Frank: Pulled their asses out of two wars, the French. What did they give us? A disgusting way to kiss.
Robert: Who are you talking to, Dad?
Ray: Where was that attitude when I needed it? You could've defended me.
Frank: What, and walk all the way to the school? I wasn't putting on pants for that.

Ray: You did that? Well, why didn't you tell me?
Marie: Because you should respect teachers. Plus, Robert would've wanted me to do it for him.
Robert: Why wouldn't you do it for me? How about when I was 13 years old and my basketball coach called me "the useless giraffe"?
Frank: You were 6'5". You couldn't get a couple of rebounds?

Ray: Yeah, you never stuck up for me. You always took the teacher's side. And you too, Ma. Just like Debra's doing now. That's right. The same!
Marie: Excuse me, Raymond. I was not like Debra. I did defend you with Monsieur LeFevre.
Ray: What? Why, what'd you do?
Marie: I went down to that school and gave that man a piece of my mind, even though your behavior in that class was deplorable and is the reason that you and I cannot converse in French today.

Amy: You know every child goes through this rebellious phase. I did. One time in church choir, we were all supposed to sing "What a Friend We Have in Jesus," and my friend and I sang "What a Friend We Have in Cheez-its."

Debra: Come on. You gotta feel bad for the guy.
Ray: What? He's the teacher.
Debra: So?
Ray: I'm sorry, but this is his job, and he gets paid good money to do it.
Debra: Good money?
Ray: Plus he's got a teacher's lounge, a gym, the tetherball... He's got a sweet deal here.

Amy: What are you gonna do? How're you gonna handle this?
Debra: Well, she's basically grounded. There's no TV, no phone, no contact with the outside world until she gets her math grade up.
Robert: Complete lockdown, huh?
Debra: Yeah.
Robert: You know, in the big house, solitary can go either way. Sometimes they come out and they're nice and docile, and other times, you open the cell and [shouts]! I'd hate to see Ally go that way.

Frank: You deny them water. If you're their source of water, they respect you.

Ray: Remember that French teacher I had in high school?
Robert: Oh, you mean Monsieur LeFevre?
Ray: Yeah. Yeah. Except his real name was Mr. Leftkowitz. That's right. He made everybody call him Monsieur LeFevre. Terrible teacher.
Amy: Why?
Ray: Because he... He thought he was so...
Frank: French?
Ray: Yeah. Yeah. That's right. He was a phony. I hated him. And he hated me. We had to memorize these French dialogues from records, and at the end of the sentence it would go, "beep!" And you had to repeat the sentence. Like, uh, "Ou est Sylvie?" Beep. "A la piscine," beep. So one day, I go, "Monsieur LeFevre! Do French people really beep like that?" [laughs] Yeah. He got mad. You know why? 'Cause it got a big laugh.

Debra: See? That's a good sign. So maybe not during class but after class, you could talk to Tommy. And maybe you and Tommy and some of your friends could go out sometime.
Ray: Wait a minute!
Debra: Hi, Ray.
Ray: What the hell is going on in that math class?
Debra: After math class. Tommy's a nice boy, and Ally just-
Ray: Na-na-na-na-ba-ba-ba-bah! You are in school to learn, young lady. Okay? And math class is for math, not boys! You're not looking over here, you're not looking over there. The only boy you're looking at is Mr. Putnam. That's right. Okay? So, none of this boy talk. [phone rings] I mean, you're - You're 13 years old. What's what's going on in that school? I don't now, but maybe the principal should know. [Ray finds the phone in the refrigerator] And- And- [answers phone] Hello? Who is this? Oh, Tommy! Yeah, you thought you could hide in the fridge. It makes plenty of sense! She's doing her math homework, and I suggest you do the same.
Thank you. [hangs up] Listen to your teacher, and back me up on this!

Debra: Mr. Putnam, we're really gonna crack down on her homework.
Mr. Putnam: It's not just homework. You can't do the homework if you don't pay attention. You see, the thing about math is numbers are constant. They're clear. They're... logical. They're organized. 13-year-olds are not.
Debra: Believe me, I understand.
Mr. Putnam: Thank you. I'm sure Ally's a very bright girl, but she doesn't pay attention. Nothing I say...
Debra: Sinks in?
Mr. Putnam: Right.
Debra: Yeah. Everything I read says that's teenagers.
Mr. Putnam: I used to teach second-graders. I mean, sure, you had the occasional pee-pee accident in class. But they they were so...
Debra: Sweet.
Mr. Putnam: Yes. And appreciative.
Debra: Yes.
Mr. Putnam: Mm-mmm.
Ray: You two met before, or?