If you're hearing the trumpet-blasting
introit to this 80s classic, you and I have things in common. Why am I talking
80s radio burn in a blog about teaching? It's the solution to a conundrum I was
having with my students. Since the first week of school, I have struggled to encourage
students to share their victories with me. I have a part of my bulletin board
in the back of the room dedicated to this desire called "Staying Informed.”
For three marking periods, my results were the same. Nothing.
This generation’s aversion to bragging
is so strong that they could not even bring themselves to speak or write of
their accomplishments, even when encouraged to do so. Then somewhere, from deep inside, the middle school version of me began boogying up into my consciousness.
“You want to celebrate their accomplishments, right? ---Selllllll
A BRATE Good Times COME ON! J J” …and then the trumpets and the electric
guitar started playing in my head.
Fortunately, I
did not burst into song at the moment. I was walking around proctoring state
testing and eyeballing my empty bulletin board when it came to me.
I tried it out on my homeroom. I
pulled up a prehistoric Commodores video of the gang singing the song and
played it for my students after the tests were collected. I gave each student a
3x5 index card and explained my reasoning. I told them I wanted to celebrate their
good times with them and publish them on the board. They learned they did not
have to put their names on the face side of the cards if they wished to remain
anonymous but I wanted to hear from all of them.
“What has been a bright
spot in your life for the 2013-2014 school year? It doesn’t have to be school related;
it just has to have happened during your 8th grade career.”
The results were pretty interesting.
Students celebrated becoming athletic leaders on their teams, mastering back
flips, killing and gutting their first deer (I teach in rural Pennsylvania---
hunting is a big deal here. So much so that you’re cool if you wear Hollister,
Aeropostale, or hunting camo--- not necessarily in that order) students rejoiced
in being scoring leaders in their sport, perfect scores on Social Studies
tests, being selected to play on 18 and Under travel sports teams, and trips to
foreign countries… finally. They opened up and let me in.
Lesson learned: Celebrations are cool-- brag boards are droll. That’s their story and I’m learning from them.
