Teacher Bret Turner was taken aback after a first grader had a very poignant response to his class' weekly riddle.
The puzzle of the week the educator had given them was: "I am the beginning of everything, the end of everywhere. I'm the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space."
One philosophical student looked at the riddle and replied simply, "Death."
Bret and the rest of the class were so shocked that the teacher shared the incident on his Twitter:
"The first guess from one of my first graders was 'death' and such an awed, sombre, reflective hush fell over the class that I didn’t want to tell them that actually the answer is the letter e, which just seemed so banal in the moment."
The first guess from one of my 1st graders was “death” and such an awed, somber, reflective hush fell over the class that I didn’t want to tell them that actually the answer is the letter e, which just seemed so banal in the moment pic.twitter.com/7sYFxHNcZk
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) 2 January 2018
That answer is... deep. And a bit grim.
The first graders had a couple more guesses before their teacher filled them in.
Before I finally revealed the "correct" answer to the riddle, to a largely unimpressed audience, I fielded other guesses that continued along a similarly existential vein. There was "NOT everything," "all stuff," "the end," and maybe my favorite, "nothingthing."
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) 3 January 2018
One thing's for sure - that is not a boring classroom to teach.
Bret occasionally shares other first grade antics on Twitter - and they are absolute GOLD.
Like when one student's backpack was unfortunately stolen, and the teacher was schooled in what really matters to his students.
1st grader: One time, my backpack got stolen out of my mom's car.
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) 4 January 2018
Me: oh no! That's a real bummer.
First grader: I know.
Me: Was there anything valuable in your backpack?
1st grader (deadly serious): yes. A folder with KITTENS ON IT.
All other first graders in unison: GASP
(1/2)
Friend of 1st grader: oh my God.
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) 4 January 2018
New Kid: I knew that folder. I've seen those kittens.
Other kid: that's not the kind of thing you can replace.
Me: I think actually that's precisely the type of thing you can replace.
Original 1st-grader: [gives me a look of indignation]
(2/2)
I mean, he's not wrong.
Hopefully, that student gets a new kitten folder soon! And the one that answered the riddle gets a little less macabre.
What's the most philosophical thing your little one has surprised you with, mums?
