6 31 pm pst [ boys II ]
The aforementioned boys got in trouble again today (I
was with the lower schoolers) so I called their dean. Little did I know
that my supervisor had also called their dean and left him a note. I
think they were reading my diary in the classroom, which isn't kosher
because they aren't allowed to use the internet. What they do at home is
their parents' business. Either way, now my co-workers know that my diary
exists (my old supervisor did too), so I can't post any of the juicy
stories I'd been saving up.
I really wanted to have a good relationship with the
middle schoolers. I am willing to openly answer their questions about
drugs, sex, and whatever else they choose to occupy themselves with. I
always longed for an older sibling with whom I could share my questions.
With kids, I tend to strive to be that older sibling I never had (and that
I am to my younger siblings). But now I've had to post a little warning
on the front page of my site prohibiting anyone under 18, just because my
co-worker couldn't enforce the no internet policy today. I feel like the
kids are really missing out.
Our major concern with the younger kids is a rise in
the-wetting-of-pants. I had a great time with the kids in the computer
lab. It feels good to share something I'm good at.
I also monitored study hall and gave serious thought to
becoming a full time teacher. My current battle involves my personality.
I used to be very very bossy. Through years of battling this inborn
personality trait, I may have lost one of my "very's." I tried hard all
the time not to be bossy, but now I work somewhere where I am paid to be
bossy. My effort continues as I try to always asks the kids to do
something instead of telling them to. I always wonder if they'll notice
the difference. I am quite sure they don't but I make the effort anyway.
I used to be a peer counselor, and the most impactful
lesson that I learned is that the question "Why?" can be accusatory. We
were told it is accusatory, but I think it's a matter of context.
At my current job, my boss said that we should never ask the kids why they
did something, because they don't know. I think it's good to point out to
them that they were acting without thinking, since accountability and
responsibility is one of the more important lessons you can learn when you
are young.
Forgive me if I have said all this before, but my
father feels that children really need to learn one thing: In life there
are rules and if you break them there are consequences. I understand
where he was coming from, but sometimes I feel like he over-instilled this
belief in me. Because consequences aren't fixed. If you break the law,
you might get caught and you might not. If you hurt someone
(intentionally or accidentally) they can react in a whole host of ways, or
not at all. Yes, cause and effect is an important lesson, but so is
compassion. Is it possible to tell kids that they might not get caught
when they break the rules (a lesson which every child knows by the age of
four) but that a community depends on its members respecting its rules?
If everyone disobeys, the whole system breaks down. If no person in
America paid their income taxes this year, what could the government do?
You would have a lot of trouble prosecuting 275 million people when all of
the judges, lawyers, and jury members would need to be excused for having
committed the same crime.
I'm not saying that civil disobedience doesn't have its
place. It is one of the more beautiful aspects of our society. I can't
believe we have a constitution which protects peaceful demonstrations. [I
think what I'm trying to say is that] I believe that understanding why we
have rules and why they are important is a more valuable lesson than
understanding that there are rules and there are consequences if those
rules are violated.
