DO OVERS!
Playing Monopoly the other day, I was thinking about the “Get Out Of Jail Free” card. What a great idea…not really the jail part, but the whole idea of a “Do Over!” Think about it…we’re human…we screw up! It’s plain and simple and it seems like there is never a do over once it happens. You have to find some way to “make up for it”, but you don’t get a do over. Why not? Okay, mistakes are huge, some are repeated mistakes in which the person doesn’t learn, and some are just too catastrophic to allow do overs. Those ones just have to stand as it…but what about those little mistakes?
Picture this, a student in your class absolutely screws up…well, we forgive them and move on…DO OVER! They leave the classroom without signing out…DO OVER! They call someone a name in a fit of frustration and anger…DO OVER! DO OVER! DO OVER! DO OVER!
All of this has gotten me thinking about the other things students need. For example, if theydon’t make an assignment due date, maybe they should get a DUE OVER! card. That makes sense…a different due date. And maybe there are other things they should get as well.
At the beginning of the school year, I pack a survival kit for all of the students in my advisory. It includes snacks and notes and pencils and paper and all the other things they might need to make it through the first few days. But what about if that survival kit also included a deck of 52 cards…each labeled with some kind of message.
DO OVER cards & DUE OVER cards
And of course, what about including some of these cards:
GET OUT OF TROUBLE FREE
MY DUCT TAPE SLIPPED OFF MY MOUTH
THE SEAT BELT ON MY CHAIR BROKE
SOMETIMES, MY HANDS HAVE A MIND OF THEIR OWN
SORRY, THAT WORD JUST LAUNCHED ITSELF OUT OF MY MOUTH
OOPS! SORRY, I HAD BEANS FOR LUNCH
I WASN’T ROLLING MY EYES; I WAS JUST CHECKING TO SEE IF I COULD SEE MY BRAIN
IT’S NOT THAT I DON’T WANT TO LISTEN; MY EARS ARE JUST ON VACATION, TODAY!
I am sure you could think of a million more that I have not addressed. Your challenge, send them to me…and I will add them to my list when I get a bunch more. This could be rather fun!
Thank you to all of you who are writing comments. I haven’t let all of the comments through, some are more personal, or are issue related, but they are still very important.
Mary…the Phat/Fat Teacher