Something unusual has happened in my class: for the first time in four years teaching this age group, my best behaved student is a boy and the major troublemaker is a girl. The little boy doing the teapot pose (his idea) I call Moon-Face, because his face is big and round and makes me smile. He doesn't speak much English yet, but he's completely attentive during class, so it's only a matter of time. He dances and sings along to everything with a huge smile on his face. But my favourite thing about Moon-Face is that when he finishes eating, he brings his chair over and plants it right in front of mine, then sits there looking slightly nervous until I tell him what to do. He's so conscientious it's funny. And then there's Amira. I'm naming her after an old friend, because she was also the type who would treat a beehive like a piñata. Amira is the one sticking her tongue out at me, and at life in general. She's a sweet kid in her own way, and as the youngest in the class she only turned 3 years old last week. But she made my first two weeks pretty miserable. I've had screamers in my class before, and hitters and spitters and pinchers and food thieves; Amira is the first student I've had who is all those things, and also refuses to wear shoes. On the upside, I crack up every time she scolds me in Hindi, because it's pretty darn adorable. I'm seeing some improvements in her behaviour - the class as a whole was almost spooky good today - so I'm sure she'll win me over yet. I'll try to introduce more of my students soon, just as soon as I have photos and pseudonyms prepared.