Skip to main content

Well, Duh.

 Friday afternoon, I walked back into my classroom to a scene that is not unusual in any group of young children. One child had just hit another (both three years old), attempting to get a coveted toy. I walked over to the two, and as I always do, I looked at the crying child who had been hit and said, "Wow, it looks like Y is really hurting."

Then, I recognized that wasn't the whole picture, and looked at the child who had hit (this time), who was already averting their eyes, and said, "It looks like A is hurting too."

A turned around, stunned at my ability to perceive what was obvious to them. This time, at least. "Yeah!" They exclaimed.

Y stopped crying and looked at A. I offered hugs to both, and attempted to sportscast what I saw. "A wanted that toy, and Y had it! Y didn't want to be hit."

A looked at Y, and said, "Yeah, and I really wanted the truck, but I didn't want to hurt you."

Both children found a spot in my lap, and Y volunteered, unprompted, "You can have it when I'm done!"

They resumed play, and Y indeed passed the toy over after a few more minutes of use, completely without adult involvement or peer reminder.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ornamental People

Imagine you're in bed, about to fall asleep. Your significant other is cuddled up to you (or on the other side of the bed, maybe you prefer a little space), your blankets are right where you need them, and you can barely keep your eyes open; not that you want to. Suddenly, your neighbor walks in. You're on good terms with your neighbor, but they're not your best friend or anything. Why are they in your room? Even more to the point, why are they stroking your hair and telling you how old and fat you're getting? This is rapidly encroaching on illegal, right? Why is this socially acceptable to do to people who can't speak up to protest? Why are there people who feel the need to pick up, pat the head, or tickle the feet of every small child they encounter? Why are strangers more willing to touch a strange baby than a strange dog? It seems to come back to the image of the child, and the idea that they are less human and more ornamental. It takes a perspective shi...
Post a Comment
Read more

I Wonder ...

'I wonder..." suggests that the child can experiment and problem solve and help the adult facilitator find a solution. "I wonder..." tells the child "I don't have it all figured out either" "I wonder"... gifts the adult the opportunity to hear the child's hypotheses about the world around them. "I wonder..." Offers suggestions and assistance without taking the shortcut of solving a problem for a child. My resolution in 2016 is to wonder more, and advise less. To step back and let them work it out. To allow them to wonder as well, with or without an end goal.
Post a Comment
Read more

Ceci n'est pas un Octopus

I don't need to rally against typical preschool crafts, many   writers and satirists  and educators have taken up that cry for me. I try to take a balanced view- what are we trying to teach? And what are the children learning? A search for "octopus craft preschool" turns up many results like these: (credit to iheartcraftythings.com) Many are billed as "fine motor practice", "letter O recognition", and "numeracy" either on the initial webpage or in the notes of Pinterest pinners. And these are worthwhile goals! But what do the children learn about octopuses? What did they do to get roped in here? They're cute and all... but they don't really have much in common with this fella; I would like to present you all with a wonderful gift I received recently. A hand made octopus that exercised fine motor skills, required understanding of numeracy, and involved some processing of what exactly an octopus IS: Okay, this doesn't l...
1 comment
Read more