For That Little Boy
A little boy eager to live
A son, a brother, an animal lover, an explorer, a storyteller
An expert of many things.
Kindergarten
He became something different.
A student.
He would be forever changed
From that little boy.
He would be studied and watched.
That five year old would be documented
and analyzed.
He became curious about the world,
Enthusiastic for learning.
He was confident and shared his ideas.
Interacted with the other children
Aware.
“Friendly, cooperative with a positive attitude”,
Was the comment by the teacher.
Then…
There was a difficulty
A difficulty sticking to tasks
Redirection, deviation, remediation.
“Interfering with the completion of his tasks,” was the comment this time by the teacher.
It was documented. In writing.
Noticed not by any body in a neutral setting
But by the teacher-forever to be there
To follow that little boy.
Now identified, lagging behind, unfocussed.
His behavior would influence his success at school.
Isolated reactions to the world around him.
So clear in any other area of his life
But not school.
His need to move around
His disinterest in the task
His interest in others.
His identity imposed.
The red light goes off for all to notice.
Identified as an unwilling learner
A behavior problem.
Over the years it became accepted and reinforced
By the school and then
By that little boy.
Evidence collected, meetings held to support, not the boy… the teacher.
Labels assigned
Becoming the identity assigned to him
Nearly impossible to dissolve.
Stripping a pathway to the principal’s office.
Crossing the line only to add to frustration.
Finally,
a break.
A community of learners,
Cooperation and collaboration.
A concerned teacher
Focus on interest learning-taking that active role.
That boy… a change… hope.
Question to rank and grade, pass or fail.
Examining the consequences of decisions.
It can be different.
Individuals. Be that. Allow that
for that little boy
For every little boy.
