You Have to Laugh to Keep From Crying

The following in an excerpt from a History Game that I played with some 6th and 7th grade students in Trenton:

Me: Which President was responsible for initiating the Emancipation Proclamation?

Students: George Bush.

Me: Who is the Black man currently running for the 2008 Presidential Election?

Students: George Clooney

Me: What country is south of the United States?

Students: South Trenton?

Me: What is the capital of New Jersey?

Students: (With hesitation) Uhhh…Trenton?

Me: Name one of the 3 ships the Columbus sailed to the Americas?

Students: The Mayflower.

Me: Is Africa a country or a continent?

Students: (90% of them said country)

Me: What is the largest continent in the world?

Students: Pluto

And last but not least…I opened the textbook and turned to a picture and pointed to it and asked,

Me: Name this man.

Students: Martin Luther King

It was Hitler.