Hoeing

I was reading a book with my seventh graders in which the word "hoeing" appeared. As in, the women were hoeing in the garden.

I noticed a lot of uncomfortable snickering, and it didn't take me too long to realize what they were reacting to. So I stopped the reading and wrote the word "hoe" on the board. I illustrated it. Then I wrote the word "ho," explained its etymology and why it was not a nice thing to call someone.

When I was done with this little talk, the kids were really concerned that I left the word "ho" up on the board. They urged me to erase it.

I had to post this after reading Ms. Cornelius' experience.