why did we choose a boy)
Is it expensive?
Do you know Russian? Are you learning Russian?
Will you bring him back here so we can meet him? During class?
Will Ms. M (the new teacher) be grading us?
Will Ms. M redecorate the room?
Does she know and understand about the passes?
Can we get out of doing our work for the next 3 weeks, then?
Can we throw a party for you?
Will the grades between now and then count?
Why aren't you coming back to teach immediately? Just stick him in daycare!
Is your husband going with you?
Why did you choose Russia?
Why are you adopting?
Do you have a room for him? What color is it?

Oh, and this was just the beginning. I had 2 moms write me already asking if their child could ask me more questions because they are quite interested in all the details of adoption. I'm looking forward to spreading education about the topic, believe me. If I can get just one or two kids to think adoption is a great thing, perhaps it will influence them when they're older...

My 2nd and 3rd hour got me emotional, for different reasons. I was explaining why we decided to adopt to my 2nd hour (leaving out the whole "trying for a baby" thing), and I had 2 girls teared up, and my aide was crying. I almost lost it too! They're such an amazing class. My 3rd hour is my 8th graders - spend 1-1/2 years with them now - and I can be more upfront with them. It's an amazing rapport for a 29-year-old and a group of 28 13-year-olds. They showed off their knowledge and remembrance of the Russian Revolution (which I taught them last year) and asked some excellent questions about the culture of Russia, and the deeper meanings of adoption (birthfamilies versus adoptive families).

They seem to in general be excited about a baby, nervous about a new teacher, fascinated by the fact I'm going to Russia. They were impressed when I said I'd take pictures and if I had time, send emails from Russia. They thought that'd be cool. "It'd be like teaching from a different country!" one kid exclaimed. And that made me feel better. :)