“You can’t hide.”

“You have to make eye-contact with everyone.”

“You have to sit so close to others.”

“When you talk, all eyes are on you.”

Yesterday, our discussion about community wrapped up with a final question, “Should classrooms be a community.” In general, the kids thought, “yes.” But the discussion also meandered down the path of though all classrooms are a community, not all classroom communities are the same. Some are healthy, and some are…well, not healthy. We explored reasons for this from the teacher to the arrangement of the room. It’s the latter that elicited the responses above.

I asked my kiddos how many of them were not excited about the desk arrangement when they walked in yesterday. Many hands went up. And with the hands, came the explanations. In short, the arrangement placed them outside their comfort zones, which in most classrooms has taken the form of rows where they stare at the back of someone’s head and speak at the teacher or into the air. It’s what they’re accustomed to; it’s what they’ve been conditioned to expect and call comfort. I offer different. And by the end of the conversation about community, the kids came to understand that I am intentional about the different I offer. I want a healthy classroom community, and that doesn’t happen by accident. So, I placed the kids in such a way that they had to see, they had to acknowledge, they had to engage with each other. For many, it was the first time. For all, it won’t be the last time. Community is a yearlong endeavor, and I am in it for the long haul.

Lines

We didn’t get too far into our “Meet Me” presentations yesterday, but even so, I learned a lot about my kids in a short while, and by the end of the day Friday, I will know much about each of them. But of all the things I learned yesterday, maybe the most important thing I learned was where the lines exist. In particular, where the line for each exists when it comes to sharing, speaking publicly. Of course, and not unexpectedly, most don’t want to share/speak, especially in a new environment, but they get over it and share anyway. A few relish it. I can see the sparkle in their eyes as they volunteer to go first. And another few, shut down. And it is from here where I am first put to the test. Will I budge? Will I see and hear their anxiety? Will I show empathy to the young lady with shaky tears sitting directly to my right, telling me she can’t do this? Of course. Of course, I will. The last thing I am going to do on day one is hold the line on something as scary as public speaking. Such lines are simply scribbles in the sand. They are not hard boundaries that won’t budge. I saw. I heard. I reassured with a pat on the shoulder and a promise that I would never make her do something that she doesn’t want to do. But, ya know, though it may not be the full-meal deal, I believe she will give it a shot. It’s up to her. And in the meantime, I will remember and revisit the lines I drew in the sand this summer on the Washington coast, for they are a promise, a promise to kids that I understand that each has her way, and I can help her find it.

Today’s Trail

Along today’s trail we will…

…begin with Smiles and Frowns.

…get our school pictures taken (kids get them taken during LA)

…complete our “Meet Me” questionnaires and/or create our activity cards.

…share “Meet Me’s” if time allows.

…end with a Sappy Sy Rhyme.

Happy Thursday, all. FYI, I started a YouTube channel for my Sappy Sy Rhymes. Link below. Have a great day.

Do. Reflect. Do Better.