New Catholic Trading Cards

One of the things that drives me crazy with teaching fourth grade is the children's obsession with wanting to cut paper, drawing on paper, and making random things out of trash. I know I sound crazy right now, but you see at the end of the day I'm the one picking up all of it off the floor and finding their desk full of random pieces of paper. I try to stop the children as much as possible with this, for example the students are not allowed to keep scissors, crayons, colored pencils, and markers in their desk. I also do no allow paper in their desk, yes you read that correctly, paper is not allowed in their desk. I guess you can say I'm a little OCD.

Then there are days, that the children somehow bypass these small rules, usually when we have some form of craft. This morning the children made cards to go to the local Catholic High School for their generosity with paying for our field trip. Unfortunately, this makes it harder to keep the kids from creating things at their desk, that later end up on the floor. This morning while completing attendance, Cronius comes to me and says he wants to show me something. I glance over and of course it is a small cut piece of paper and I'm thinking, SERIOUSLY! Then of course, I have one of those moments, where you desperately want to be upset, but the child does or says something which changes your mood.

"Ms. J. do you know how there are card games like Pokemon?"

"Yes, Cronius."

"Well, I have decided to make a card game."

"Oh."

"Here is the first card, it is Jesus, he is worth 1,000 points. I want you to have him."

"Thank you, Cronius, you are such a sweet boy." (See what I mean, I am no longer mad at him for cutting and making things in my class.)

"Ms. J."

"Yes."

"Well, I was thinking that I could make a God card, too, God would be worth 10,000 points and because I do not know what he looks like I will put a question mark."

"That sounds like a good idea."

"Also, I want to make saint cards, too. Do you think you can get me some pictures of saints, so I know what they look like?"

"Sure, I can do that." (WHAT? Now I am supporting his cutting and coloring habit.)

What can I say, how do you stop a child from making a Catholic trading card game?