After a history exam, Mr. Johnson asked Johnnyto stay behind for a moment. He had noticedsomething unusual while grading the papers andwanted an explanation.
Johnny looked surprised when his teachermentioned the possibility of cheating.
“Are you accusing me of copying someone else’swork?” he asked confidently. “If so, I’d like toknow what makes you think that.”
Mr. Johnson calmly picked up Johnny’s testpaper.
“Let’s start with the first question. I asked who thefirst president of the United States was. Mary,who sat beside you, wrote George Washington.You gave exactly the same answer.”
Johnny shrugged.
“That’s hardly proof. Everyone knows GeorgeWashington was the first president!”
Mr. Johnson nodded and continued.
“The next question asked who was responsiblefor ending slavery in the United States. Marywrote Abraham Lincoln, and so did you.”
Johnny smiled.
“I studied my history lessons last night. It’s notsurprising that we knew the same answer.”
Mr. Johnson listened patiently before turning tothe final question.
He pointed to the question that asked who waspresident when the Louisiana Purchase tookplace.
“Now, here’s where things get interesting,” theteacher said.
He showed Johnny Mary’s response.
She had written: “I don’t know.”
Then Mr. Johnson looked at Johnny’s paper andread his answer aloud:
“Me neither.”
For the first time, Johnny had absolutely nothingto say!
The lesson: Sometimes, copying someone else’swork can get you into more trouble than admittingyou don’t know the answer. And when a teacherhas a good sense of humor, even a simple testcan become an unforgettable lesson!
The End. 😄