Red Sox Win! (and teachers suffer all over the state)

Day 122

The Boston Red Sox won the World Series tonight.  I was scrolling through FaceBook as I watched the game and here is a true fact:  the kids were all up watching the big game.  

Holy crap, the next few days could be hard.  Let's just summarize for a moment. We enjoyed a beautiful FULL MOON at the tail end of last week.  Then there were five LATE Sox games for the children to enjoy.  The Pats will play the Buffalo Bills tomorrow night and that game will likely wrap up well after 11:00.  And Wednesday is FREEKIN' Halloween!  Then we teachers will need to rest up over the weekend because next week is conference week!  I feel like we should get some kind of combat pay for weeks like these!

So the big question today...should the parents of nine and ten year olds, given the possible consequences, allow their children to stay up and watch these sporting events?

My answer may surprise you.  YES!  In almost every circumstance, I say, YES!  Here is why:  The year was 1986.  The Sox were chasing down a World Series title.  We were playing the NY Mets.  I grew up in Worcester and Worcester's own Rich Gedman was in as the catcher.  Our Red Sox were sooo close to putting an end to the curse of the Bambino!  I was an eighth-grade parochial school student at the time and my parents let me stay up to watch the games.  I remember how special that experience was.  I remember watching with my dad.  I will always have that memory.  

Memories and the experiences we have with the people we love form our lives.  The goal of education, according to this fourth-grade teacher, is to equip our students with the knowledge, skills, and strategies necessary to live their best life.  I just don't think anyone should put off living their lives, including children.  

So when do I say a child shouldn't stay up?  The student who doesn't care about sports, whose family could care less too, should definitely get to bed.  He or she will need the extra sleep.  After all, when they wake in the morning, they will be confronted by a bunch of fans who are ecstatic or devastated and exhausted.  Dealing with these fanatics will require a lot of patience!