Stepping up to the Line

Yesterday in class, we did an activity with our Grade 9 class. The lucky thing about having our Discovery class is that all three sections have class at once and that we can get the whole group together anytime we want. Another great thing is we are still making this course up as we go – which just means that when something happens at school, or in our community, we have an opportunity to address it.

This past few weeks, we have been dealing with some issues of bullying.  Now I know that this is something that occurs in almost every school and sadly is something that we can not control, but it does not mean that we do not take it personally. It has happened in the classroom, in the dorm, on the teams and everywhere else. At a  staff meeting we had, we were encouraged to talk to our advisor group about the topic.

In Discovery class, we have been noticing that some of this stuff has been going on so we decided to talk to our kids about it a little while ago. We did a mini design thinking with the kids about three different aspect: social, community and learning. We challenged our students to think about how they could become better at each area and to come up with a statement that they could agree to. They would spend until Christmas tracking their behaviors and reflecting on their actions and how they impacted their self, others and the community around them.

Having the avenue to have conversations about this stuff with students has been powerful, but I didn’t know how powerful until yesterday.

After speaking with my co-teachers, Graham and Scott, I thought Friday would be a good day to run an activity. Now I am sure you have all heard of, or watched, “Freedom Writers“. (If not, it’s a must see!) It is an amazing story about a teacher who goes out of her way to reach her students. She struggles with a school who is full of conflict; whether it is racial or socio-economic differences, she was not afraid to comfort them. I was particularly struck by one activity that she did with her very eclectic group of students that required students to step up to a line if a statement applies to them. So I thought to myself, why not try that with my kids?

Now I know what you are thinking. What does a group of students in Rothesay, New Brunswick have in common with a bunch of kids from Long Beach, California? And honestly, not much. But what they do have in common is that although they come from different parts of the world and have different life experiences, they all have something in common. Could be an interest, a value or a part of a life story – but they can all make a connection with every student if they just get to know them.

Coming into this activity, I did not know what to expect. I am asking 40 Grade 9 students personal questions about themselves and asking them to open up to a room of students that they spend time with everyday. A big ask! I prefaced the activity with an intro and two rules: 1. No talking. (laughing giggling, snickering or body movements to suggest anything) and 2. You are not required to answer any question, only if you feel comfortable. I began by asking simple questions like “who likes daytime better than nighttime?” or “anyone who has glasses”. Then, we went deeper with questions like “anyone who have ever felt lonely” or “anyone who is a only child”. Finally, I went for it. I read statements like “anyone who was adopted” or “anyone who has had a family member struggle with addiction”. The most powerful moment was when I read the statement “anyone who has had a parent pass away” and after a few second, we had one girl step up to the line. It took her a few moments and tears were shed, but she was brave and came forward. The moment of silence that took place while she was on the line was the most overwhelming feeling I have had as a teacher. It was a pure moment of trust by this one student, and a moment of empathy and caring from the other 42 people in the room. Watching her step back into her group and see students hold her and give her a tap of support was overwhelming. When I asked students at the end of the activity how it made them feel to watch students go through this exercise there were comments like it gave them empathy for other students, it made them see each other differently and it made them more comfortable knowing they weren’t alone is certain situations.  We asked them to blog about their experience, no questions or no prompts, and it was probably the quietest room of Grade 9 students you will ever see.  No one was at a loss for words.

Taking a risk like this has ignited something in me. The conversation about this activity has carried over during the day and throughout the weekend. Students want more. This make me think about what I am doing with the students and how can I make these learning experiences more common in my classroom. My dad taught me many lessons in life, but one of them is “you have no right to think you are the most important person in the room. You have no idea what other people are dealing with in their own worlds and you have no right to forget that they exists.” It is something I strongly believe and want to encourage my students to be more aware of.

This has made me think. I have such a unique opportunity with this Cohort experience and all of the knowledgeable people I have met, I think I might want to change what my action plan is about and focus more on helping the students learn valuable life lessons that will help them develop as people.

Something I will be thinking about, and looking much more closely at over the next week or so!