A Day in the Life of Mauryce Lee-Smith

On May 17, 2001 I was given the pleasure of spending most of a day with Mauryce Lee-Smith. From the moment I first laid eyes on Mauryce, I knew he was an extraordinary student. He sat at his desk, along with the other children in his group, preparing for morning activities.

Mauryce began his day by completing his "bell work," a compilation of simple addition, subtraction and word problems. He worked diligently until he was satisfied with every response he had written. Before choosing a book from the book box, he expressed to me that he would like a book about animals because they fascinate him. So he chose Animals and Patterns and began reading the book to me. As he stopped reading to make comments about the words and pictures, I discovered that Mauryce is very articulate and expressive.

Mauryce and I then traveled to the Reading Recovery room for his lesson with the Reading Recovery teacher. The teacher asked Mauryce to write as many words as he knew how to spell within a ten minute time period. He accepted this challenge and correctly spelled a total of thirty-six words. The teacher then shared a sample of his work from the beginning of the year where he was unable to spell any words, including his own name. He was thrilled to see how many words he had spelled correctly, and I was very impressed by his accomplishment. The teacher then completed a running record on Mauryce as he read three books. He was able to read the books and enjoy them to the extent that he forgot anyone was listening.

We then went back to his classroom where the teacher was reading a book about seeds. Mauryce wanted to answer the questions asked by the teacher, but he was not called upon because he kept speaking without permission. Unfortunately, Mauryce chose not to change his behavior and was isolated in both the classroom and cafeteria.

After lunch, Mauryce visited with the counselor and completed an activity concerning the behavior he had displayed. When he came back into the classroom, he sat beside me and again read to me. He then began crying and told me that he would be punished at home for his behavior in school that day. When I asked Mauryce what his punishment would be, he simply said, "Mattress without books." I asked him exactly what he meant by that statement. He said, "When I am bad my mother makes me sleep on a mattress in a room with no books."

I talked with Mauryce for a moment and then it was time for my visit with him to end. After leaving him, I was a bit discouraged and disappointed that my experience with him was not as positive as I had hoped it would be. I do believe, however, that I brightened the day of a child who is amazingly brilliant but sadly unable to express his brilliance in a way that is pleasing to others in his life.