Something I am passionate about is direct instruction on social skills, empathy, and kindness. These are all things that come naturally to most, but need refinement and direct acknowledgment throughout the years. Our world is, at times, a hard place to grow up tenderly. As a teacher, it is my greatest joy and feeling of success being able to see my students become compassionate towards one another and form relationships that are truly meaningful. I pride myself on the fact that, if nothing else, my students will leave EVERY day having learned yet again how much I truly love them and expect that they love one another. I never refer to it as "my" classroom; it is ours. It is not "my" schedule; it is our schedule. It is not "my" rules; it is our rules. Giving them partial ownership over this demands a sense of responsibility and respect. This creates an environment where learning is valued and expected.
As most 5-6 year olds do, our class had a rough day last week. I was grumpy. They were grumpy. We hit the mid-year slump, and we were all feeling it. I noticed during our rainy day indoor recess that they were arguing and frustrated with one another over meaningless things. While we have problems every once in a while, it is very uncommon for our class to not get along.
I had them all clean up and was frustrated at the time by this behavior. I decided at the last minute to change my writing lesson plan to incorporate direct instruction on kindness. We discussed the behaviors I had seen, and what made them upsetting to me. I then told the kids that we would not be continuing our narrative writing that day, but that we would be doing secret friendship writing instead.
Here's how it worked:
1. I took all of their pictures off my center chart, and mixed them up.
2. I had each student come up, and I gave them a random picture. I purposely did not give students their "best" friend, but other than that, it was random.
3. They had to come up with a complete sentence (2-3 if time allowed) telling me why they consider that person a kind friend.
4. We read them aloud to each other and learned to give and accept compliments.
While I figured that most of them would come up with the generic "she is nice", I was not expecting the results I got. It was by far some of the best writing they had done (BECAUSE IT WAS MEANINGFUL), and I actually learned a few stories I didn't know about before.
Enjoy...
Avery to Joseph: Joseph is very kind. Joseph is very fun to play with. Joseph is very funny.
Joseph to Oliver: Oliver is the kindest person in the classroom. Oliver also gave me a hand in math. Oliver is good in math.
Olivia to Valentina: I like Valentina because she is nice and she plays with every one at recess if they don't have anybody.
Nora to RJ: RJ makes me have fun. RJ makes me laugh.
RJ to Nora: Nora is nice because she makes me laugh. She is goofy.
Valentina to Isaac: Isaac is really kind. I love Isaac. I love to get a sleepover.
Isaac to Arriana: Arriana is smiling always. Arriana is nice. Arriana is beautiful.
Lily to Avery: Avery is goofy and she makes me laugh. She makes me smile.
Oliver to Ryan: I like Ryan. He is funny. He is kind to me. He is kind and nice. He is cute. He is nice and sits with me.
Audrey to Lily: I like Lily because she is cool and sweet. She is good at reading chapter books and I love Lily.
Kendall to Owen: Owen is so nice. Owen makes me laugh. Owen is fun to play with. Owen is my best friend.
Owen to Evie-Mae: Evie-Mae is a kind friend. Evie-Mae is very nice.
Brendyn to Lela: Lela you are nice because you are coming to my birthday party. So nice. She dances nice!
Arriana to Brendyn: I love Brendyn because he is the best. Brendyn makes me laugh. He is silly. Brendyn makes me smile. Brendyn is fun. Brendyn is really funny. Brendyn makes me talk to him.
Evie-Mae to Logan: Logan is really funny because he does funny dance moves. He is really fun to play with outside because I like to play "Black Cats".
Ryan to Audrey: Audrey is a kind friend and is very fun to play with on the playground.
Lela to Kendall: Kendall is a sweet friend and I sit next to her at lunch. Kendall is kind.
Logan to Juliet: I like Juliet because she gave me a gold gear.
**(This was a story I hadn't heard... Logan wanted to draw a gear on a robot, but didn't know how. Juliet helped him draw one and cut it out. He then said that he wished it was gold, but that they didn't have a gold crayon. Juliet took it home, and colored it gold, then brought it to him the next morning. This entire thing took place without me ever being made aware.)
Juliet to Olivia: Olivia is funny and she is kind. Olivia is playful.
I am not saying that doing a writing assignment can change a person's personality by any means, but I can confidently say that the sense of family and love in our room is palpable. These kids are genuinely concerned for each other when they are sick or hurt. They comfort each other. They include one another. They accept each other's differences with an open mind and heart. They forgive.
If that is the only thing they learn this year, I would consider it a success. I haven't seen many hearts the size of theirs, and I am SO grateful I get to witness and guide them on this journey to becoming INCREDIBLE human beings. <3 Let's all continue praising this acceptance and love for one another. Compassion and empathy start at a very young age, and I think these little wild things are going to change the world because of it. :)
"Inside all of us is a wild thing." (and with these wild hearts, I can only hope that is true!)
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