Monitor and Adjust

The last 12 months have been a whirlwind...I have completed a Masters program, had a bouncing baby boy, and began a new job as a second grade teacher. Teaching is the most amazing profession and I feel lucky everyday that I get to hang out and learn with some truly amazing kids...they always teach me to stay on my toes...

I decided that it was time to introduce my students to a new song. In my internship I did a fun thing with my coaching teacher and his class (thanks Tim) that I thought I would try with mine. Tim is always great at finding and sharing great music; he began playing With my Own Two Hands for literature appreciation and the kids really took to it. It is such a great social activism piece and the version I found on YouTube with Ben Harper and Jack Johnson makes tears come to my eyes.

I figured since the recent outreach to Haiti that's gracing the news and our class had been discussing segregation and the power people have, it seemed like a good time to start playing it. So, the first day we read it as a class and the kids seemed interested--not as much as I hoped. I tried to excite them my telling them we would hear the song the next day.

The next day came and I played it for them in the morning. I was pretty pumped about it. I knew it was going to inspire them and couldn't wait until the brilliant discussion we were about to have. I saw a few kids swaying to it as they cleaned up and readied themselves to meet on the carpet. After the song finished I was beaming. I asked simply..."so, what did you think?" A wonderfully energetic and often insightful friend raised his hand. I eagerly called on him. "I thought it was long," he said. I think I staggered back a little and mumbled, "Um...well... it is longer than many othere songs we often listen to," I tried to recover and quickly asked someone else to volenteer their feelings. One of the most talented writers in the class said, "I agree, I thought it was very long."
"Okay," I turned in hope to another raised hand and with a nervouse grin nodded in the direction of a girl in the front row. with an honest smile on her face she announced, "I thought it was kinda weird the way they sounded when they sang it." It was official...the kids didn't share my enthusiasm.

We did have a thought provoking discussion about the meaning of the song. The kids had some great insight about the lyrics and have since made some great connections back to what i meant. However, in the end they voted against playing the song during our clean up time. I have to admit I was a little disappointed they didn't share my love for the song. I truly appreciate how they teach me everyday that I need to remain flexible. Everyday in the room is different and sometimes what you think is going to be powerful may fall flat and what you think is going to be boring may becomes exceptional.