If there's one time of year that injects fear into the minds of teachers and pupils alike, it's the exam period. In a time where the whole year's work comes together and pupils have the chance to show off their knowledge and set themselves up well for the future, it's a worrying time for both themselves and the teachers who have imparted knowledge to them. 

But if one thing can really help to ease the stress, it's a good old fashioned laugh, and some pupils even seem to carry this philosophy into the exam hall with them. Over the last few years, there's been a trend for teachers to share some of their favourite ever exam answers, and some of them show that school pupils have some of the sharpest wit and humour around. 

Here, we take a look at just a few of our very favourite exam answers we've ever seen on the web. 

Question: In Spanish, ask your sister to do the following…
Answer: I don't even have a sister.

As simple as it gets to start us off. We've all been in a modern languages class where we had to explain various simple tasks to a theoretical brother/sister/mother/father/penpal, but this stubborn pupil was having none of their teacher's apparent lack of attention to detail!

Question: Name six animals which are native to the Arctic.
Answer: Two polar bears, four seals. 

To be fair to this pupil, the examiner didn't actually say they wanted them to name different animals. With the skills to look for loopholes as small as this, perhaps this intrepid pupil's future may lie in law rather than in the biology exam they were sitting when they came up with this excellent answer. 

Question: What are your three main aims for the future?
Answer: 1. Get a girlfriend; 2. Kiss her; 3. Rule the world. 

It all started so well for this young megalomaniac, too. Content with finding the love of their life and experiencing their first kiss in the early days, it soon escalated for someone who may have watched a few too many episodes of Dexter's Laboratory. Scary stuff!

Question: A company wants to open its new fashion factory near Birmingham. Is Birmingham a good place for this? Explain why.
Answer: No. The people in Birmingham are not very fashionable. 

Not great news for the people of England's second city, but this child is not impressed by their colour palettes and choices of outfit. We're pretty sure the teacher did not expect this budding Versace to have quite a cutting analysis when discussing the geographical suitability of a factory, but it certainly made us laugh. 

Question: In no more than 50 words, explain the concept of risk.
Answer: This.

Sometimes there's the funny and witty, and other times the deep and clever answer. Rarely do the two ever meet. However, here we come across an answer that manages to combine both. With one simple word, the witty pupil manages to answer the question succinctly, but also with the sort of swagger and wit that almost deserves a round of applause. We would give them an A+.

Every class has those few pupils who it is hard to gain the attention of throughout the day. At some points, it'll be just one or two, and then for harder and drier lessons it can sometimes feel like the whole class's attention has gone on holiday and left their empty shells in front of you, refusing to learn. 

Here, we take a look at some novel ways to help pupils pay attention better in your classroom, sure to help any teacher in times of real frustration. 

Regular recaps

Nothing will make someone pay attention more than the worry that they might be asked what is going on and not know. Let it be known in your class that you'll regularly be looking for someone to recap the lesson so far so everyone can keep up, and the chances are, everyone will be paying attention so they don't end up looking like they weren't paying attention on the off chance their turn comes around. 

Talking item

When it comes to answering questions, have an item, a soft toy or the like, that gets passed randomly to the next person to answer. If pupils don't know they're next, but are aware they might well be, then the chances are they'll be listening in. Not only that, but they'll be far more likely to engage and think of answers before it comes to them, helping enhance learning throughout the lesson. 

Flashing lights

Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, attention spans will falter and you'll be in front of a class that was once working hard, but is now deep in a 30-person chat about who the best Kardashian is, or the like. The best way to tackle this is with a quick sensory gesture. Flashing the lights on and off will grab everyone's attention, and they're sure to know you're not best pleased quick as a flash. 

Allow texting

Sounds like such a weird notion, but allowing pupils to text their answers to each other, which the recipient then has to read out, is a really great way to engage everyone. Pupils are basically glued to their phones these days anyway, so why not use this to your advantage? Besides, most people are probably faster with a phone than a pen these days anyway, so you're likely to get through a lot more!

Walking talking

If it feels like you're losing the class' attention, say late on a Friday afternoon, why not take the chance to be a little bit different and help them engage in a different way? Leave the classroom and take the kids for a stroll around the playing fields for a while, all the time keeping the same conversation from the classroom alive to keep people engaged.