EDUCATIONAL VIcNETrEs CREATED FOR TEACHERS or YOUNG CHILDREN, * ~ Thesis for the Degree of Ph. I). ‘ MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY ROBERT BABGOCK * ’ if if i * Illll'lllllll'“lls'lll“a III l .JBRARY 3 1293 00672 5000 Michigan State University JflESlb This is to certify that the thesis entitled EDUCATIONAL VIGNETTES CREATED FOR TEACHERS OF YOUNG CHILDREN. presented by Robert Babcock has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for Ph .D . degree in Education I\ A /Q \DCXQ V~ Q aux—v Major professor 0-7639 FEB 2 7 2002 041 9 02 EDUCATIONAL VIGNETTES CREATED FOR TEACHERS OF YOUNG CHILDREN BY Robert Babcock Even Plants Like Music Art sat in the corner for about 5 minutes every morning and afternoon. He was carrying on a scientific experiment. Mrs. Rodriguez had slipped enough impatiens plants so every child in her grade 3 classroom who wanted one could nave his own plant. Some children labeled theirs: some decorated the pots; some metered the water they gave their plants. Art showered his with muSic. He sang, "Good morning, plant“ when he arrived. He sang. "Good night, plant" when he left in the afternoon. And he hummed to it every morning and afternoon. Toward the middle of the third week, it was apparent that Art's plant was the healthiest in the room. It was thriVing and blooming. Art claimed it was because the plant liked music. He didn't know that plant breathing pores enlarge when exposed to music. He just/knew his 0' plant liked mu51c. The study investigated the desirability of educa— tional vignettes, such as the sample shown above, by tEachers of young children., Desirability is defined as Robert Babcock an elementary school person requesting additional vignettes after reading a sample vignette. Non—desirability is de- fined as an elementary school person not requesting addi— tional vignettes after having read a sample vignette. The study is written in a three-section format; the first section states a position on personal perception. The second section contains a portfolio of educational vignettes. The third section describes the study, reports the results, and offers suggestions for subsequent inquiries into the use of educational vignettes. The educational vignettes were desirable to 24 of 43 elementary school personnel involved in the study. The study also reports data concerning individual reading schedules, individual preferences among the sample vignettes, and individual preferences regarding the format of the sample vignettes. Educational vignettes of the type used in this study hold promise as a vehicle for the presentation of school—related ideas to teachers of young children. EDUCATIONAL VIGNETTES CREATED FOR TEACHERS OF YOUNG CHILDREN BY Robert Babcock A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Secondary Education and Curriculum 1972 CDCopyright by ROBERT BABCOCK 1972 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS No man is an island. Certainly not one who is writing a dissertation. Help and encouragement come from all the friends who touch us. Dr. Dale Adam, Dr. Charles Blackman, Dr. Eileen Earhart, Dr. Howard Hickey, and Dr. Perry Lanier comprised the guidance committee. Their ever present concern and friendly counsel brightened the humorless days. Yvonne and Susie, wife and daughter respectively, were confidants in every phase of the endeavor. Dr. William Cole patiently listened and reacted to all queries. Richard Armstrong and Porter Marsa offered sustenance in absentia. Marcia Lester illustrated the vignettes. Finally, there are the children upon whom the vignettes are based. Without the children, there would be no vignettes. Nor would there be schools. In fact, there wouldn't be much of anything. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Section I The Nature of Personal Perception . . . . Section II Portfolio of Educational Vignettes . . . Section III The Desirability of Educational Vignettes Elementary School Personnel . . . . . . . iv by Page 102 PREFACE The dissertation, Educational Vignettes Created for Teachers of Young Children, is written in three sections. The sequence of sections follows a chronolog- ical order. The first section is a treatise concerning the nature of personal perception. Three types of data sources are cited. People are the first data source. Representa— tive samples of their views are given. Authors are the second data source mentioned. Representative works of various authors are listed. Personal experiences are the third type of data source noted. Representative incidents of personal eXperiences are described. The position tract on the nature of personal perception introduces the con— cepts of personal perception point and personal growth style. Concluding the first section is an application of the given position to educational vignettes. The second section is a portfolio of educational vignettes. All the vignettes in the section are of the specific type used in this study. The third section describes the study. Beginning with an operational definition of educational vignettes, the third section incorporates the question studied, the procedures used, and a report of the data collected. The section mentions only those similar works whose vignettes closely parallel the type of vignette used in this study. Closing the third section are several possibilities for enlarging the use of educational vignettes. The three-section format was purposely used. The format urges the reader to progress through the same se— Clarity of purpose and quence of stages as did the study. procedure for the reader were actively sought with the use of the three section format. Vi SECTION I THE NATURE OF PERSONAL PERCEPTION Background Ultimately, most writings reflect their author's View regarding the nature of man. Playwrights reflect in their plays their opinions of man. Novelists tell in story form their opinions of the conditions of man. Even more objective writings sometimes reveal a particular vision of man and his makings. In psychology, those persons who base themselves in psychoanalysis pursue the general idea that man is an irrational being who, more or less, seeks to become ra— tional. Psychologists whose foundations are stimulus- response theories tend to view man as a mechanism respond- ing to his surroundings. Psychologists who term themselves humanistic psychologists express the position of man as a being with self—generating growth. Perceptual psycholo— gists generally belong to the humanist group. The basic tenet of perceptual psychology is that a person acts in accordance with his perceptions at the moment of action. Perceptions incorporate the needs, values, affections, cognitions, experiences, and physical capabilities of a person into that person's behavior at the moment of behaving. The all—inclusive perceptions are part and parcel of the ways in which man both determines and seeks his goals. Man charts his own course toward his own goals as a result of his perceptions, not in spite of them. He seeks his own version of reality. The resulting behavior is the visible person, for it is the manifestation of the whole person. Few persons account for a personal position result— ing from one or two dramatic occurrences. Nor do many persons recognize one particular source as exemplifying exactly their view. In like manner, many people, sources, and experiences have conglomerated into the stance to be taken here. Even those people who have made an impact would probably find some cause to wonder about the appli— cation of their persuasion. Just as the vignettes in this study are intended to be used relative to each reader's perceptions of them, so have the sources of the opinions expressed been subject to an individual's perception. Thus, the opinions are gleanings from many people, sources, and experiences as seen from the perspective of one person. Among the people who have been influential in the formation of the position stated here are Gerald Davis and Michael Pasternak. Gerald Davis, of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, uses what he calls "computing." To compute, what— ever one person tries to do should be recognizable and have potential for another person. To use a term such as feline with a 3-year—old child is seldom computable for the 3-year—old. On the other hand, to use kitty-kat when speaking to a research zoologist is seldom computable, but at the opposite end of the spectrum. Computability has application in most phases of humanity. Social connec— tions, subject-matter in schools, and Openness in everyday life all should be computable with the other person. Michael Pasternak, of East Lansing, Michigan, re— plies, "Me," when asked who he is. By trying to be only oneself, acceptance is gained in the multitude of changes that most every person experiences day-by—day and minute— by-minute. His definition of learning is being. He urges that life be experienced while seeking growth from each and every happening. Goals are present, but so are the means of seeking the goals. By sifting the growth stuff from voyages toward the goal, a person is better able to exist and to benefit from the goal when it is reached. To do otherwise is wasting valuable sources of personal en- richment. Various authors have influenced the position taken here. While the list that follows is not meant to be all inclusive, it does list samples of the various authors' writings. Ausubel, David P. Facilitating Meaningful Verbal Learning in the Classroom. Arithmetic Teacher, February, 1968. Axline, Virginia M. Dibs in Search of Self. New York: Ballantine Books, Inc. 1964. r Hymes, James K., Jr. A Child Development Point of View. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice—Hall, Inc., 1955. Kelley, Earle C. Education for What is Real. New York: Harper and Row, 1947. Maslow, Abraham. Perceiving, Behaving, Becoming. 1962 Yearbook of ASCD Washington, D.C., 1962. Rogers, Carl W. On Becoming a Person. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1970. Werthheimer, Max. Productive Thinking. New York: Harper and Row, 1959. Wright, Milton. What's Funny and Why. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1939. The following two instances exemplify the input data from the area of personal experiences. Nearly 150 parents had watched a school play. Shakespeare's Hamlet was the presentation. After the final curtain, parents milled around the school auditorium, remarking on how well their children had performed. As the platitudes slowed down, several parents began to discuss the character of Hamlet. One parent said Hamlet was in— decisive, because he hesitated when considering killing Claudius. Another parent remarked that Hamlet was venge— ful, that he went to great lengths to revenge the death of his father. Still a third parent saw Hamlet as a hero, willing to give even his life for the sake of his country. Another parent maintained it was only a play, with Hamlet only a character in the play, so any analysis of the personality of Hamlet was futile. Terry's family belonged to a religious persuasion that disapproved of saluting the American flag, celebrating Christmas and attending parties. Terry sat quietly while her classmates saluted the flag. Terry was absent on the days when parties were scheduled. As her school began preparing for the annual Christmas carol program, Terry asked if she could announce the various songs during the song—fest. Terry's teacher, surprised at the request, phoned Terry's mother. The mother commented that Terry understood the prevailing conditions and should plan her actions accordingly. Terry did announce the Christmas program. Later, her mother confided to the teacher that she and Terry often had different views of the everyday applications of the family persuasion. Both examples show a variance in the perceptions of people. Four parents had seen the same play. Yet, all four had different versions of the real Hamlet. In Terry's case, while the family was united on certain beliefs, Terry and her mother differed in the application of a particular principle. In both cases, differing percep— tions directed the actions of the people involved. Actions took the form of expressing an opinion in one example and announcing a program in the other. Of the people involved in the examples, rightness or wrongness is not at stake. The experential source of data demonstrates that percep- tions of a common experience vary among the people doing the experiencing. The Nature of Personal Perception All persons are individuals. Each person acts in different ways while seeking his own goals, no matter how others seek their goals. Just as ways of seeking vary among individuals, so do the goals vary. Each person has his own goals and ways of seeking them. Both the goals and the ways of reaching them are the result of an individual's perceptions. One person's perceptions may cause him to seek answers to known ques— tions, while another person's quest may be to satisfy a curiosity concerning unknown questions. Still another person may be seeking to justify already present actions. In each case, a solution is found only when that person is ready to recognize it as a solution. Entering into the perceptions of a solution are the feelings, knowledges, and experiences of that individ— ual. At that particular point of his being, the person finds the degree to which he can accept, reject, or remain neutral to an idea. At this spot is his personal percep- tion point. At a person's personal perception point, the person finds his growing edge. There lies consonance, dissonance, or neutrality between himself and the idea. How the person handles the input at his personal perception point is his personal growth style. The concepts of personal perception point and personal growth style are useful in considering the desir- ability of educational vignettes. As a type of idea pres— entation, educational vignettes in this study recognize that personal perception points and personal growth styles vary with the individual reader. Rather than try to dic— tate any particular point and any particular reaction, the educational vignettes are only the presentation of an idea. Whatever is recognized within a certain vignette is a function of that reader's personal perception point. Whatever is done with the perceptions is a function of that person's personal growth style. To be otherwise would be inconsistent with the perceptualist View of the nature of man. In any field, the personal perception points and personal growth styles vary among the practitioners of that field. In education, some teachers are blessed with the ability to enjoy living at their growing edge. How— ever, even those teachers may find an occasional reminder of ideas and incidents in the lives of other teachers to be valuable. Tangible evidence, in the form of educational vignettes, may fill voids before they occur, much as pre- ventative medicine tries to keep well bodies healthy. For other teachers, teaching is a lonely job. Even though a teacher is with many children every day, she may be lonely. Perhaps she forgets the children. Perhaps she lacks someone to encourage her. Perhaps her theory of teaching becomes hazy. Perhaps she needs a private idea session, one in which she can see herself in the satisfac— tions that other teachers have had. Requesting ideas presented in educational vignettes would be a measure of the desirability or undesirability of the vignettes. The applications, non—applications, or neutrality would be a function of her personal perception point and her personal growth style. In teaching, some means of communicating with dif— ferent teachers would be helpful. A gentle idea would benefit many teachers. Presented in educational vignette form, the idea would be, for some, a springboard to greater heights. For other teachers, it would show something to be reached for. For still others, the idea would be of no consequence. Whatever the condition in which the teacher finds herself, educational vignettes would be desirable, undesirable, or neutral, depending on her per— sonal perception point and her personal growth style as she comes upon an educational Vignette. SECTION II PORTFOLIO OF EDUCATIONAL VIGNETTES Believing Children Two very sad grade 4 boys sat waiting for the principal. As they were waiting, one of the boys explained to a visitor that they had helped the milkman remove empty milk cases from the school kitchen. The other boy continued by saying, "We were late getting to our room. And when we told the teacher why we were late, she sent us to the principal. She didn't be- lieve us. Teachers don't believe kids.“ But the principal believed the boys. He shepherded them back to their classroom and asked their teacher to overlook the incident. Upon returning to his office and the visitor, he confided that he believed the boys. He could remember what it was like to be a nine—year—old boy in school. And he could also remember how a boy liked to be near a man who drove a big truck. Even Plants Like Music Art sat in the corner for about 5 minutes every morning and afternoon. He was carrying on a scientific experiment. Mrs. Rodriguez had slipped enough impatiens plants so every child in her grade 3 classroom who wanted one could have his own plant. Some children labeled theirs; some decorated the pots; some metered the water they gave their plants. Art showered his with music. He sang, "Good morning, plant" when he arrived. He sang, "Good night, plant" when he left in the afternoon. And he hummed to it every morning and afternoon. Toward the middle of the third week, it was apparent that Art's plant was the healthiest in the room. It was thriving and blooming. Art claimed it was because the plant liked music. He didn't know that plant breathing pores enlarge when exposed to music. He just knew his plant liked music. ll A Child's Eye: Relativity Most grown—ups have some notion about the meaning of relativity. Many even connect relativity with Einstein. Also, if adults want a more specific meaning, they can find a definition in a dictionary. But, what does a child understand about relativity? During a think session in a grade 5 classroom, Kim explained her version of relativity. "If I'm running in a race and I'm last, it seems so hard to run. But, if I'm leading in the race, it's easy to run. That's relativity." 12 A Deluge of Love "Come here and see what we have in the basket" was the way a visitor was welcomed into a classroom. Sure enough, there in a basket was a wiggly four-week—old puppy. Excitement was high as Luke reached into the basket to get the puppy. As the puppy was placed on the table, nature re— leased a flood. All over arithmetic papers. All over books. All over everything in sight. But, even at this, the teacher's love for children was not dampened. She merely suggested paper towels. Together, the boy and the visitor mopped and wiped the table, books, and puppy. It was hard to tell where the most love was shown -—in the eyes of the teacher, in the eyes of the boy, or on the face of the puppy. 13 Pictures of Thinking Trying to draw a mental picture of how each child thinks is how one teacher described her class. Dennis surrounds the problem with guesses. But each guess is a little closer to his final answer. The secret is to wait until he has arrived via his spiraling path. Jeff checks each of his conclusions, like building a ladder. The straight sides are his forward thoughts. The crossrungs are his justifications. Nancy's thoughts are like playing dominoes. She fondles and fits new ideas into specific places in her plan. Louie builds fences around each idea and sees if the idea can jump the fence. Sometimes he needs help if he gets the fence too high. Each child has his own pattern of thinking. School is urging each child to use his own system instead of some— one else's. 14 Basics Come First An unexpected answer caused a grade 3 teacher to reconsider her method of teaching. She had been trying to explain an arithmetic problem to Billy. She explained that subtraction was the taking away of some parts of a group. However, when she asked Billy if he understood, he answered, "No." So, using a numberline on the chalkboard, she pro- ceeded with a step—by—step explanation of the subtraction process. Upon completion, she again asked Billy if he understood. Billy only squirmed and said no. Again she tried. This time she used addition with a missing number as an example. The result was the same. Billy still replied that he didn't understand. In desperation, she said, "Billy, I've explained subtraction three different ways. Why don't you under- stand?" Shyly, while still squirming, Billy replied, "Be- cause I have to go to the bathroom." 15 A Child's Eye: Real Vague words are not only hard for children to understand, they are also hard for teachers to explain. Some teachers rely on context to imply the meaning. Other teachers remove the vague word to accentuate the meaning. Some common words also cause confusion, as their meaning varies from person to person. Mrs. Stone had problems with the word real. Her way was to ask the children for their personal meaning. Now, Janie was small for her age. And she was a little moody. But Janie's way was always friendly. Janie explained her meaning of the word real.. She said, "Real is not fake. But, it's more than that. It's true and big and earthy and has no sharp points. It's all that rolled into one word: real." \fi 16 j l A Child's Eye: Class Size A conversation between Pam, a fifth grader, and Mrs. Wiley, a visiting teacher, went something like this. Do you have a pet, Pam? Yes, a dog. Do you like your dog? Yes. Do you love your dog? Yes. Do you like your teacher? I think so. Do you love your teacher? No. Well, Pam, what's the difference between loving and liking? Loving is more of liking than liking is. My dog is all my own—-there's just the two of us. In school, the teacher likes us all, but there are so many of us, we never get to really know each other. And you have to know someone before you can love them. 17 Discovery is Hard Work "Our principal is a great guy. He always reminds teachers that schools are meant to benefit children. For instance, our class had an extended recess today. "We had been trying to weigh the gas that is in a circus balloon." The grade 5 teacher speaking continued to tell how children had used balances,spring scales, and weights tied to balloon strings. "We finally started try— ing to put small balloon-fulls of the gas in a jar of water and weigh the whole thing. The idea came from John, who said a pail of water weighed nothing if it was in the river. "The principal happened along and helped find the jars and small balloons. Later, he whispered that discov— ery was hard work, and the kids could use some extra down— time. He suggested forgetting the recess schedule. He said ideas jell better when children aren't pushed too much." .////;> ,‘ y ., \ £_, 4 "L V: g” '- 18 Laundry Bag Teachers She was a perma-press teacher. Always ready for active use, she bounced back after the most unusual hap— penings. Her way was always soft, useful, and timely. The children, recognizing her greatness, used the chance to seek new answers under her guidance. But they never abused her, for children see the benefits of perma— press teachers. They see answers as something to seek by themselves. Questions are to be asked, and life is to be organized by each person in his own way. He was a starched laundry shirt teacher. Every— thing was on schedule. There was no wiggle room for mental explorations of different ideas. School was sterilized and systematic to a fault. Questions were never important, and wrong answers embarrassed children. All children were expected to be the same, in in- terests, abilities, and emotions. Everyone read the same books, enjoyed the same things, and even laughed, on cue, at the same jokes as had last year's children. 19 Results of Time and Attention The skills that receive the most time and attention are the skills that will be learned best. Many schools concentrate on reading skills. In addition to the normal reading program, social studies in these schools is based on reading about something. Science, mathematics, art, and even music are things to be read about. Other schools focus on testing. Children are pre— tested and post—tested. Subjects are built for ease of testing. Games are formed to hide the tests. And kids are measured in every conceivable manner. Some other schools are problem-solving enterprises. In these schools, schedules and procedures are formed to serve children. Reading is how best to obtain meaning from the printed word. Mathematics and science are used to explore a portion of the child's world. The arts and music are experiments in expression. Reading schools probably produce readers; testing schools probably produce test-takers; problem—solving 20 School Can Be Cool It was the last day of school. Children and teachers were finishing packing things away for summer vacation. Dana and Debbie were chatting while sorting encyclopedias. "School was cool this year. Everything we did meant something." "We did a lot of stuff," Dana continued, "but it all fit together. All the work seemed like fun. It was really cool." A comparison of fun and work shows that both are active. Fun has meaning to the person who is in fun, while work has meaning to someone else. Fun is done in enjoyment while work is also in compulsion. Although fun and work are not necessarily opposite, many times meaning and self-direction. help narrow the gap between the two. 21 Supermarket Arithmetic "But my mother subtracts a larger number from a smaller number. And it works," explained Debby to her teacher. While the teacher listened, Debby continued. "She subtracted $33 from $30 when she wrote a check at the supermarket. Then she had $3 less than nothing. So, she went to the bank and put $50 back in her checkbook, and had $47 to spend. My mother said it works like this: 30 - 33 = -3; —3 + 50 = 47." Later, the teacher explained, "Listening is the key to teaching. When I listen, children tell me what they can handle and how they think. And my teaching be- comes very personalized." Debby had been encouraged to confront the structure of mathematics in her own way. When each child is the center of teaching, many novel en ounte 5 seem to happen. 22 A Child's Eye: Children and Adults Have you ever noticed how literal children are? Mrs. Judson had been a teacher for over 20 years. Yet, she continued to set aside a few minutes every day to talk with one or another of her charges. She openly sought to keep herself in touch with the nature of children. Paul was one of her pupils. During a conversation with him, Mrs. Judson asked what adults could do that children couldn't. Paul replied that they could drive cars, watch the late show on T.V., and eat when they wanted to. Mrs. Judson also asked what children could do that adults couldn't do. Paul thought for a minute and then replied, "Kids can put their big toe in their mouth and grown—ups can't." 23 Practical Readiness Readiness is generally accepted as an important notion. It means the time when a person is most apt to be able to do something. And that particular time is always the person's own ready-minute and nobody else's. A grade 3 teacher put readiness at a very earthy level. She reasoned that the time for a child to go to the toilet is when that child is ready. She also reasoned that the child knew the time better than anyone else. And this being the case, the child should just get up and go. Because of many considerations like this, her children saw themselves as important individuals, each with rights and matching responsibilities. 24 Help in the Hall Sending a little girl to the hall is an unusual way to help someone. But a grade 4 teacher did it. While returning to her room, the teacher had seen a child stand- ing next to the door of a nearby room. Out of curiosity, the teacher asked why the little girl was in the hall. "I : dropped a book" was the reply. Determined to do something on returning to her own room, the teacher asked Tammie to go to the hall, with these instructions: "Smile at her; keep her out of any more trouble until it blows over." Tammie did it. She left the classroom, went into the hall, smiled quietly, and shared the isolation. Both Tammie and her teacher knew how to help some- one feel better. They knew that one child understands another child, and generally knows how to share a load. 25 An Act of Love "To love, you really need something to shower it on. And it helps if the something can love in return." So said a first-year teacher as her pupils were returning from lunch. "Watch," she continued, and nodded toward the two cages of gerbils in the corner of the room. Within minutes of the children's return, each of the 7 or 8 gerbils was out of the cage and into the hands of a loving nine-year—old. Each little animal was return— ing the kindness by snuggling contentedly in the hands of a child. It took only a glance to see the giving and re- ceiving of love. Love was being both given and received simultaneously by each. .,4"ri§\3 v 6‘ 26 A Child's Eye: Moment State assessment exams were being taken in a grade 4 room. And one question was bothering many of the chil— dren. What is a moment? ——lS seconds —- 30 seconds --2 minutes -— 50 seconds When children asked about the question, Mrs. Peters answered each the same way. They should check the answer closest to their meaning of the word. After the test was completed and put away, Phil ! confided to Mrs. Peters his meaning of the word. "Moment means different things at different times. It depends whether or not my mother is mad when she says, 'Just a moment.'" $3 "\ J 3 . " \5 k ‘ \ m {f l 27 Flowering Plants "She understands herself. She understands others, especially children. And when I'm discouraged, I Visit her room." The district in which Lucy was a first—year teacher requires principals to attest to each teacher's performance. While a check sheet is generally used, Lucy's principal insisted on written reports of his feelings concerning teachers and their children. During one of the visits a plant was upset. When it crashed to the floor both plant and pot broke. The room fell silent. In a shaky voice, Lucy said, "That was my favorite. But accidents will happen. Let's see if we can save it." Two nine-year-olds tenderly picked up the plant; the principal hurriedly cut a plastic paste jar in half; a girl scurried for some water while several other children made a spot for the repotted plant near the windows. The plant lived. The incident also lived warmly 28 So What? Most of the kids knew Mr. Davis. He had been a teacher at the inner—city school for 3 or 4 years. And that was about as long as his grade 4 children had been in school. And all the children called him Earnie. Earnie was notorious. He thought like most grade 4 kids and knew just how to avoid sticky problems. For example, the first day of the year, a new fam— ily moved into the ghetto. One of their children was in grade 4. On the first school day of the new year, the other \ kids whispered and buzzed about the new boy. Finally, Roy spoke up. "But Earnie, that new kid's white!" Earnie calmly looked at the new boy and then back at Roy. "You're right, Roy. So what?" And that remark ended the color barrier in Roy's room. 29 Steam—powered Air Conditioner Roger was ll years old and nearly 6 feet tall. Last year, he was in a learning disability room, but this year Roger was in a regular grade 5 room. Vince was also a fifth grader. So was Del. During most experiments in science, Vince dampened things. While other children tried to count the drops of water in a one-ounce cup, Vince used an eye dropper for a squirt gun. Roger didn't like reading; it was always about something that didn't matter to him. Mr. Mann, the grade 5 teacher, was a master of direction. When he posted a picture of a huge steam engine close to the boys, things began to happen. Vince read the diagrams and instructions on operat- ing a steam engine. Roger designed a steam engine con— nected to a fan, and listed a soup can, hair dryer, and coat hangers on a materials needed sheet. Del, who was good at assembling things, put it all together. And Mr. Mann had the benefits of air7cooled comfort and happy, competent kids. 'b— . in ~ HAIRDNER Whats and Whys Questions are the saddle blankets of a child's natural curiosity. Questions have long been recognized as indicators of a child's development. Elaborate systems of children's questions are available. But often, the systems are so overpowering for teachers that the children become pawns in the assessment of their own curiosity. Betty Johnson, a third grade teacher, used whats and whys. A "what" question signified one phase of devel- opment; a "why," another phase. And the change from what to why, she called growth. It was her idea growth was as varied as the child and as the subject. Joey asked "what" questions during math. Jim asked "why." And during map-making, the types of questions from each of the boys were reversed. So, when Joey began asking "whys" during math, Mrs. Johnson was sure conceptual growth was occurring in him. "Hf/EM. «is a i 31 Electric Banana Most people agree that the average school child is good at some things, so-so at others, and down right poor at still others. Pam was good at drawing large, bold slogans and at illustrating them. But it was hard for her to write an original story. Chris was an especially able tale spinner, but a person could hardly read his writing. Diana wrote legibly and her script was firm and flowing. It seemed to rest one's eyes to read it. Now, producing a story book for grade one children can be a lot of fun for fifth graders. Especially if they're doing what they're good at. The fly-leaf listed: The Electric Banana Story by Chris Writing by Diana Pictures by Pam 32 Knowing Each Other Most persons grow roots from the closeness of a few people who matter. Mrs. Ward was a teacher who mat- tered to many children. Even teachers who disagreed with her teaching style came to her for advice about children in their own rooms. Mrs. Ward generally had pertinent suggestions. During an after-school staff meeting, Mrs. Ward was asked how she knew so much about so many children. "I try to know children instead of knowing about them. They seem to like this and so do I. I could study them through tests, charts, anecdotals, and observations, but that is less than real. If I'm just myself, then we ‘ can enjoy each other. Then they can know me and I can know them as one person to another. And the vast potential that each child brings wito,-'u seems to surface." // , _ // 2 / _/ /’ Mathematical Climate The challenge of painting the blacktop playground for outdoor games brought out a mixture of people. The children ranged from kindergarten age to grade 7, the adults from young parents to grandparents. Even the principal was present and active. Adults buzzed around seeking chalk, string, game rules, brooms, paint and brushes. Children busily sec— tioned off the blacktop for the different games. They laid out circle games, basketball courts, race courses, hopscotch figures, crooked line walks, square games and shuffleboard courts. Older kids held chalklines; younger kids painted lines. Both ages interpreted the design plans drawn by still other children. How do we make a circle? How do we make a square come out square? How long is a basketball court? Do we need markings for tetherball? Both children and adults, working together, asked and answered questions like these. Upon completion, the blacktop became alive with children. And a mathematical,social, cooperative climate made it possible. 34 1 Waiting Effectively Teaching is doing nothing for five seconds. Better \ still, encouraging thinking is consciously hesitating five seconds before offering an opinion to a pupil's claim. Mr. Bruce was an expert. His five-second pauses were part and parcel of his grade 6 class. His straight l faced pause was his way of asking, "Are you sure?" Ron, who was in Mr. Bruce's room, had been col- lecting dollar-bill-sized pieces of newspaper. He wanted to see the size of one million dollars. At the latest count, he had about ten thousand in a box in the janitor's closet. Late one afternoon, he told Mr. Bruce that the closet was not large enough to hold a million one dollar bills. Typically, Mr. Bruce waited, and before he could say anything, Ron began to explain that the closet would have to hold 99 more boxes like the one with ten thousand in it. Suspending a reply encourages a student to rethink his claim and to justify it to himself. The Secret of Spelling "The secret is to help him at the instant he wants to know." A second grade teacher was explaining her idea of readiness. "Take a time when a youngster asks how to spell a word. That's when he wants to know, so I make the most of it. I write the word on a pad or his paper. On anything he can take with him and refer to as he writes the word." "By writing the word, the child can watch—~that's one pass at it. As he copies it, there are as many more passes at the word as the times he shifts back and forth to his copy of it. And he still has the original if he needs it again." "I never worry about his copying the word. He'll stop when he knows how to spell it. It's easier to know the word than to copy it every time." Why Painted in foot high letters on a poster in the front of the room, the word was by far the most impressive room decoration in a grade five classroom. Most visitors inquired about the reason for the sign. Mrs. Rowe was always ready to explain its several purposes. "It reminds me to consider the cause of a child's actions, to separate symptoms from causes. An over bubbly day in the life of Laurie was a symptom; her dad coming home from Viet Nam is a cause." "Each child's development is aided by his justify— ing things. Stanley said the school flag pole was 33 feet tall. He answered the why by telling me that the shadow ,of the pole was 33 times as long as the shadow cast by his one-foot ruler." "And it reminds me that my actions are open to reason just like anyone else's in the room." 37 Teacher's Pets Although many teachers agree that they have fav- orites, they generally want to keep it from showing. Other teachers also agree they have pets; however, they want it to show as much as possible. For these teachers want all their children to feel as if they were teacher's pet. An experienced grade four teacher regularly had elections for the "Pet of the Week." Selected by the children, the Pet of the Week was the pupil most favored by Mrs. Mix. And after a dozen or so elections, not one pupil had been selected twice. Finally, on the seventeenth week, Bennie was el- ected a second time. This caused Mrs. Mix to be all the more conscious of her actions. She reasoned that if Bennie was elec twice, she must be overlooking someone else. Friday Afternoon at the Movies At least half the school chattered about the banner outside Mr. Walker's room. Today Only: The Big Pearl Added Attraction—- The Big J Sings Friday afternoons were reserved for fun. Kids left Mr. Walker's room before every week—end feeling good about themselves and school. The Big Pearl was of particular interest to them. Nine or ten had read the book as an example of prejudice. So, the movie was exciting for them. Big J was Jim's stage name. He was big for his 12 years, and he had had few successes in school. But he was well-liked and he could mimic popular records to perfection. The other children enjoyed his act. Children feeling good about themselves while learn— ing was Mr. Walker's goal. Coming attraction: The Island of the Blue Dolphin. '\ ‘\ ' is f N 39 ‘ Humor: The Growing Edge ‘ "Did you hear about the car that ran out of gas?" "No, how does it go?" "It doesn't. You have to push it!" Mr. Mollay always had a joke. And it was generally one brought to him by his grade 4 pupils. To the other teachers, some jokes were funny, some were not, and some were so—so. Gary Mollay took much teasing about them. But he was generally asked to tell his daily joke during after—school coffee. Privately, he told a friend his purpose in remem- bering the jokes. "Laughter often shows a level. It may be thinking or safety or a combination of both. Levels change as children grow, and laughter is an indicator. Laughter occurs on the child's growing edge. And so, /"-. /< I 7 ‘ ll laughter is a window in each child's personal world. ,¢¢%%?£§ / / 7”W‘ ‘\\' 40 It Worked for Me School is for children. In fact,school is children. But how does one who holds a belief like this convey it to the rest of the school? One group of three teachers formed a revolutionary cell in order to blaze a change. The cell was called "It Worked for Me." They gathered after school on the day before each faculty meeting, each bringing an idea he had used, and a reason for using it. After each had described his venture to the other two, one idea, reason, and activity was chosen to slide into the staff meeting. But, although they were armed with samples and instructions, the first presentation was a flop. After another mini-presentation at the next staff meeting, slightly more interest was shown. At last, it was a tape cassette that turned the trick. For as the entire staff listened to the recording of a book that a boy who wasn't even supposed to be able to read had made for his sister, the idea of active chil— dren was accepted. 41 Puns The student teacher groaned. Two or three pupils groaned while another child looked puzzled. Hal had mut- tered that he hated spelling. The teacher, Cheryl James, replied, "Oh, you're just having a spell about it." The pun was chuckled at again during lunch when the student teacher and Miss James mentioned the incident. "Of course, I enjoy it," continued Cheryl. "But remember what punning is. It's making remote word asso- ciations. In fact, it's the only linguistic activity that helps develop verbal skills, logical thinking and creative thinking all at the same time. Some kids get the pun and some don't. It depends on the child. But stretching to see them helps them to grow." "And, of course, the atmosphere necessary for puns and jokes to occur one that also encourages children to be natural." 42 Learning by Inquiry "When I answer 'yes,‘ I mean yes. When I answer 'no,' I mean no. When I answer I don't know, I mean I don't know 25 I don‘t want to tell." Using this system of responses, Mrs. Sears proceeded with her inquiry lesson. She rolled a coffee can across the floor. It rolled as one would expect until it stopped. It then rolled back across the room to its starting place. Like magic, questions began popping from the chil- dren. What caused the can to do what it did? The limited responses caused the children to phrase questions so they obtained the most information. The most expert at questioning was Mary Anne. As Mary Anne used questions so a no answer fur— nished her with as much information as a yes answer, she gradually came to a personal conclusion about the action of the coffee can. In fact, the next day she brought a can of her own that would roll in a way similar to the can of Mrs. Sears. And all this came from a grade 3 girl who had spent the two previous years in a "retarded" room. 43 The Case of the Blossoming Child Cathy had an arrangement with her teacher. To- gether, they had agreed on a private signal to be used when Cathy wanted to speak during a discussion. The sig- nal was a head nod. The teacher would call on Cathy only when the signal was given. Early in the year, Cathy rarely nodded. But as the days passed, the nodding slowly increased. Finally during the casting of Hamlet, Cathy nodded and said she would like to read for the part of Queen Gertrude. By considering ways to help children learn to cope, the teacher built a progression based on Cathy's readiness. As a result, Cathy became less and less afraid to speak. Considering ways to help children govern themselves, the teacher let Cathy decide when her contribution was suffi— cient to overcome her hang-up. The other children were able to see how their classmates differed from each other. The climax of the progression was a self—assured portrayal of Queen Gertrude by Cathy. Her personal growth was seen in voice projection, calmness during performance, acting. 44 Elephants in a Classroom Why is it hard to hunt elephants? Because the decoys weigh so much. How do you stop a wild charging elephant? Take away his credit card. How do you get four elephants in a Volkswagen? Two in the front and two in the back. How many different elephant jokes could a room full of grade 4 children collect? One teacher attempted to find out. Her children gathered elephant jokes, told them aloud to others, and then recorded them on index cards in a card file. Through the jokes children were encouraged to gain proficiency in speaking. And their mental development continued by their seeing the double meaning of the words as they got the jokes. Why did the elephant wear green sneakers? To hide in the tall grass. 45 A Matter of Timing On her desk was a small figure of a child. Her husband had carved it for her. And it was her pride and joy. Strangely enough, the figure carried a watch. Mrs. Walker had been a first grade teacher for two years. Timing, she claimed, was the most important part of working with children. The figurine reminded her of the importance of timing. "Children of all ages gather ideas and tie them to their horizons. But they must gather the ideas first hand. The questions, the answers, and the seeking must be theirs." "The moment of shift from first—hand experience to second-hand knowledge is critical. If it comes too soon, the child may lose the desire to learn. If the break comes too late, the gap may never be closed." "Timing is another way of saying readiness. And my figurine keeps me ever conscious that personal timing is part of each child." 46 Seasickness Avoided As soon as the alarm sounded, Mrs. Carson switched on the radio for the weather report. It was her first step in planning her school day. She was especially in- terested in days predicted to be cloudy and dull. "Bright colors are a necessity for dull days." As Mrs. Carson explained to a student teacher, she suggested a form of prevention. She claimed that dull days consumed everything except bright colors. "Much of our vision is seeing differences. If we have a hard time, things become slightly fuzzy. And we become slightly fuzzy even though we might not realize it. It's something like seasickness, when everything appears to be in the wrong place. The sea is high on one side and low on the other instead of being level." "It's like that on dull days. If children's vision becomes mixed, they become a little mixed. They function less than they are able. My bright colors give them an anchor. And with the colors as a base, they have at least one thing to helg them through an otherwise confusing day." “\ ,/u\ Cameras: Key to Parent Conferences Dave's mother was all smiles. She had seen Dave in a variety of ways. And she saw some things that she had never realized before about her nine-year—old son. Dave's teacher, Mrs. Frazier, carried a small camera with her most of the time. She had it in the classroonyon the playground, in the lunchroom, and in the art room. During the conference with Mrs. Frazier, Dave's mother had seen Dave painting a mural with three other boys. She had seen him coming from safety patrol on a rainy day. She saw him running out the door to catch the bus. And she saw him searching the library for a book. Through pictures of her son, she saw Mrs. Frazier as inventive and competent. Through pictures she saw the school that Dave talked so much about as an active place for children. And she smiled. 48 Children and Principals School principals too often miss direct contact with children. Pressing duties that are part of adminis— tration, they say, cause the loss of contact. Some prin- cipals, however, look for and find ways to maintain contact with children. They cite an increase in quality of their work as the contact with children increases. Mrs. Gafton, principal of an elementary school, established a communication center for her school. Staffed completely by children, the center operated the switchboard and inter—com. They produced staff bulletins and parent newsletters. All activities were handled with the direct advice and support of Mrs. Gafton. Mr. Relkin was principal of two rural schools. He could spend only half his time in each school. But, Mr. Relkin had an assistant in each school. Betsy was acting principal in one school while Rusty was acting principal in the other. Both were grade 5 children. While Mr. Relkin was in one school, the assistant re- mained in class. However, when he left, a competent, trained lO-year-old took over to handle the principal's duties. Grouping in Schools Ability is only one way to group children for in- structional purposes. In a rural elementary school in Canada, kindergarten children were grouped according to sex. The boy kinder— garteners attended school on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The girl kindergarteners attended on Tuesday and Thursday. Interest is another way. The staff of a suburban elementary school formed interest cells for two afternoons each week. The children chose the cell they were inter— ested in. So did the teachers. And the matching of chil— dren and teachers led to such pleasure that parents began attending the sessions. Macramé, beginning guitar, model building, cake decorating, film making, and yoga were some of the interests. Grouping is more real when it has children and their welfare as its purpose. Whether by ability, sex, or interest, grouping merits appraisal as to its intended purpose. Merchandising Learning Larry Welton had visited Woodside Mall Shopping Center. As he wandered through the various shops, he noticed that the busiest shops were the ones with back- ground music playing. The following day, Larry arranged for music to be played over the public address system into his room. Dur— ing a two-week trial, he noted the results. There was more softness in the voices of the chil— dren. And he thought his own voice was softer. There was a noticeable relaxing of tensions among the children. Even though they still had disagreements, they did not upset the children as much as before. The music seemed to hide objectionable noises. Things dropped were not as loud. Children cleaning the fish tank didn't interrupt those rehearsing a play. Larry's pupils came to school earlier and stayed later. And other teachers began to have after—school coffee klatches in his room. \ 51 Story—Time Reading or telling a story to children is a common occurrence. So when Alice, a student teacher, queried Mrs. Leslie about it, the grade 4 teacher replied with several reasons. "Of course, children enjoy being read to. But the story must be worthwhile to them." "Most people, adults and children alike, enjoy a good story. It gives the listener a chance to form his own mental picture of different scenes and characters. And our mental picture is often more vivid than any other kind of picture." "Listening to a story after lunch, recess, or any physical activity helps growing muscles. It is a relaxa— tion period that allows muscles to tone down. Sort of the opposite of a baseball pitcher warming up." "Being read to helps a group of people have a common ground. And on this ground they build a feeling which serves to unite them." Human Chicken It all started when Glen brought two fertile chicken eggs from home. Twenty—one days later, a chick was hatched. Bill forgot his music sheet and had to go back to his classroom to get it. As he neared the room, he could hear the baby chick peeping loudly. But as soon as he entered and began rummaging in his desk, the peeping stopped. When he left with his music, the chick again began peeping. Only when the whole class of children returned from music, did the chick stop the racket. The following day, in an animal behavior book, Angie chanced upon the word imprinting and its meaning: to fix permanently on the memory. After reading the word and definition, Angie paused and said, "I think it means that our chicken thinks he's a human instead of a chick." 53 Children's Fears Just as the school bus drove into the parking area, the discovery was made. No parents were on hand to ride with the 25 to 30 children who were going to another school to receive their booster shots. The trip was only 11 miles. But many of the chil- dren were worried about the needle. The teachers, Mrs. White, Mrs. Garret and Mrs. Johnson, huddled with the principal. It was agreed that Mrs. Johnson would go with the children while the principal stayed with the remainder of her pupils. In a matter of an hour or so, they were back. Mrs. Johnson was a comforting person to be with. She had a gentle voice and a reassuring manner. Even her choice of clothing reflected her way. Shaggy sweaters, tweed skirts, comfortable loafers all were part of her personal warmth. Her fellow teachers and her principal remembered how nice it was when they were children to have a friend like her along to brush aside their fears. Three Hundred Sixty-Seven Three hundred sixty—seven. Bill just could not say it. It always came out three hundred AND sixty—seven. The same thing happened with other numbers. Always the AND popped up where it shouldn't. The more Bill tried, the more embarrassed he be- came. Embarrassment Bill didn't need. He was shy and retiring, but very able in mathematics. Bill‘s teacher, Kris Cooper, was young and vigorous. Even during her first year of teaching she understood children. Kris explained to Bill that mathematicians agreed to use AND only where a decimal point occurred. So the grade 5 children needed someone to remind them when AND was used in error. Of course, Bill was the one. When he heard anyone, teacher included, say a number with an uninvited AND, he should stand on his chair and wave his arms above his head. As the weeks rolled by, Bill became a number watchdog. He would jump on his chair, wave, and repeat the spoken number. And he never misused that pesky AND. 55 Sleepy Head Carole, a student teacher, whispered to Mrs. Hewitt that Joey was sound asleep at his desk. "It‘s O.K." Mrs. Hewitt replied. "His father sails on an ore carrier be- tween Duluth, Minnesota, and Ashtabula, Ohio. I'll show you at lunch today." During the lunch hour, Mrs. Hewitt produced a small card. On it were short notes and dates. Oct. 8--Joey's eyes were red. Oct. 9——Joey had a new bike. Oct. 3l--Joey borrowed lunch money. Nov. l—-Joey seemed upset. Nov. 2--Joey asked if he could help Mr. Mire, custodian. Nov. 4—-Joey excused two hours early. Continuing to explain that Joey was just catching up on lost sleep, Mrs. Hewitt guessed that he had gone with his mother to pick up his father. She said it was a six-hour trip both ways. "My little notes don't work miracles. But they do remind me of the complexity of children. I'm sure Joey needed sleep more than he needed a basal reader." 56 Right On: To Be Exact Mind boggling: lost in pleasure Gross : grotesque, messy, unpleasant Bogue : similar to gross, unpleasant to someone Bummer : bad experience There was only one copy of the definitions. The copy belonged to Mrs. Cox. She was the only one who needed it. All the students knew the words well enough to use them in original stories. Maybe it was out of self-preservation; maybe out of curiosity; maybe out of a desire to be relevant with children. Whatever the reason, Mrs. Cox had asked three boys and two girls to compile a glossary of "in" words for her. The five grade seven students gleaned words from many sources. Other kids, older brothers, college stu— dents, T.V. talk shows all contributed. Thus, in a project showing the evolution of our language, the teacher became the taught. Areas of Influence Influence is generally based on one or more of five foundations. Reward is giving somebody something he wants in return for doing something you want him to do. Reward can be as diverse as a smile or a dollar, or anything in between. Threat is predicting unpleasant things if someone fails to do what you want him to do. Threat ranges from "I won't like you" to "I'll break your leg." Authority comes from high position. It's part of the position, not part of the person holding the position. Expertness comes from a person's ability to do something. There is expertness in "getting along with people" as well as in dunking a basketball. Identity is part ability, part personality, and part timing all rolled into a single person. It must be seen as desirable by another person. It is a person for all seasons, as viewed by another. Tutoring "Kids learn best from other kids. We're capitaliz- ing on this." Mrs. Stanley had organized a system in which sixth and seventh graders tutored first and second grade children. Continuing to explain the system to the Parent Advisory Council of her school district, she spoke of the reasons. "The younger children learn faster. And they learn better. The older children cement their hold on each sub— ject. Before a person can help another learn something he generally must really know it himself." Teachers, in turn, gain more time to spend with children not in the tutoring system." "The effects are spreading. More and more are learning. Children are feeling the pride that comes from accomplishment. And that helps them to take still another step toward greater accomplishments." 59 A Child's Eye: Welcome Janet was a member of a high school Future Teachers Club. One afternoon she was visiting a first grade room in a neighboring elementary school. Janet had visited other schools. She was used to peering glances and various questions during her stay in a classroom. Sometimes children even loaned her a book. On this day, she arrived about five minutes before recess. Mrs. Stoddard, the grade one teacher, suggested that the children might like to chat with Janet as they readied themselves to go outside. Some came to her while others paid no attention to her. At the proper time, Mrs. Stoddard opened the door and the class proceeded to the playground. All except Penny. Penny came to Janet and took Janet's hand in her tiny mitten. And with the little girl leading, together they went out for recess. \ 60 A Child's Eye: Teachers Schools have many smells. Disenfectant odors are often noticeable in a freshly mopped lavatory. Paint and paste are sometimes apparent in art rooms. And who can mistake the smell of an aquarium that needs fresh water? Mr. Jennings was a school social worker. He visited a particular elementary school on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. On an afternoon in March, he made his way to his conference room with Don, a grade 4 boy. But the room was being used by a vision testing team. The principal's office was also in use, as were most of the other offices. The teacher's lounge was the only vacant room. As the pair entered, Don hesitated. Sniffing, Don looked at Mr. Jennings and said, "It smells like teachers in here." 61 Growing Muscles Need Use Billy couldn't relax in school. In fact, he wouldn't stay still long enough to do anything that he started out to do. Mrs. Jury, his grade 2 teacher, decided to check Billy's activities outside of school. The story that Mrs. Jury pieced together was one of inactivity. Billy lived in a family of six children. He rode the school bus for 35 minutes every morning and afternoon. He rode for 2 hours while his father delivered newspapers. As they arrived back home, the evening meal was taken and Billy was packed off to bed. Determined to design a personal learning base for Billy, his teacher focused on muscle development. Billy had the option to help in gym classes or to assist the custodian with lunch tables. The physical activity lasted one to one and a half hours each morning. Billy was delighted. His restlessness slacked Off. And his energy began to work for him instead of against him. Billy's reading skills spurted as did his social skills. And all because his options were based on his personal needs. 62 A Child's Eye: Time Grown-ups use clocks, watches, calendars and al- manacs. And they measure time in minutes, hours, and years. Young children also use time, but they think of it in their own way. To children, time is the lapse between what they want to do and when they want to do it. Wally was fidgety Thursday morning in his grade one classroom. Mrs. Kennedy had received a note from Wally's mom asking that he be excused at 2 o'clock that afternoon. His family was leaving on a camping trip. And Wally was very excited. Hoping to relieve the tension of waiting, Mrs. Kennedy tried to help Wally concentrate on something at hand. She asked if he'd like to keep score for the fifth grade stick hockey game. But even that didn't help much. About 1 p.m., Wally confided in Mrs. Kennedy. "It seems like the clock has stopped. Won't it ever be time to go? Today seems like the longest day!" ’ LR '1 . ’ I 63 A Child's Eye: Cats and Dogs In a grade five room, Mrs. Carress was winding down in preparation for lunch. She used hokum to close the morning. All dogs are animals. All cats are animals. Therefore, all dogs are cats. Of course, the children denied the triad of state— ments. Rob used the dictionary, quoting that a dog was a domesticated animal that ate flesh, while a cat was a meat eating animal that man had domesticated. Archie was next to speak. He said, "Dog is man's best friend, but cats are my mother's worst enemy." A Child's Eye: Principals In a small Indiana town, the local weekly newspaper had requested that each of the three elementary school principals write a feature story. Mr. Phillips was one of the principals. A soft spoken man, he had been in schools for nearly 40 years. One room school teacher, bus driver, custodian, high school teacher-~Mr. Phillips had done it all. And throughout all the years and experiences, one idea was always first: school is children. So, when the feature story he had written was pub- lished, it was not surprising to read. For it was about children and their views of a school principal. "He's the father of the teachers." "He's the man that pays the bills." "He tells teachers what to say." "He's my friend." )3 A Child's Eye: Catnip Mrs. Nikon had written a story to supplement her reading text. The story was about an old tomcat that had adopted a farm family. Of course, in the story, Nine was first a problem and later a hero. First off, Nine scared a family friend by jumping on the friend's back. But later, Nine saved the barn from complete destruction by his howling outside a window. And throughout the story, Nine was always in the nearby catnip clump. Catnip was a new word for most of the grade 2 children in Mrs. Nikon's room. Some thought catnip meant being bitten by a cat. Larry said, "Catnip is powdered mouthwash for kittens." GU KGLE gum LE Relaxed Reading "Delbert is finally reading by himself." Mrs. Cortez was beaming as she talked to Delbert's grade 5 teacher, Mr. MacKenzie. Delbert was the youngest of three children. Al- though he was large for his age, he had good muscle coord- ination. Reading, however, just didn't come through for him. Mr. MacKenzie had used experience charts, mech— anical devices, and interest—based materials in an effort to help Delbert read. But nothing seemed to help. Basal texts left Delbert cold. Programmed materials were for— gotten as soon as Delbert closed them. Even following someone else reading aloud didn't jell. However, Mrs. Cor— tez and Mr. MacKenzie continued to work together in their efforts. Now, with only 3 weeks remaining in the school year, Mrs. Cortez had hit upon a way. She sheepishly told Mr. MacKenzie, "It's so simple. I just bought 2 dozen comic books and left them all in the bathroom. And within 3 or 4 days, Delbert had read them all and told me the stories." BOYS He Doesn't Talk to Grown-Ups When the kindergarten substitute teacher called Robert's name, there was complete silence. She again asked if Robert was in school. Becky answered, "He's right here" and pointed to him. "But he doesn't talk to grown—ups." With no fuss, Mrs. Burkowski continued. On com- pletion of the roll, she suggested that it would be easier if the children called her Mrs. B. Throughout the morning, anytime Mrs. B. was near Robert, he stopped talking. He talked with other children, but only nodded or shook his head when Mrs. B. spoke to him. Late in the morning, Mrs. B. was ready to show a film strip. But she didn't know where the projector was kept. So, Danny found it, set it up, and threaded the film. As the lights were flicked off, Robert began to cry. He came to Mrs. B. Between sobs, Robert looked right at her and said "The light switch is my job and Billy did it!" And that was the first time in four months that Robert had spoken to his teacher. 1 l l “7—? —: Who Helps Who? Chestnut Elementary School and Union Intermediate School were across the street from each other. Their con- venient location was advantageous in helping children. Cooperatively, teachers and administrators set up a cross-ability tutoring system. Within the system, Gary's hang-up was only one of the specific goals. Although Gary rarely spoke, he was friendly and moderately competent. Tutoring three grade—one kids called for some speaking. Gary knew this, but still volunteered. There was neither a dramatic change in Gary nor in the reading ability of the first graders. But as the weeks rolled by, Gary was speaking more in his own class, and as the semester ended he was beginning to joke with his class— mates. In turn, the first grade children were using some ideas and words not found in their books. And when Gary's family moved, he personally made the arrangements to ride a school bus to Union School so he could cont'nue his tutoring. 69 The Other School Other School--that was the name given to an ex- periment in learning. Based on the idea that children have differing abilities, the Other School urged that the children find what their own specific abilities were. And that they find them in their own particular manner and at their own particular time. Two and a half adjoining rooms were used for about 45 students. All activities were optional. Seminars varied in attendance from 2 or 3 to 39 or 40, depending on children's interest. Personal interests were pursued on a single basis. Socializing among students was an important aspect of the Other School. Evaluation by university personnel showed growth equivalent to that in more traditional rooms. The conclu- sion was that children need options to suit their learning, that no one style is best for all children. 6f: 69% 70 Homework "Teaching school is like the theatre. As much goes on backstage as goes on in front of the audience." Sharon Pinston was in her second year of teaching grade 4. During an evening education class, the topic of homework was being discussed. Sharon was giving her two cents worth. "Considering how my children learn, gathering rele— vant materials, and combining the two to make something learnable for children is what I call backstage. And that's homework." "When children arrive--they're the audience—-I go on—stage. But the performance is supported by my backstage life. As in the theatre, actors would be lost without their backstage. A teacher is also lost without her homework." "But, there's at least one difference. In the theatre, the backstage supports the character. In teach- ing, the backstage supports the person so she can support the children." 71 Pop Music "What is freedom?" asked Mrs. Stommel. Penny answered, "Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose." The conversation in a grade six classroom brought a pleasing smile to the face of Mrs. Stommel. But it brought sparkle to the eyes of Sue, a student teacher. At lunch, Mrs. Stommel brought up the conversation. "I was really pleased with Penny's answer. She normally doesn't come up with anything like that." The student teacher allowed as how it was an interesting remark. Three days later, Sue had a question for her uni- versity supervisor. "How could I handle this. Penny's remark was a quote from the top record on hit charts. Obviously, my cooperating teacher had not heard it. I chose to say nothing rather than chance lowering the effect that the remark had on Mrs. Stommel." "Current music must be a way to help children, as long as it isn't used as another way to trap them." Eating Mathematics Readiness may fit all phases of life, even school life, even teaching. Bonnie was a first year teacher in a grade 6 class- room. She was worried about explaining base 8 problems to the students. Bonnie told another teacher that her charges were having a hard time trying to understand how base 8 worked. Bonnie's fellow teacher suggested another way of presenting the idea, but to no avail. So, after suggesting a second method with still no acceptance, she suggested still another way. Using counters-—grains of rice, beans, bottle caps, tooth picks--might help. Instantly, Bonnie seized this idea as a way she could use. It could show groups of num- bers. It could show building a number system. And it would be interesting material to work with, if she used jelly beans, so the students could eat their mathematics lesson. , _ However, the teachers both agreed it must be ac— cepted by the children as well as by Bonnie. It still was a matter of readinpss. School Supply Salesmen "Are you the picture man?" asked a puffing third grade boy on the way in from morning recess. The surprised salesman was calling on a rural ele— mentary school. He asked what the boy meant. "Why, the man who is coming to take all our pic- tures. Are you the picture man? Are you the one?" With a twinkle in his eye, the salesman said, "Well, no, I'm not the picture man. But I can take your picture if you like." He put down his sample case, opened it, took out a Polaroid camera, and snapped the 8—year— old's picture. Minutes later, a beaming boy scooted toward his room. Recounting the incident to the principal, the salesman explained the camera in his sample case. "Most of us like our own picture. Many of my customers enjoy my camera. It's a good way to open communication lines, which I must have to sell my product. It might be the same with both teachers and children in schools." The Only One Office "But I thought reading at the lower grades was all skill building and word attack." Joanne was a student teacher and full of questions and opinions from her methods classes. Her supervising teacher, Mrs. Oatman, took a larger View of most content areas. "Reading," explained Mrs. Oatman, "is only part of the skills. And all the skills together are only part of the child. I think we should blend both and help each child to be. Sounds a little fuzzy, doesn't it?" ”Take Don, for instance. His home has two bedrooms and there are six children in his family. My hunch is that he has little chance for any privacy at home. And yet without some privacy, it's hard to have true individ- uality. But I haven't forgotten reading." "To get to the depth of reading skill that I'm seeking, there has to be some personal joy in it. And one of the joys and strengths of reading is that reading is solitary." "That's why the large painted box with a chair and a lamp in it. The Only One Office is for a child——his privacy, his personality, and his reading." Horses, Horses, Horses Kathy had just finished her twenty—second book about horses. Black Beauty, Flicka, even Steinbeck's Red Pgny—-Kathy had read them all. On the small farm where Kathy lived, Kathy's horse was her pride and joy. Still, her mother was becoming concerned about so much emphasis on horses. It started in the last part of grade 4, continued through the summer, and now, into the fifth grade. At the November parent conference, the mother in- quired as to the opinion of Kathy's teacher, Mr. Winters. Some people thought Mr. Winters was too soft. Others recognized that he generally had reasons for his actions. And his reasons seemed to be based on his ideas about children. Mr. Winters reassured Kathy's mother. "Kathy and her horse books are just part of her growing. Children like what they are sure of. Repetition is often a child's idea of the good life. And when they're ready, they'll move on, but with a very firm platform to continue growing from. That's what Kathy is doing—-building her own firm platform." A Child's Eye: Orbit Some adults know exactly what an orbit is. And they explain it with gravity, vectors and diagrams. Most adults recognize that it has something to do with the route of one of our spaceships. The astronauts change from one orbit to another. They also adjust their orbit to do other things in space. In Mrs. Wilson's third grade room, the children had watched a lunar landing and heard of the command ship being in a parking orbit around the moon. Craig wanted to do more. "I can show you an orbit, Mrs. Wilson," he ven— tured. "I need a pail and some water." After filling the pail with water, he started swinging it at arm's length. Finally, the pail was circl— ing Craig and going around and around. "Look," he hollered. "The pail is the space ship and the water is the astronaut. And they're both in a parking orbit as long as I keep swinging them." The Age of Innocence "My dad can fix it." "The President can make clean air." "It's not scary. Lost puppies always get home all right." From her diary, Mrs. Abernathy was quoting state— ments made by some of her pupils during the last seven years. It all started during a conversation with the personnel director of her school district. Mrs. Abernathy and Mr. Watson, along with two other teachers, were travel- ing to a regional meeting. Each of the travelers was answering the question, "Why am I a teacher?" Mrs. Abernathy recounted one of her recurring dreams which always ended with herself in the sheltering arms of her grandfather. Continuing, she said, "It‘s something about the innocence of children. They haven't yet learned to be untrusting. The little things they say and do remind me of that innocence. And there's a little of it left in me. So, being close to the realness of life, the innocence, is part of why I'm a teacher." A 78 The Autistic Child Carole was quiet, exceptionally quiet. She rarely spoke in school. Even as she opened her desk, she sounded like a shadow. But she was not shy. Jeri, Lonie and Laura were often seen with Carole. They were her best friends. But during classes, Carole often daydreamed and appeared to be in her own little world. The anecdotal records that followed Carole to her grade 4 room showed that her daydreams had been with her most of her school life. Mrs. Dennison thought Carole was quiet because Carole was thinking. And that Carole had an ability that many people might envy-~intense concentration. Determined to help Carole use her ability, Mrs. Dennison suggested Carole record her thoughts during arithmetic period. Carole wrote a story in which numbers were people, addition was marriage, subtraction was death, multiplica— tion was cities and division was war. And Mr. 17 and Miss 14 were married 31 times. 79 The Twenty-Ninth Smartest Person Lois Bloom continually asked herself if her children were growing. She didn't wonder about math, spelling, reading, etc. In the content fields, she could see and somewhat measure skill development. But she wondered about personalities, social graces and the like. Lois tried to use certain phrases in her conversa- tions with children. "Of course you can." "You really are smart." "I wish I could do that as well as you can." And one of her most—used phrases was, "You can do that better than I can—-you're smarter than I am." And Lois tried always to phrase in the positive and let the negative take care of itself. On the morning of the annual field day at Shorrard Elementary School, she found out. While the entire class of 28 children looked on, Janice presented her with an award ribbon. The award was for The Twenty-Ninth Smartest 31 Person in Our Room. \/ 6 ( 80 25% Most teachers have a rule of thumb to go by. Ben Savage taught fourth grade, and his rule of thumb was as follows: "Never tell a child more than 25% of what he wants to know. That gives him a starting place but doesn't re- move the joy of learning." Bill was trying to graft an orange twig on a grape— fruit plant. Ben showed him how to cut a vee notch. Denice was weaving a rug. Ben showed her how to vary the color pattern. Jamie wanted to make a solid state burglar alarm. Ben showed him how a gum wrapper would carry a circuit and could be cemented in place. Harold was writing a mystery. Ben showed him how to use a thesaurus. The grafted limb grew. The rug was multicolored. The alarm sounded when the door opened. And the mystery story contained many words not found in school books, much less a fourth grade basal text. Ghostly Lunches "Children's attention span is part and parcel of their interest. If they are interested in something, children will remain absorbed for phenomenal lengths of time." Jerry Jamison was being interviewed by a local newspaper reporter. The story was about his fifth grade class, for they had recently produced a Shakespearian tragedy. One of the boys, having been cast as a ghost, wished to practice a particular scene. John, as the ghost, needed to climb a ladder in the dark. And, when the lights came up, to speak in a loud but ghostly voice. After the shades of the classroom were drawn, the scene was practiced over and over until it was perfect. While the ghost was rehearsing, other children made cos— tumes, printed programs, or assembled stage props. Even though Mr. Jamison was in the room, he, too, forgot the time. When they realized the lunch period was nearly over, the children still wished to continue their preparation. So the whole class ate shared bag lunches to the sounds of ghostly wails. You Scratch My Back and I'll Scratch Yours Chris read at a twelfth grade level. Joe read at a second grade level. Chris hit a baseball like a second grader. Joe hit one like he was in high school. Both boys were in grade five. The school year was scarcely two weeks old when both boys requested to sit next to each other. Their teachers agreed and let nature take its course. During the remainder of the year, the two became inseparable. They shared each other's successes. It was spring before the expected change was no- ticeable. The ground was still soft on the baseball diamond. And the ball didn't roll very far in the grass. Chris came to bat. He still looked awkward holding the bat, but he swung with a vengeance. And he connected for a single. Joe didn't make any spectacular growth in reading. But he did increase slightly more than one level in a \ single school year. 83 Lunch Line Manners The more teachers respect the dignity of their pupils, the more dignified the children become. Mrs. Stillman was a fanatic on the rights of chil- dren. She insisted that most things in schools were to be shared and shared alike. And lunch was one of those things. In their school both the children and their teachers had the same time in which to eat. Lunch began at 11:45 and classes resumed at 12:45. On Wednesdays, art instruc— tion immediately preceded lunch. Mr. Jeffery was a travel— ing art teacher. Even though the lunch line was formed, the art teacher generally stepped to the front of the line in front of all the children. And this day was the same. That day, while eating together, Mrs. Stillman said to Mr. Jeffery, "You always go ahead of the children, even though they all wait their turn. Is there a reason that I don't know about?" (A J 76 (3 J3 . /t 84 A Child's Eye: Facts Rich had a passion for electric things. Flash- lights, motors, switches, appliances. He was fascinated by all of them. On a snowy January day, Rich was the only child to remain in the second grade classroom of Mrs. Kennert at recess. His boots were too short for the snow, and his mother had sent a note requesting that he stay inside. After recess, as Mrs. Kennert prepared to use the tape recorder again, she found the cord was unusable. It had been pulled out of the plug. In disconnecting, someone had pulled on the wire instead of the plug, and they had separated. Mrs. Kennert looked at Rich. He had been the only one in the room since the recorder had been used. "It got broken," was all Rich said. Children learn to tell the truth in a way that doesn't incriminate them. And Mrs. Kennert understood that children learn this from adults. 85 I Can Do the Same Thing Offend the intuition. That's one of the things that causes children to ask questions. Mrs. Sedgewick had shown her fifth graders a toy clown on a unicycle. The clown rode back and forth on a string that was stretched across the room. Like a aerial- ist in the circus. And although he rode back and forth, the clown and unicycle never fell off. Children began to ask questions about the clown. Is he attached? Is the string magnetic? They examined the toy in detail and then asked more questions. Jeff seemed to have found the solution. But when Mrs. Sedgewick queried him, he answered, "I can't say how the clown works, but I can make something that does the same thing." The next day, Jeff demonstrated a similar balancing feat with a cork, a bottle, and two forks. 86 Real Reading Photomicrograph is not a word normally found in the vocabulary lists of a fifth grade basal reader. Nor is it often in supplemental texts. Ben had a hard time in reading. Most materials were outside his circle of life. Ben wasn't a problem. He just wasn't touched by most written things, for those things didn't make a difference to Ben. However, given a chance to decide on some science equipment, Ben became a shrewd purchasing agent. Explaining to his principal the reason for his choice of microscopes, Ben said, "This one has auxiliary lenses. We can change the focal length as well as the magnification. And with a camera, we can take photo— micrographs." Ben had used word attack skills, content, and phonetic analysis. And he had used dictionaries and encyclopedias. His word meanings were right as was his pronunciation. Reading skills were serving Ben instead of Ben serving reading. Children Grow, Teachers Grow "3 x 2 means three groups with two in each group. 2 x 3 means two groups with three in each group. It's like buying apples. Three dozen apples means three groups with twelve in each group. It's easy.“ Gerry was explaining multiplication to his fifth grade teacher. Gerry had explained it before, but the teacher couldn't seem to remember. Now, on a Thursday night, Gerry's teacher was tak— ing an examination in a graduate class. The course content was development theories. The exam question that was bothering was on Piaget, assimilation, accommodation, and all. Gerry and multiplication came to mind. Sure enough, Gerry had assimilated his ideas. And then, after accommodating them with his other ideas, was able to ex- plain them to someone. And the act of explaining was Piaget's justification, that the theorist claimed was part of development. Maybe there was something to this development theory course after all. © 88 The Sleeping Giant Most teachers understand the process of condition- ing-—how one stimulus is paired with another to obtain a certain response. Certainly, conditioning is useful. A fireman jumps to his feet at the sound of the fire alarm. That's a use that is very necessary. And there are other uses just as necessary. Mark was a grade four boy. He weighed 129 pounds and was five feet seven. Most of his previous teachers called him The Sleeping Giant. Never any trouble, Mark was just super-quiet. Jack Lassiter, the grade 4 teacher, wrote a simple explanation of animal training. He had it type—set at a printer-friend of his and had about six copies printed. It looked like a newspaper story. Mr. Lassiter read it to the class and handed the paper to Mark. The following day Mark brought a bowl and a fish to school. And during the following 3 months, Mark reread the story over and over. He also conditioned his fish to come to the surface when he rang a bell. \, 33 C 2; 89 Children's Excitement Excitement is an important part of childhood. For a child, that high stimulation makes life worth living. For 21 days, chicken eggs had been incubating in Mrs. Clark's third grade classroom. Children had crossed off one-by-one each day on the calendar. Every day the children checked the humidity in the incubator. And they periodically adjusted the temperature. When Mrs. Clark arrived that Tuesday morning, one of the eggs had hatched and there stood a wobbly, fuzzy chick. Another egg was just beginning to crack. She left the lights on, the classroom door open, and waited in another room. As the children arrived, excited squeals began to echo in the school. Two girls bolted out of the room to find her. "It hatched! It hatched!" they cried. Giggles of excitement, looks of amazement, smiles of accomplishment and relief after the long wait. All of these were seen on the faces of the children as they clustered around to see their new friend. A ,/ x Y Christmas Options "The last week before Christmas vacation is going to be wild. We'll all have to try to keep things quiet or the kids will be so high we won't be able to do a thing with them." One of the teachers was speaking at the Monday after—school faculty meeting. Nods of approval showed agreement among the staff. All except Connie and Doris. As the teachers left the meeting, Connie and Doris met and agreed that they would not be party to depriving children of the joy of excitement. In fact, they agreed to promote some excitement. On Tuesday, they formed Santa's Mail Box. On Wed— nesday, their classes caroled throughout the school. On Thursday, they distributed mistletoe to each room. On Friday, the last day before vacation, a father parent roamed the school dressed as Santa with Connie and Doris dressed as elves. The entire school staff agreed it was the best holiday season ever. Interest and Ability Interest is closely related to ability. A prominent learning psychologist made this finding. But Mrs. Clawson knew it all along. Her third grade children who liked puzzles tended to be good at them. Mrs. Clawson based much of her teaching on this idea. Peggy often had many lower grade children with her when she walked to school. And when asked if she would like to be a tutor for some first graders, Peggy jumped at the chance. The first grade teacher was pleased, for as the year wore on, Peggy was continually finding new ways to help the younger children. And so was the first grade teacher. Kitty was always organizing a game on the play— ground. And the game would generally come off with little confusion, yet with all players active. When a birthday party for the principal was suggested, Kitty was the plan- ner. The party was complete, with most of the children active in the preparations. The children also knew Kitty's ways and followed her suggestions. Incidental Teaching "Mr. Davis, I know chickens come from eggs, but how does it happen?" Shelly was only one of the curious nine-year-olds in a fourth grade room. Don Davis, their teacher, was a firm believer in pursuing the interests of children. He maintained that from their interests would flow skill development as well as problem-solving ability. From Shelly's question began an experiment in em- bryology. Beginning with 24 fertile eggs, in an incubator, they would carefully open three eggs every third day to see what was happening inside. Like teams of small surgeons, the children opened them. On subsequent days they found a heart beating with no body, a backbone forming, and wing buds beginning. Observing, inferring, predicting, all took place in the study, along with the thrill of discovery. Children's Imagination "Boo and Dee both had short sandy-brown hair. They were always dressed the same, always clad in little blue shorts. No shoes, no shirt, and always the little blue shorts. They had no sex and they were about three inches tall." Susie was a senior in high school. She continued describing in minute detail the two imaginary friends. Boo and Dee had been her constant companions when she was three to four years old. "I don't know where they came from nor where they went. I don't know when they came nor when they left. Boo and Dee were just there or not there." "They took baths with me. I'd pretend I was swim- ming, with Boo on one side and Dee on the other." "Although they had to scale the tub to get in, they walked on air beside my shoulders at most other times. Funny, but they both overslept and I had to awaken them." Children are very exact about their imaginations. Even 15 years had not dulled the vividness and realism of B00 and Dee. That's Just Mike "Oh no. That's just Mike and the way he is." Mrs. Cantrell was asking advice from Bob and Randy. Frustration had overpowered Mrs. Cantrell. In her fifth grade room, she was at wits end with Mike. Likeable as he was, he never completed anything. His math was always only partly done. His art projects were never completed. Even his lunches were not finished. Mike always took side trips. He stopped to chat, or daydreamed or just generally poked along. In desperation, Mrs. Cantrell suggested that Mike help Bob and Randy construct a maze. When the box was completed and the runs were glued in place, Mike still didn't have the screen for the top ready. Even the white mouse was hungry. So Bob and Randy finished Mike‘s screen for him. When Mrs. Cantrell asked if Mike's lagging didn't bother them, Bob and Randy's answer showed how accepting they were. For most children tend to accept others as they are, and not to rank people as most adults do. 95 Children's Logic Marvin had watched the Roadrunner cartoon on Sat- urday morning television. During show and tell the fol- lowing Monday, he decided to tell about the cartoon. "Coyote was chasing Roadrunner, but Roadrunner turned off. Coyote ran right off the mountain. And when Coyote found out that he had missed Roadrunner, Coyote was standing on nothing but air. There was only one thing to do. Coyote tried to tip-toe back to the mountain. He nearly made it but not quite. Coyote fell a million feet to the bottom, and smashed himself flat. But Coyote will try again." Adults know Coyotes can't stand in mid air. Nor tip-toe back to a mountain. Nor fall a million feet with- out being killed. Children, however, accept some impossible things as being plausible. And often, children's logic will rationally lead to a very sensible solution from an impos- sible problem. /;:?’7 A Message from a Fire Department A rural volunteer fire department set about 40 fires in abandoned farm buildings and grass fields. As soon as the fires were set, the volunteer arsonists rushed back to the fire hall and changed into volunteer fire- fighters. And rushed back to put out their own fires. Finally, the arsonists were discovered. When arson charges were pressed, one fireman explained, "We needed to hear bells clanging and red lights flashing." Strange things happen when people's needs are not met. Expected events are often replaced by bizarre events. They were good kids. Smart, likeable, and eager. But, they became monsters. Hostile, sullen and often down- right lazy. The principal observed the class and suggested to change from a lecture/recall format to an aéiive prob- lem-solving style. Within two weeks, the children again were interestingly vibrant. And their teacher met her needs by adapting to the children's needs. 97 Cases for Study Carrells "Don't throw away that refrigerator case! I'll pick it up later this afternoon." A fourth grade teacher was eating lunch at a restaurant near her school. During lunch, a new refrig- erator was delivered. Still in the shipping carton, the refrigerator was gently unpacked. The carton remained in— tact, as one side of the carton was hinged. Within a week after she picked up the shipping carton, Mrs. Jansen had a private study carrell in her room. The children had painted it maroon and decorated it with owls and butterflies. In a conversation with her principal, Mrs. Jansen explained her purple box. "Technology has some benefits for even me. The container, which no longer serves its original purpose, makes a private nook for one or two children." \ CV49 \ I \\ Number Facts Above the windows were huge multiplication charts and addition charts that could be seen from one spot in the room. During mathematics, children could be seen glancing toward the charts while solving problems. Each child also had a smaller chart in his desk. Miss Lincoln thought of mathematics as a process. Her pupils were busy solving kickball percentages and fig— uring unit costs from grocery advertisements. They used the charts to aid in computations and comparisons. At the close of the school year, they knew most of the number facts from using them, not from memor- izing them. x!!! I l .-.——-‘"" 2 l 2 H (. p 3 “$12 Dave Earnest, Principal As a principal of an elementary school, Dave Earnest attended many meetings. Administrative, curriculum, fac- ulty, parent, all kinds of meetings. But, he generally excused himself from any meeting at about 10:30 a.m. He returned to his school to be with the children during the playground time. Dave's superintendent agreed with this procedure. "A good principal is only half an administrator. Children have feelings as well as minds. The good principals take care of both. When Dave is at a curriculum meeting, he's helping attend to their minds. When he's with them on the playground, he's helping with their emotions. And where— ever he is, he's there all the way." Think Break Mrs. Whitaker's class had agreed that each after— noon, after lunch, six minutes would be set aside for con— templation. And if a visitor looked in on that fourth grade room, children would be seen in the process of contemplating. Some stared out the window. Others laid their heads on their desks. Several sat on the floor in corners. But the room was silent. At the end of the six minutes, the room came alive. Except now, children were in clumps of 2, 3 or 4. The class also agreed that a few minutes would be used to share thoughts with friends. As Mrs. Whitaker commented to one Visitor, "The children enjoy pondering for a few minutes. They asked to do it. And they enjoy sharing thoughts. They asked to do that also. Frankly, I had trouble getting used to a think break. But now-—, I look forward to it. The six minutes for thinking seem to solve so many things for me. And the class seems closer to me after the br Handling Children "Deep adult interest. Treatment of others without punishment. Respect for their views. Being open to their persuasion. Letting them share the voice in planning their education. These are the bases for earning the respect of children." The speaker was not a social psychologist. Nor a principal. Nor even a teacher. Mrs. Milton was a mother. And she was speaking at an in—service workshop for elemen— tary school teachers. Mrs. Milton was an expert on children. She had seven brothers, three sisters, four sons, two daughters, and two granddaughters. Her home was the gathering place for most of the neighborhood children. "Handling children doesn't work," she concluded. "But if I'm honest and myself, everything is great." SECTION‘III THE DESIRABILITY OF EDUCATIONAL VIGNETTES BY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PERSONNEL 102 Definitions and Conventions The educational vignettes and the desirability thereof with which this study is concerned are a particular type. Educational vignette is defined as a short, subtle, compact literary composition. Additionally, each educa— tional vignette is preceded by a story lead, and is fol- lowed by an illustration. Each vignette is complete on one page. For the purposes of this study, vignettes must meet all the above qualifications. Writing conventions used in the educational vig— nettes are typical unto themselves. Paragraphs are short, sometimes consisting of only one or two sentences. Sen- tences are often choppy. Occasionally, sentences are not sentences, but are capitalized phrases or single words. Sometimes items of a grammatical series appear independent of the mother sentence. The vignettes vary in their degree of subtlety. The intention of the variation is to urge the reader to see only what he will in each composition. The educational vignettes generally focus on hap— penings near to education. Most Vignettes are about people and actual events. Names of people have been changed and made fictitious to protect the innocent. Few educational 103 vignettes are straight moralizing. Most educational vig- nettes are stories with concrete examples of people—to- peOple living. No sequence of educational vignettes is intended in the order of the vignettes. As each educational Vignette is discrete and complete in itself, any order that is im— plied is relative to the reader himself. The whole collection of educational vignettes is intended to pose generalized topics for the consideration of the reader. No specific demands are placed on the reader. The only intention is to provide a thought which each reader may use or discard at his discretion. The content of the educational vignettes varies. Some vignettes point toward aspects of child development. Some vignettes suggest an application of learning theory, while still others revolve about subject matter. Other vignettes have views of life as seen through a child's eye. Most are multifaceted, leaving the prime thrust to be judged by the reader. However, all have something in them regarding children. The one page educational vignettes stress the positive aspects of schools and children. Negative aspects are rarely mentioned, and then, only for comparative pur- poses. Some of the vignettes are descriptive, some are amusing. Other vignettes are philosophic. The varying styles and content are intended to present a menu of 104 thoughts from which each reader may pick and choose. The relevance of each vignette is intended to rest in the reader. Limits and Distribution The title of the study, Educational Vignettes Created for Teachers of Young Children indicates the di— rection to be taken. Do teachers of young children find vignettes of the type used in the study desirable enough to request additional vignettes? Vignettes are considered desirable if after reading one, the reader, of his own volition, requests additional Vignettes. Vignettes are considered undesirable if, after reading one, the reader does not request additional vignettes. While some readers' preferences regarding the vignettes are reported, the actual readon for requesting or not requesting additional vignettes is outside the realm of the study. The vignette with the stofy lead of Even Plants Like Music was arbitrarily selected for the initial offer- ing to the elementary school personnel. The vignettes to be distributed on request had story leads of Friday After— noon at the Movies, The Secret of Spelling, Humor: The Growing Edge, Laundry Bag Teachers, and A Child's Eye: Moment. Using the first 36 vignettes and a simple random selection method, each vignette was assigned a number. Five numbers were chosen from a like set of thoroughly 105 mixed numbers. The five randomly selected vignettes were attached to a six—item questionnaire. The distribution consisted of placing the Even Plants Like Music vignette in the school mailboxes of all the teachers in selected buildings. Attached to the Vig- nette was a second sheet on which the reader could request additional vignettes from the distributor who was named on the same sheet. The distributor was a person in that par— ticular building. In the event that a reader requested additional vignettes, the above mentioned group of five vignettes, with an attached questionnaire, was given to him by the distributor in that school building. The com— pleted questionnaire was later collected. Samples of both distribution papers follow this page. The schools selected for distribution of the edu— cational vignettes were Colonial Hills Elementary School, Sherwood Park Elementary School, and Ward—Cottrell Elemen— tary School. Colonial Hills is in Worthington, Ohio. Located on the northern city limits of Columbus, Ohio, Worthington is a middle income suburb. The nucleus of Worthington dates back to the early days of the Western Expansion of the United States when it was a stage coach stop. More recently, Worthington has grown as a result of the exodus to the suburbs. In the migration of people away from the center of Columbus, Worthington is an older suburb, being Even Plants Like Music Art sat in the corner for about 5 minutes every morning and afternoon. He was carrying on a scientific experiment. Mrs. Rodriguez had slipped enough impatiens plants so every child in her grade 3 classroom who wanted one could have his own plant. Some children labeled theirs; some decorated the pots; some metered the water they gave their plants. Art showered his with music. He sang, "Good morning, plant" when he arrived. He sang, "Good night, plant" when he left in the afternoon. And he hummed to it every morning and afternoon. Toward the middle of the third week, it was apparent that Art's plant was the healthiest in the room. It was thriving and blooming. Art claimed it was because the 1 plant liked music. He didn't know that plant breathing pores enlarge when exposed to music. He just knew his plant liked music. 107 The vignette you have just read is one of a col- lection about children and schools. If you would like more of them, fill the coupon and give it to by . Additional vignettes from the col- lection will arrive for you within a few days. Name School 108 These are the additional vignettes that you re- ‘ quested. While some teachers like to read one vignette \ each day, please use these sample vignettes any way that suits you. "w’l 109 Friday Afternoon at the Movies At least half the school chattered about the banner outside Mr. Walker's room. Today Only: The Big Pearl Added Attraction-— The Big J Sings Friday afternoons were reserved for fun. Kids left Mr. Walker's room before every week—end feeling good about themselves and school. The Big Pearl was of particular interest to them. Nine or ten had read the book as an example of prejudice. So, the movie was exciting for them. Big J was Jim's stage name. He was big for his 12 years, and he had had few successes in school. But he was well-liked and he could mimic popular records to perfection. The other children enjoyed his act. Children feeling good about themselves while learn- ing was Mr. Walker's goal. Coming attraction: The Island of the Blue Dolphin. .kQ ,“. \' m1 110 Humor: The Growing Edge "Did you hear about the car that ran out of gas?" "No, how does it go?" "It doesn't. You have to push it!" Mr. Mollay always had a joke. And it was generally one brought to him by his grade 4 pupils. To the other teachers, some jokes were funny, some were not, and some were 30-50. Gary Mollay took much teasing about them. But he was generally asked to tell his daily joke during after—school coffee. Privately, he told a friend his purpose in remem— bering the jokes. "Laughter often shows a level. It may be thinking or safety or a combination of both. Levels change as children grow, and laughter is an indicator. Laughter occurs on the child's growing edge. And so, \ ,r< ‘9 laughter is a window in each child's personal world." Al . I, I 111 The Secret of Spelling "The secret is to help him at the instant he wants to know." A second grade teacher was explaining her idea of readiness. "Take a time when a youngster asks how to spell a word. That's when he wants to know, so I make the most of it. I write the word on a pad or his paper. On anything he can take with him and refer to as he writes the word." "By writing the word, the child can watch—-that's one pass at it. As he copies it, there are as many more passes at the word as the times he shifts back and forth to his copy of it. And he still has the original if he needs it again." "I never worry about his copying the word. He'll stop when he knows how to spell it. It's easier to know the word than to copy it every time." 112 Laundry Bag Teachers She was a perma-press teacher. Always ready for active use, she bounced back after the most unusual hap- penings. Her way was always soft, useful, and timely. The children, recognizing her greatness, used the chance to seek new answers under her guidance. But they never abused her, for children see the benefits of perma- press teachers. They see answers as something to seek by themselves. Questions are to be asked, and life is to be organized by each person in his own way. He was a starched laundry shirt teacher. Every— thing was on schedule. There was no wiggle room for mental explorations of different ideas. School was sterilized and systematic to a fault. Questions were never important, and wrong answers embarrassed children. All children were expected to be the same, in in- terests, abilities, and emotions. Everyone read the same books, enjoyed the same things, and even laughed, on cue, at the same jokes as had last year's children. \/ " 113 A Child's Eye: Moment State assessment exams were being taken in a grade 4 room. And one question was bothering many of the chil- dren. What is a moment? -—15 seconds —— 30 seconds —-2 minutes —- 50 seconds When children asked about the question, Mrs. Peters answered each the same way. They should check the answer closest to their meaning of the word. After the test was completed and put away, Phil confided to Mrs. Peters his meaning of the word. "Moment means different things at different times. It depends whether or not my mother is mad when she says, 'Just a moment.'" 114 Please complete and give to by Did you read all the vignettes? __yes __no Did you read one vignette each day? __yes __no Did you discuss any vignette with someone? yes no If yes, which vignette? Did you like one vignette more than others? yes no If yes, which one? Did you like one vignette less than others? yes no If yes, which one? Which feature of the vignettes did you like? __ shortness __ content __ illustration __ other Did any vignette remind you of a similar happening? yes no _— If yes, can you describe the similar happening here? 115 one of the first to draw people to a new location. Once moving to Worthington many stay in their new location, making for a relatively stable population. Worthington schools include six elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school. The total en— rollment of the schools is about 6,700 students. Colonial Hills has a pupil population of 450, and a teaching staff of 24. Sherwood Park is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in the Kentwood section, a high middle income suburban area. Grand Rapids is the largest population center in the western half of Michigan. Within the Grand Rapids School District are 50 elementary schools. Sherwood Park school, built in 1969, describes its program as open space instruction with emphasis on continuous progress. Sherwood Park has a pupil enrollment of about 320 and a teaching staff of 15. Ward-Cottrell Elementary School is located in Marine City, Michigan, and is part of the East China Town— ship School District. Located about 45 miles northeast of Detroit, Michigan, the district has a large electric gen- erating plant and several smaller factories within its boundaries. Marine City, however, is predominantly a rural community. Ward-Cottrell draws its pupils from a section that has been classified as a disadvantaged area. l i 116 East China Township School District has five elementary schools, two middle schools and two high schools. Ward- Cottrell has an enrollment of about 250 pupils and a teaching staff of 9. The three elementary schools mentioned were se- lected for several reasons. First, they are separated geographically. Second, they represent a wide range of population characteristics including income, size of pop- ulation, and size of school district. Third, each school represented a different structure within the school, which ranged from traditional self-contained classrooms to team— teaching emphasis to pupil mobility between classrooms. The data reported in the following charts show: -—24 of 43 teachers requested additional vignettes after having read a sample vignette. ——21 of 22 teachers who requested additional vig- nettes read all the vignettes. -—l of 22 teachers who requested additional Vig— nettes read one vignette per day. -—5 of 21 teachers who requested additional Vig- nettes discussed the vignettes with someone. --17 of 21 teachers who requested additional vig- nettes liked one more than others. -—8 of 19 teachers who requested additional vig— nettes liked one less than others. { 117 -—of 20 teachers requesting additional vignettes, 12 liked the shortness feature, 15 liked the content, five liked the illustrations, and one liked some other aspect of the vignette. --of 20 teachers who requested additional Vig— nettes, l2 recalled a similar happening, and of these 12, nine described, in varying fashion, the incident recalled. 118 Desirability Requested School Distributed More Colonial 23 10 Sherwood 11 9 Ward-Cottrell 9 5 Total 43 24 Did you read all the vignettes? School Answered No Yes Colonial 10 0 10 Sherwood 9 0 9 Ward-Cottrell 3 1 2 Total 22 1 21 Did you read one vignette each day? School Answered No Yes Colonial 10 10 0 Sherwood 8 l Ward-Cottrell 3 3 0 Total 22 21 1 119 OOHr-l NHOM HOOr-l o H o m HH mH HMHOB o o o H H N HHOHHHOUIUHMB o H o N m m UOOBHmnm o o o m w m HMHGOHOU pcmEoS wuccsmq mcHHHomm uofidm wmoHHm OHmsz mow oz HmBmc¢ Hoonom mmumgpo cmcu mmmH ouuocmH> mco oxHH sow UHQ VOOV‘ Flt-{Hm Hl—‘NN m o H NH v HN HMHOB H o o N o N HHOHHHOUIUHGB v o o m m m UOOBHon H o H m H OH HMHGOHOU DcoEoz muncqu OQHHHmmm Hoadm hmcHnm UHmsz mow oz Hosmcm Hoonom mmumcbo coca ouoE oubocmH> oco oMHH so» UHQ Or-iOv-i ONON Hr-iON N m N m 0H HN HMDOB o o o o m m HHouppoolpumz H N H m m m UOOBHOQm H H H N h m HMHQOHOU DcoEoz huocsmq mcHHHomm nofinm wmoHnm OHmdz mow oz nozmcd Hoocom mmcooEOm EUHB opuocmH> was mmdoch 50m UHD 120 Which features of the vignettes did you like? School Answer Shortness Content Illustration Other Colonial 10 7 9 2 0 Sherwood 9 4 5 2 1 Ward-Cottrell l l l 1 0 Total 20 12 15 5 1 Did any vignette remind you of a similar happening? Described School Answer No Yes Incident Colonial 9 2 7 6 Sherwood 9 5 4 2 Ward—Cottrell 2 l 1 1 Total 20 8 12 9 121 Previous Literature The use of educational vignettes used as a form of idea presentation is largely undocumented. Vignettes, however, are used in different ways, depending upon the in— tended purposes. Literature regarding the use of vignettes fell predominately into three classes. Instructional Vignettes.—-Vignettes in this class are used as a base for future physical actions. The vignette describes a situation which the reader is intended to recognize and to react to in a previously specified manner. For example, nurses-in—training are given an anecdote. Based on the description, their subsequent actions with a patient are observed. The step—by—step procedures the nurse follows are dictated by the content of the anecdote. Her recognition of the salient features determine her actions and hence, her success. A study using this class of vignette is found in The American Journal of Mental Deficiency, Volume 70, May 1966, pages 835—839. While this study used vignettes, it was not deemed similar, only that it is rep- resentative of a class of usage of vignettes. Discussion Vignettes.—-Vignettes of this class are used primarily as a springboard for discussion. This class of vignettes sought a verbal exchange regarding the situa- tion described. The discussion focused on the pros and cons of the situation, with neutrality being virtually 122 unacceptable. Because of the mandatory features of the system, this class of vignette was also deemed dissimilar. An example representing the discussion type of vignette is the book Critical Incidents in Teaching, R. J. Corsini, Ed., Prentice-Hall, Inc., publisher. Open-ended Vignettes.——Vignettes classified as open- ended are used as a completion exercise. After reading the vignette, the reader is asked to complete the story, which has been prematurely ended. Thus, the reader is expected to react in order to complete the episode. Open—ended vignettes differ from instruction vignettes in that no specific re- sponse is solicited. The two classes are similar in that some reaction is necessary. Todays Education, the monthly magazing of the National Education Association, has a con- tinuing feature called classroom incident. This class of vignette is also deemed dissimilar in that it poses a ques— tion that is expected to be answered. In fact, the whole story is a questioning method which asks, What would you do? Vignettes similar to the ones used in this study were not found. In most of the vignettes examined, some sort of reaction was called for. The reaction could be positive or negative, but it was expected. Neutrality to the vignette was not acceptable. Compliance was another feature of the vignettes that differed from those vignettes in this study. While the vignettes in this study were used as an idea presentation, the other types of vignettes 123 called for doing something as a result of reading the vignette. Action of some sort was mandated. Whether or not the style appealed to the reader was not considered. The instructional type called for compliance in a chain—like fashion. The discussion type called for compliance as a verbal exchange. The open-ended type called for compliance in a "do something" mode. None accepted the notion that a vignette might not reach some readers. The literature on desirability is scanty, perhaps non-existent. Even one page religious writings, such as Guideposts or Upper Room, are produced only on a production base. Certainly, desirability is considered, but only as a projection based on the last previous publication's suc— cess. The more demand for the last publication in a series, then the more production of the next publication in a series. Production schedules of this type consider the speed of acceptance and the number used as a basis for future production of the writing. No data appears to be available regarding the number of readers who actively seek more of one page religious writing. The purpose of this study was to determine the de— sirability of educational vignettes by teachers of young children. Desirability was defined as a school person re— questing, of his own volition, more vignettes after reading a sample vignette. Educational vignette was defined as a 124 short, subtle, compact one page composition, with a story lead and an illustration. No literature was found in which vignettes were similar in intent, format, or use. Suggestions Educational vignettes of the type used in this study hold some promise as a vehicle for idea presentation to ele— mentary school personnel. For those people who wish to pursue further study with educational vignettes, several sug— gestions might be considered. In several discussions with teachers who had read the vignettes used in this study, one thought kept reoccurring Illustrations seemed to be the key to teachers' recalling a particular vignette. Illustrations seemed to gather more meaning as time elapsed since reading the vignette. This delayed effect is not shown in the data. Would educational vignettes presented in cartoon form be desirable to elemen— tary school personnel? What findings would evolve if this study were duplicated, with the only change being from prose and illustration to cartoon format? What would be the opin— ions given on vignette illustrations, 3 months after initial exposure to vignette? The population of readers in this study was elemen— tary school personnel. Would college professors find ideas, presented in educational vignette form, desirable? Would vignettes have to be re—written to focus toward college 125 professors? Would educational vignettes appeal to pre- service teachers as a carrier of ideas? Most of the vignettes centered around children, and most of these children had parents. Do educational vignettes present a format for increased communication between a pub- lic school and parents? Are educational vignettes an ap- propriate way of reporting to parents? Could educational vignettes bring about more parent involvement in schools? Most teachers reported that they did not read the vignettes on a one per day schedule. Would this be true if teachers were presented with a collection of many (30, 40, or 50) vignettes at one time instead of only a few (5) vi- gnettes? So far, the suggestions have only been concerned with those people who are the readers of the vignettes. What happens to the person who writes the vignettes? Would teachers who agreed to write educational vignettes of the type used in this study, find themselves with an increased awareness of the children, or themselves, or whatever? Do educational vignettes have any potential for self-enrichment? Do vignettes have any merit if written by the children? Summary The data shows that all teachers do not find educa— tional vignettes desirable. The finding is consistent with the variety of perceptions described earlier. People are 126 different and so are their perceptions. Educational vi- gnettes are ngt a panacea for idea presentation. However, educational vignettes are an appropriate vehicle for those persons who find the format a desirable one. Perceptions of the readers also varied regarding the best—liked vignettes, the least~liked vignettes, and the most- liked attribute of a vignette. Again, the difference in people is confirmed, as stated earlier concerning personal perception points. Not all teachers who read the vignettes discussed the vignettes with others. showing confirmation for the personal frowth style stated earlier. People are different. They differ in their personal perception points. They differ in their personal growth styles. They very in their preference of idea presentation vehicles. For those persons who prefer short, subtle, com— pact, illustrated stories, educational vignettes are fine. For those persons whose preference is for some other means, some other means should be used. An implication of the study is that the individual is the determinant of the appropriate- ness of most things, including the vehicle of idea presen— tation. People are important. The idea of individual worth is implied. Children in the vignettes are described as important. So are parents, teachers and principals. Even the general focus of each vignette was left to the discretion of each reader. The method of determining desirability 127 was based on individuals being worthy of deciding for them- selves. The decision each person made regarding desirability was made in the face of the no-demand features of the dis— tribution method and the no—demand feature of the vignette content. The decision, regardless of desirability or non- desirability, indicated the worthiness of each person to decide for himself. NIV. LIBRRR ES | \m m fHICH .1111 6725000