Lessons From 6 Year Olds | Vietnam
Last week I was standing in the hallway at a parent teacher conference of my 3rd graders waiting for the homeroom teacher to be done presenting. I was nervous because this class is extremely misbehaved but the parents are highly demanding and expect excellence for their students who won't even pay attention. I was anxious to go in to talk and just agitated that I was there in the first place. I looked down the hallway and saw one of my 1st graders walking down with his sister and a puppy. He saw me and had a huge grin on his face. He pulled up his shoulders in excitement and said "Hello!" when he walked by. I smiled wide and waved and asked how he was. "I'm fine!" He walked past two or three more times and each time he raised his shoulders in pure excitement and grinned at me. I suddenly was no longer very nervous about those parents. Because truthfully I'm not there for them, I'm there for that little boy.
When I was interviewing for jobs one of my go to lines was how I wanted to learn from children because I thought they had a lot to teach me. I thought it would be affirming for the interviewer to hear that I was willing to also learn from children. But what I said was more than just a way to land a job. I meant it. I've found in my time working with children that they have this openness to life and live it in such a way that it is full of joy and love. I've been watching my 120 1st grade students to see what I can learn from them. These children can't weigh more than 50 pounds and are no taller than my belly button but they know something I don't: how to live a full life. And so in the last six weeks my 120 1st graders have taught me more than I have probably taught them.
They've taught me to not take oneself too seriously.
I came into class thinking I had to be strict and take it very seriously because this was now my job. But what I quickly learned is that my kids don't want me to be serious. Of course we learn English and I teach them vocab, grammar, and phonics but we also have a lot of fun. I usually play a song in the morning. One of their favorites is "What's Your Name?" Everyone really gets into it and is dancing and singing along. They're not worried about how their voice sounds or if they look ridiculous waving their hands and shaking their hips to the song. They are just having fun. When I start to take things too seriously they quickly remind me that being light hearted is far superior and honestly just more fun.
They've taught me to really feel.
I think there is something beautiful about how children feel emotions. There is no barrier to their true feelings. Whatever emotion it is, they feel it then and there with no filter. Perhaps this can be annoying or a nuisance if let's say you're in a public place with a kid. However, I think there's something special in the raw power of feelings. My students feel their sadness, anger, happiness, and embarrassment very presently. They feel it, they submerge themselves in it for a brief time, and then they move on. Feelings flow so freely in and out of them. I don't know the last time I let feelings flow freely in and out of me while also deeply feeling the emotion. Feeling your emotions is important and healthy. I think 6 year olds know that.
They've taught me to be apologetically yourself.
There is a boy in one of my classes who definitely has some type of attention disorder and is slightly different. He is constantly talking and standing up although I don't think he realizes it. But he's smart and knows all the answers to my questions. He never apologizes for standing up or wanting to play in every game. He's just being himself and pays no attention to what others think of him. As we get older we start to conform ourselves to the opinions and judgments of others. When you're 6 you don't care if other people laugh at you or poke fun. You do it right back and keep on being yourself. Why do we stop being the true person we are? I wish I could be more like that little boy.
They've taught me to take great joy in the small things.
For classroom management I work on a star system. The students are divided into teams and get stars for sitting nicely, answering correctly, and winning the games. It is an incredible tool for gaining control of the room when they get rowdy. At the end of class we all count up together how many stars each team has. When we finish I say "And it's Team...." and the winning team goes bananas. They literally jump up and down screaming that they won. What did they win? A high five, a double fist bump, or a bop on the head from my squeaky hammer. However, you would think I gave them ice cream for a month the way they react. They rejoice in this tiny victory and the high five or fist bump, which usually turns into them putting their head to my fist, is the greatest reward I could give them. They are constantly accepting the joy in the small moments in life.
They've taught me to giggle.
Because giggling is good for the soul.
I meant what I said when I told my boss I wanted to learn from children. I believe they hold keys to a joyful life. They obviously don't know that and that innocence makes it all the more beautiful to me. Sometimes 120 6 year olds crush me in a day and sometimes they make me smile very wide. But regardless of how they behaved or how the lesson went, I seem to always learn something if I just pay attention.
When I was interviewing for jobs one of my go to lines was how I wanted to learn from children because I thought they had a lot to teach me. I thought it would be affirming for the interviewer to hear that I was willing to also learn from children. But what I said was more than just a way to land a job. I meant it. I've found in my time working with children that they have this openness to life and live it in such a way that it is full of joy and love. I've been watching my 120 1st grade students to see what I can learn from them. These children can't weigh more than 50 pounds and are no taller than my belly button but they know something I don't: how to live a full life. And so in the last six weeks my 120 1st graders have taught me more than I have probably taught them.
I came into class thinking I had to be strict and take it very seriously because this was now my job. But what I quickly learned is that my kids don't want me to be serious. Of course we learn English and I teach them vocab, grammar, and phonics but we also have a lot of fun. I usually play a song in the morning. One of their favorites is "What's Your Name?" Everyone really gets into it and is dancing and singing along. They're not worried about how their voice sounds or if they look ridiculous waving their hands and shaking their hips to the song. They are just having fun. When I start to take things too seriously they quickly remind me that being light hearted is far superior and honestly just more fun.
They've taught me to really feel.
I think there is something beautiful about how children feel emotions. There is no barrier to their true feelings. Whatever emotion it is, they feel it then and there with no filter. Perhaps this can be annoying or a nuisance if let's say you're in a public place with a kid. However, I think there's something special in the raw power of feelings. My students feel their sadness, anger, happiness, and embarrassment very presently. They feel it, they submerge themselves in it for a brief time, and then they move on. Feelings flow so freely in and out of them. I don't know the last time I let feelings flow freely in and out of me while also deeply feeling the emotion. Feeling your emotions is important and healthy. I think 6 year olds know that.
They've taught me to be apologetically yourself.
There is a boy in one of my classes who definitely has some type of attention disorder and is slightly different. He is constantly talking and standing up although I don't think he realizes it. But he's smart and knows all the answers to my questions. He never apologizes for standing up or wanting to play in every game. He's just being himself and pays no attention to what others think of him. As we get older we start to conform ourselves to the opinions and judgments of others. When you're 6 you don't care if other people laugh at you or poke fun. You do it right back and keep on being yourself. Why do we stop being the true person we are? I wish I could be more like that little boy.
They've taught me to take great joy in the small things.
For classroom management I work on a star system. The students are divided into teams and get stars for sitting nicely, answering correctly, and winning the games. It is an incredible tool for gaining control of the room when they get rowdy. At the end of class we all count up together how many stars each team has. When we finish I say "And it's Team...." and the winning team goes bananas. They literally jump up and down screaming that they won. What did they win? A high five, a double fist bump, or a bop on the head from my squeaky hammer. However, you would think I gave them ice cream for a month the way they react. They rejoice in this tiny victory and the high five or fist bump, which usually turns into them putting their head to my fist, is the greatest reward I could give them. They are constantly accepting the joy in the small moments in life.
They've taught me to giggle.
Because giggling is good for the soul.
I meant what I said when I told my boss I wanted to learn from children. I believe they hold keys to a joyful life. They obviously don't know that and that innocence makes it all the more beautiful to me. Sometimes 120 6 year olds crush me in a day and sometimes they make me smile very wide. But regardless of how they behaved or how the lesson went, I seem to always learn something if I just pay attention.
A beautiful bog of self awareness. Its an enormous blessing to come to this self realization.
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