Written by Getting myself to the other side of the first post. Today I reflected on a big failure while teaching and what I learned. I went with my open puberty talk in Grade 4, which worked well in the first two years. I wanted to foster a safe and open environment where the students could ask any questions that were eating them. This past year I had two totally inappropriate students who talked about orgies and cybersex and all sorts of things they have researched themselves on the internet, which the others were not ready for. I learned that I need to be using a questions box so I can control the conversation and keep it in the appropriate area.
Been there with the inappropriate comments Bryan. I do love the discussions that come from great student questions especially in that unit though.
It is a fine line for sure. I suppose I shouldn’t limit good questions just because a few students take liberties and steer us off the rails. I am still searching for the right balance of openness and control.