This year so far I've been fairly chill with my students, especially my advanced kids. They know when it's time to get down to business, but they know it's a fun class to be in too. And I enjoy them too.
Except for today.
We were in the auditorium where they were performing scenes. And when we came back to the classroom, something of my educational assistant's was missing. My classroom door leading to the outside stays unlocked. Since no one fessed up about taking the item, we were led to believe someone came in and stole it. We asked our students to keep their eyes out for it on campus, and to return it to me if someone found it. And someone did. But the student who found it wouldn't tell me it who he got it from. He said it would be bad for him if he said. He said the student who took it said it was lying by the door, that he didn't realize it belonged to someone in class.
So now I'm stuck.
Do I punish the class as a whole for breaking my trust? Or do I let it slide on the assumption that it was an outside student, and crack down on the door-locking and the security?
I'm even more disappointed because it was my advanced students. I thought that of all my classes, they were the ones I had to worry about the least. If it even was them...
And what's next? What else could get stolen? My personal stuff? More valuable items?
I hate feeling like this; disappointment, mistrust.
Tomorrow may be better.
