Well it is officially TAKS season, not tax, but TAKS. It's that dreaded time of the year for teachers when they do their final preparations for the biggest test of the year. Luckily, with teaching 6th grade science, I don't have to much worry about the TAKS since my students aren't tested. But for the last 3 years I have leant my helping hand either with tutoring or with, and I am not kidding, driving kids home. My school district lets us borrow their vehicles, either excursions or expeditions. So it's not completly like filling the shoes of bus drivers, at least you get to drive a cool vehicle.
I started driving last year after one of the counselors did some serious begging to all of the faculty. I stressed to her that I did not know the roads to this town (because I don't live there nor hang out there, EVER). But she convinced me that I would know where I would be going after being given a list of locations that I could look up prior to leaving and would have no problem since it is such a small town. Last year went fine, I had my route all mapped out on google and had no problem. This year I was told I was given the same route and had the same expectations.
That was until the place I pick up my excursion from didn't have my vehicle ready on the first day. So after getting everything sorted out, I showed up about ten minutes late, my students already waiting. They had sorted the kids out according to where they were going (which is when I would've voiced my knowing and not knowing where they lived) and I was told that was my group. A few of them said places that didn't sound familiar to me, so I asked how to get to those locations. I knew how to get there, but they were no where near my other drop off route. The only way I knew how to get to where they lived was to go all the way back through town. This is a small town, so we're talking going 15 minutes out one way, coming back, then 15 minutes out another way. Seemed strange to me that was my route, but whatever, I do get paid for this.
Now don't get me wrong, most of these kids could tell me exactly where they lived. But there was one, a sixth grader (not one of my students but one of those you know the name of because other teachers talk about them) who said he didn't know how to get to where he lived. He knew he lived near Bastrop, in a town called Lytton Springs, so I asked if he knew how to get there from Bastrop. "No ma'am," he responded. Okay, how about from Lockhart (where the school is). "No ma'am," his response. Alright, do you know how to get home from ANY location? "No ma'am." GREAT.
A sweet girl in the car, seeing my frustration says, "Miss, there's a sign by my house that says Lytton Springs, you should take that road." Awesome, take a road I've never taken, with a kid I don't know, to a location that he may or may not live. Sounds great.
Seeing how it was my only option, we took this road. When we got to Lytton Springs he did recognize the town and was able to guide me to his home. THANK GOODNESS.
I did get to impress the kids the next day since I had googled the locations of their houses. Turns out, there was a road that connected the two routes, it was only about five miles versus the 20 or so we had driven the day before. One of the student's responses, "I thought that since you were a bus driver you would know that."
We straightened that one out, he now knows I am NOT a bus driver...
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