Entry # 4: "You're just a big,
fat, stinky chunk of cheese!"
"You're just a big, fat, stinky chunk of cheese!"
This personal observation was yelled across the room in my third block class
last Tuesday. The way "John" chose to express his unhappiness
with another student was certainly unique, but the general sentiments behind
it are nothing new. Each year I work with children who for some reason feel
compelled to trade insults or express their anger in inappropriate, nonproductive
ways.
Each year we talk about the words "reactive" and "proactive".
The kids brainstorm and perform examples of being reactive or proactive
in hypothetical situations. They discuss problems they've had and the most
appropriate way of dealing with the situation. When a student reacts to
a problem in my classroom by "trading licks," and I ask them to
propose alternatives, every child can tell me a more appropriate solution.
Still, at least once a day and usually more often than that, I hear, "You're
ugly!" or "Stop blowing your stinky breath on me!" or "Your
momma's so fat that when she sat on a rainbow some Skittles popped out!"
I love my students, but I must confess that this animosity among them really
wears me out. I can't understand why they treat each other in this manner.
In our city there are too many people who are more than happy to tear down
my city students. Their low achievement is attributed directly or indirectly
to laziness, bad families, crime, and even genetic inferiority. I guess
I assumed that because my students were facing such adversity, they would
be more likely to bond together to fight the prejudice and injustice they
experience.
But they are, regardless of the way society views and treats them, just
kids. Why should I or anyone else expect more from them than we do from
other children their age? Developmentally they are becoming more self-aware
and self-conscious, which often creates a lot of uncertainty and self-doubt
as they compare themselves to their peers. Regardless of where I've worked
with adolescents, they all have been extremely intolerant of each others'
shortcomings.
Helping kids create a learning community
I know that it is important for my students to learn to work together as
a community of learners. I feel like I'm having a difficult time this year,
but in reality I've probably just forgotten that it took us some time last
year to work through some of our insecurities. I think last year was the
first time I really understood how to help my kids create their own learning
community. By the end of the year they were very supportive of each other
and went out of their way to build each other up.
Now I'm starting over with a whole new group of kids. It's going to take
us some time, but I think we'll be able to become an outstanding team by
year's end. At least I hope so.
In order to create a community of learners, there are several strategies
I have to be sure I'm using. First, I am trying to create an environment
where it is okay to take risks and to fail. For example, my kids have the
opportunity to share their journals with the class, but they don't have
to. A few brave souls have volunteered, and as others have seen the appreciation
for and discussions that have emerged from others' writing, more have been
raising their hands to volunteer.
My students also put their corrections of our D.O.L. (Daily Oral Language)
sentences on the board, and instead of pointing out what they've done wrong,
I point out their successes and invite others to make any other corrections.
So far, no one has made fun of anyone for making mistakes on the D.O.L.
In fact, I often see their heads together conferencing about how to fix
the errors in the sentence.
Ample opportunities to collaborate
Another effective team-building strategy is giving my students ample opportunities
to collaborate on group projects. I need to increase the amount of high-interest
group work we're doing. Last year we worked in groups most of the time.
They chose jobs and divided up tasks, and for the most part, they were quite
successful. Since they were depending upon each other to complete each task,
they learned how to encourage and help each other as they went along.
They also held each other accountable when one member of the group failed
to do his or her part. This year, one of my groups has already experienced
the embarrassment of not being prepared -- not from me, but from their classmates.
Each group had a school rule to "teach" to the class, complete
with a poster and full group participation during the presentation. All
but one group had completed the task and earned 4's for their efforts. The
final group stood before their peers with no poster and little information,
then bowed their heads and quietly crept back to their seats.
I opened their performance up for class discussion. I explained that all
of us will fail in our efforts sometimes, but the key was to learn from
our and others' mistakes. The class gave that group the most constructive
criticism I've ever heard from students their age. They suggested that instead
of playing during their preparation time, they should have been working
on the project. They said that they should have paid more attention to the
scoring guide because everything they needed to know was spelled out for
them. Still another person told them they needed to function as a group
instead of everyone trying to get his own way.
Giving students a voice
Another important factor in developing a classroom community is giving my
students a voice and the power to help determine what happens. In the case
of the rules project, my students gave the unprepared group feedback that,
had I delivered it, would have gone in one ear and out the other. Hopefully
the advice-givers are beginning to feel as if they are partners in setting
the standards of achievement and behavior in my classroom. As my students
begin to feel ownership in their community and the power to make a difference,
they will be more likely to be active, positive participants in that community.
Modeling proactive behavior
Finally, I know that if I want my students to be more proactive and less
reactive, I am going to have to do a better job of modeling that for them.
Last Tuesday when "John" likened another student to a dairy product,
I sent him to the corner, angry that he had disrupted my class in such a
manner. To my credit I did talk with him just a few minutes later to find
out what had provoked his outburst, but in the meantime I had a child who
was not only not engaged in the business of learning but who also felt unheard
and alienated from the group.
I wish that instead of banishing him to the corner I had told him that although
I was impressed with his appropriate use of alliteration, I found the manner
in which he expressed his irritation with the other student inappropriate.
Maybe the class could have suggested other ways of handling the problem.
Maybe I would have found out sooner that the boy he had insulted had been
quietly badgering him all day long.
But I can't go back to last Tuesday to change my actions. All I can do is
try to keep my head in the game and think about the consequences of my actions
before I say or do something that may cause a member of our community to
feel like an outcast.
I suppose I'm not as far away from creating a strong community with my students
as I thought when I sat down to write this. In spite of our many challenges,
we have already taken many steps forward. The key for me is not only recognizing
how much further we have to go, but also celebrating what we have achieved
so far.
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Comments
Hi Ellen,
Your entry made me both laugh and feel like crying. I miss my kids! Reading
your words, or rather your retelling of their words, brought your class
to life for me.
My heart goes out to you and your efforts to build community. Don't give
up -- they need you and you're absolutely right, they're just kids.
This summer I tried a new team building activity in my summer program that
worked really well. Here goes: I put the kids in groups and gave each group
two pieces of chart paper and markers. I asked them to brainstorm the good
qualities of Tom & Tina Teammate. ( I know it's corny, but I like alliteration,
like the cheeseman does!) After they brainstormed and shared in their group,
they selected their top 5 qualities. Next, they drew a gingerbread outline
and drew symbols on their body outlines to represent the winning qualities.
Finally, we posted the drawings and someone from each group presented their
group's poster.
It was really powerful! Every group had used a heart to show the importance
of caring among team members. We left the posters up throughout the 3 week
program. It was inspirational!
I think the most important thing I learned was that you can't take shortcuts;
you have to work on building community continually. I think you've already
learned that lesson. Keep up the good work and the great writing!
Deb Bambino
Deb,
I'm glad you enjoyed my entry. I think I told everyone who would listen
to me (and some who wouldn't!) about what that child had said. One of my
favorite things about my kids is the way they use language...many of them
are so expressive. We're working on channeling that talent!
I love your team building activity! Since we're getting ready to start our
first unit complete with research pods, your suggestion couldn't have come
at a better time. My kids will love it!
Have an excellent week, and as always, thank you for the feedback!
Ellen
Hi Ellen,
I'm enjoying reading your reflections and your soul-searching approach
to creating a peaceful classroom community. I have had similar experiences
so decided to bring in one of those large fake trees which we decorated
with doves during a peace ceremony. The students read poetry about the importance
of treating others with respect and poetry about themselves. We wrote a
four
line class poem to include in our peace packet. I lit a candle and sprayed
the tree with this anti- stress oil and then placed the tree outside our
classroom. I brought in a box and put post-it notes and a pencil inside
and placed it under the peace tree.
Before they come into the room, they place their problems inside the box
so that their problems will not interfere with others' learning or my teaching.
They touch a leaf of the tree as they come in. They seem to be enjoying
the ritual and the problems in the clasrom have decreased. I remind them
daily that we will learn in a peaceful environment.
We bring in the box and address their problem, if they choose, during homebase.
We took pictures of our classroom ceremony and hung the pictures near the
tree and wrote a sign to visitors to our classroom to please touch our
peace tree.
I have used tables for 15 years but have a few desks in the room for those
students who need time away from the group.
Maggie Hagan