When I worked at KIPP in Atlanta, I had a coworker that would always say, "Teamwork makes the dream work!" I would listen politely and then walk away, grumbling about corny, rhyming teacher-phrases.
Fast forward 5 years, it's the first day of school in my new school in Charlotte and I'm standing in front of my new group of fifth graders. They don't know me and I, frankly, don't know them. I have many things to tell them about how different this classroom is, from their past classrooms. I usually start, though, by letting them know that they are a team and I am a stand for them to be an extraordinary team all year long. I use the typical sports analogy. We can only win as a team if we work together. But this is still very common Teacher Chatter, and I'm pretty sure I sound like the teacher from Charlie Brown. The real work happens during the school year. Every day.
How do I have my class become an extraordinary team each year? Here are some of the things I do:
-Play kickball!
Our class plays against my team teacher's class in a weekly Friday tournament. The kids learn all sorts of invaluable lessons during these games: compromise for the greater good, communication, kindness (in winning or losing), hard work for a long term goal, perseverance and the importance of optimism (encouraging yourself) and encouraging others. Just last week, the girls in my class (who were originally extremely resistant to kick ball) ran their own game during recess!
-My language
I never refer to their peers as classmates. They are always TEAMMATES. When someone isn't doing well in the class, it weakens the team. I also am very careful not to refer to MY classroom. This is OUR classroom, OUR supplies, OUR behavior in the hallway. We're all in the together.
-Class communication
Opposite our very American individualism, I teach the kids to be concerned for their more disruptive or distracted peers. During Community Meeting, at the beginning of the school year, I ask if there are any Class Concerns, and there typically aren't any, or they are tattles. I know I need to train them what, exactly, to be concerned about. This isn't a logical thought process for them. It is a taught skill. They learn that not only is someone yelling out answers in class a concern (clearly), but also someone quietly drawing a picture during an important math lesson. The Drawer isn't disrupting anyone but herself, but it is still a concern. When she doesn't learn enough, it weakens our team.
-Who solves the problems
Rarely do I have to step in to solve a problem anymore with my class. They solve about 90% of them on their own. They learn that it's important to try and solve problems with each other (by communicating with each other) before bringing them for the class to solve during Community Meeting. If it's brought as a Class Concern, the community will then find a solution. A very important piece of this is sharing and stating the impact of whatever happened. This helps them differentiate between issues that are actually problems and issues that aren't. I will step in to help with immature students who are developmentally not ready to be held accountable by their peers yet (usually one or two each year). They still need an adult to be present to do the right thing. But they learn, by the end of the year, the positive results that come when they listen and work together with their peers.
Recently, I watched a Community Meeting happen, and these were the two Class Concerns:
1. The literacy teacher walked by in reading class and a student sniffed the air because he liked her perfume.
2. When getting into groups, a student sat in other student's seat. When told of his mistake, the original seat-sitter said it wasn't a problem for the kid to stay in the seat.
As you can tell, neither of those are concerning at all. I reflected later on why they would bring those up in Community Meeting. Haven't I taught them what to be concerned about? Then I realized- there were no actual concerns that day! This was a shock to them and they were grabbing at straws. Every day, problems arise. The difference in my class, is it is communicated directly to the person and resolved immediately.
What if us adults did this? Had a problem, brought it up immediately to that person and walked around totally self expressed and complete about our relationships and communication. There would be no need for gossip, "venting" (which many times is a euphemism for gossip), passive-aggressive behavior or general resentment.
How great would life be if our "team" was the world and we really saw how connected we are? When I hurt you, I really hurt me.
Fast forward 5 years, it's the first day of school in my new school in Charlotte and I'm standing in front of my new group of fifth graders. They don't know me and I, frankly, don't know them. I have many things to tell them about how different this classroom is, from their past classrooms. I usually start, though, by letting them know that they are a team and I am a stand for them to be an extraordinary team all year long. I use the typical sports analogy. We can only win as a team if we work together. But this is still very common Teacher Chatter, and I'm pretty sure I sound like the teacher from Charlie Brown. The real work happens during the school year. Every day.
How do I have my class become an extraordinary team each year? Here are some of the things I do:
-Play kickball!
Our class plays against my team teacher's class in a weekly Friday tournament. The kids learn all sorts of invaluable lessons during these games: compromise for the greater good, communication, kindness (in winning or losing), hard work for a long term goal, perseverance and the importance of optimism (encouraging yourself) and encouraging others. Just last week, the girls in my class (who were originally extremely resistant to kick ball) ran their own game during recess!
-My language
I never refer to their peers as classmates. They are always TEAMMATES. When someone isn't doing well in the class, it weakens the team. I also am very careful not to refer to MY classroom. This is OUR classroom, OUR supplies, OUR behavior in the hallway. We're all in the together.
-Class communication
Opposite our very American individualism, I teach the kids to be concerned for their more disruptive or distracted peers. During Community Meeting, at the beginning of the school year, I ask if there are any Class Concerns, and there typically aren't any, or they are tattles. I know I need to train them what, exactly, to be concerned about. This isn't a logical thought process for them. It is a taught skill. They learn that not only is someone yelling out answers in class a concern (clearly), but also someone quietly drawing a picture during an important math lesson. The Drawer isn't disrupting anyone but herself, but it is still a concern. When she doesn't learn enough, it weakens our team.
-Who solves the problems
Rarely do I have to step in to solve a problem anymore with my class. They solve about 90% of them on their own. They learn that it's important to try and solve problems with each other (by communicating with each other) before bringing them for the class to solve during Community Meeting. If it's brought as a Class Concern, the community will then find a solution. A very important piece of this is sharing and stating the impact of whatever happened. This helps them differentiate between issues that are actually problems and issues that aren't. I will step in to help with immature students who are developmentally not ready to be held accountable by their peers yet (usually one or two each year). They still need an adult to be present to do the right thing. But they learn, by the end of the year, the positive results that come when they listen and work together with their peers.
Recently, I watched a Community Meeting happen, and these were the two Class Concerns:
1. The literacy teacher walked by in reading class and a student sniffed the air because he liked her perfume.
2. When getting into groups, a student sat in other student's seat. When told of his mistake, the original seat-sitter said it wasn't a problem for the kid to stay in the seat.
As you can tell, neither of those are concerning at all. I reflected later on why they would bring those up in Community Meeting. Haven't I taught them what to be concerned about? Then I realized- there were no actual concerns that day! This was a shock to them and they were grabbing at straws. Every day, problems arise. The difference in my class, is it is communicated directly to the person and resolved immediately.
What if us adults did this? Had a problem, brought it up immediately to that person and walked around totally self expressed and complete about our relationships and communication. There would be no need for gossip, "venting" (which many times is a euphemism for gossip), passive-aggressive behavior or general resentment.
How great would life be if our "team" was the world and we really saw how connected we are? When I hurt you, I really hurt me.
