Five-year-old Max stood with his small right hand raised,
staring transfixed into the stern gentleman’s eyes who stood across the
counter. I listened with a lump in my throat as he recited an oath in the most
heartfelt, serious manner I had ever heard him speak. “As a Junior Ranger, I Max, will do all I can
to take care of and protect Rocky Mountain National Park and the plants and
animals that live here. I promise to continue to explore, learn about, and
respect the natural world wherever I go.” Many of you know that there are few
emotions as powerful as a parent’s pride in their child. I swallowed the lump
in my throat and made a commitment to support Max in his oath.
Max had an adventurous summer in which we traversed 12 states
camping, hiking, and exploring mountains, prairies and plains. He was a
builder, swimmer, and a gamer. So many of the lessons he learned can be applied
to a classroom environment. Let’s
explore some of these lessons.
The Power of Service – Beyond the beautiful vistas witnessed
in Big Sky Country, Max especially enjoyed the fauna. Bears, elk, coyotes,
marmots, and ground squirrels were some of his favorites. One can’t help but
want to conserve these landscapes and the creatures that abound there. Max’s oath
solidified a drive to protect and respect our natural world. One of the primary
actions that the Park Rangers share is for tourists to NOT feed the wildlife.
Feeding wildlife creates issues with human encounters that can endanger these
precious species. I knew that Max took this to heart when he approached an
adult who was tossing peanuts at a hungry ground squirrel, and redirected his
behavior. It takes courage and commitment to redirect a grown man when you are
not even 4 feet tall. One of the most powerful intrinsic motivators for us all
is to have a sense of purpose. We are driven to have an impact and be a part of
something that is bigger than ourselves. Do your learners see themselves as an
important individual in the bigger community that is your classroom? How can we
engage our students in service as a motivator?
Measuring Up – Max is a strong swimmer for his age.
Sometimes it feels like he is almost TOO comfortable in the water. Last summer,
on a visit to the Blue Bell Aquatic Center, Max was excited to go down the
water slide. Unfortunately, he did not meet the minimum height requirement.
What happened next was remarkable. A life guard offered to give Max a swim test
to see if he was capable enough to safely navigate the pool at the base of the slide.
After swimming a lap, the life guard was confident in Max’s mastery and allowed
him to slide to his heart’s content. Without the extra effort on the part of
the guard, Max’s experience would have been limited and his engagement would
have been less. We see arbitrary limits set in classrooms every day. What can
we do for our learners who walk in the door already masterful in the skills we
are teaching? How can we give them a “swim test” and allow access to an area of
learning that they would otherwise be denied?
Leveraging Passion – Max has a newfound love. It started as
just a ripple and grew to a tidal wave. A handful of Pokémon cards purchased by
Grandma Sue stretched to a binder bulging with hundreds of cards. This was
followed by a drive to binge watch Pokémon cartoons on Netflix. The exclamation
point at the end of this near addiction was Pokémon Go. Courtney and I have been forced to learn more
about the Pokémon Universe so we can engage with Max over his new passion. As
parents, we found it necessary to set some limits on his time pursuing this
passion so that he did not get lost in this alternative universe. Educators
know that finding success with our learners starts with relationships. One
surefire way to connect with others is by discovering their passions. This can
be especially true of our most challenging students. When dealing with
behaviors, remember that allowing students to indulge in their passion can be
leveraged as a reward for doing the right thing. How do you discover your student’s passions
and engage them through those passions?
Keeping it Real – Santa brought Max a workbench for his
3-year-old Christmas. For quite some time, he found great joy using plastic
hammers and toy saws. He connected faux wood pieces of foam with over-sized
screws in the shapes of bird houses, rocket ships, and cars. Max is a builder
by nature. Over time his interest in building with these toys waned and the
workbench became a dust collector. To reignite his fire to build we shifted to
real tools and real projects. Hammers, screwdrivers, and paintbrushes… oh my!
The authenticity of the work made it engaging. In the classroom, we can extend
our student’s experiences beyond artificial problems and scenarios. How do you
allow your students to own their learning and make it authentic?
This post started with describing an oath that Max took to
earn his Jr. Ranger badge. I propose that we modify this oath and make it fit
our role as parents and educators. Would you join me in this oath?
“As an educator/parent,
I Mark, will do all I can to take care of and protect the success of children.
I promise to continue to support their exploration, learning, and passion
wherever I go.”
