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With a last snicker, he strutted out the door. I took a few deep breaths as the class sat in idle discomfort. "OK. So today we're talking about the reading from the weekend. Everybody get out a half sheet of paper - we're going to do a quick reading check." A chorus of groans fired back at me. "Relax. This isn't a quiz; it's a reading check. If you took your notes or at least paid attention, and you finished the reading from Friday, it should be a joke."

I waited for them to get their materials ready, sheets hastily torn in half and shared with neighbors. Tabitha had stored a half sheet for herself from the last reading check, the tear a perfect line across the top of the page. Taylor had forgotten a notebook. And a pen. And to do the reading, as was plain from the look on her face.

"Question one: which of the major themes we discussed - remember, you can use your notes on this - was the dominant theme of these two chapters?"

I gave them a minute to flip through notes, issued the s