Knock, knock...
When reading the title of this week’s blog, did your brain automaticallyreply “Who’s there”? If so, you have a tell. You work with elementary-age children, an agethat we might laughingly refer to as the sensitive period for knock-knock jokes. As children develop a more nuancedunderstanding of language and vocabulary, this kind of humor really resonateswith them. My dad used to rate jokes ona scale of groaners. If the joke was simplistic – if he could seethe punch line coming – it was a 1-groaner. The more unexpected and the more the punchline tickled his brain, the higher the rating. It was a rare and treasured moment when a joke produced an authenticbelly-laugh, followed by, “Thatwas a 4-groaner!”
All humor aside, this is the time of year when children are essentiallyknocking at the door of our classrooms, establishing membership in thecommunity, and adults are trying to ascertain who exactly is coming in throughthe door. We begin this process withice-breaker games in the first few days – games to help children and adultsalike get to know one another. Engagingchildren in individual assessments of skills leads to some preliminary guessesat which lessons will best match the child’s interests, needs, andability. Gradually, with these and otheractivities, an impression of who the child is begins to emerge.
Carving out time for observation in these early days canseem an impossible task; looking at it as an investment in the community thatyou are building can help elevate its importance. Can you take 10 minutes after a large grouplesson with an open-ended follow-up? Another 10 minutes after morning meeting and before beginningassessments? Can you observe while onplayground duty? A few minutes here andthere can add up to a lot!
I advocate starting a card file, with one card for each child in the class, recording key observations and speculations. All adults who are in the room at some point in the day (assistants, specialists) can contribute to the data gathering. Not only will this help identify children who might be slipping off your radar, children for whom it may take a bit more intention and possible gentle TLC to tease out their passions, but also it gives you a big leg up on preparing for your first contact with parents! See how much you know or suspect about each child!
Name:
Works with:
Eats with:
Plays with:
Favored works/subjects/activities:
Less favored works/subjects/activities:
Avoided works/subjects/activities:
Ability to choose work:
Suspected preferred learningmodality/modalities:
Passions and Obsessions:
Special interests/skills:
After school activities:
Previous classroom:
Aspirations for this year:
P.S. How many of these questions could these children answer about you? Have you shared your favorites, your passions, and your obsessions? Sometimes the best way to encourage someone to open up is to model openness!
“The power of getting to know one another is so immense, eclipsed only by first getting to know ourselves.”
-Bryant McGill, Voice of Reason