Friday, January 12, 2018

Damage or Opportunity

A matching game...

It seems like this political age is having an extremely negative effect on our children. Students are very impressionable. They are always eavesdropping, and hearing conversations on television, radio, and in person. They are quick to align their opinions with those of cared-for adults. It behooves us, as grown-ups, to help children navigate through and beyond the news. More than ever, I sometimes feel like forming a protective bubble around the children that I know. And, in the bubble, we strive for "Level 6 Behavior". A Level 5 person respects others. But, a Level 6 person goes even further, by having a personal ethical code and living by that code. He/She does what is right and true, because that is the kind of person that he/she strives to become.

It's also important for students to make deep connections with their classmates. This is the glue that holds communities together. Valuing and respecting differences needs to be explicitly taught, especially when racist rhetoric is daily paraded before us. Lately, I've watched children draw Trump cartoons, or write mean notes. I overhear conversations that would have never happened a few years ago, because now it's okay to just cut loose, and "speak your mind". Lying is also becoming normal. In all of my years teaching, I've noticed that kids sometimes lie about little things, but never about large, important issues. They are generally truthful. I feel concerned that there will soon be an onslaught of dishonesty, because lying is being modeled for them on a daily basis. We've become like herds of sheep, not knowing who to follow, or what to believe, because honesty has disappeared.

Thinking and reasoning skills are going to help us all in this day and age. Asking, "Why do you think that?" is key. "Is that a fact, or is that an opinion?" We need to be careful and thoughtful about what exactly we expose our children to... Maybe current events can be a model for what we want our children and ourselves to be. There have been many occasions, during the past year, when I have felt that I must examine my beliefs, and take a stand.

I am hoping to shepherd the students in my classroom through these turbulent times. It concerns me daily.


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