Schools are places where students learn a lot of different
things. Recently, I have been noticing
how much of the work we do is about building independence and the responsibility that goes along with it. In kindergarten, children learn to select and
stick with an activity during choice time.
In lower grades, teachers make sure that classrooms are set up in a way
that builds independence – materials are labeled and accessible, schedules of the
day are posted and reviewed, and children are encouraged to try to solve social
problems on their own before reaching out to an adult for help. By middle
school, students are increasingly responsible for keeping track of their
calendars of due dates and tests. They are also coached on communicating with
their teachers about areas of difficulty. (Teachers will reach out to students
if there is a need, but we are coaching students to advocate for
themselves.)
Our students are building independence and responsibility
for themselves in a lot of different ways.
At the same time, we want them to take on responsibility for the
community. One way we do this is to have KP duty at lunch. Each lunch period, homerooms or classes are
responsible for making sure that garbage is put away, tables wiped down and
floor swept. Our students do this fairly
well. There are skills we need to teach
such as how to wring out a wet cloth and wipe down tables (note: holding a
dripping cloth between thumb and fore finger and waving it vaguely in the
direction of a table isn’t so effective!)
In addition to this really basic skill, we are also teaching the
students to be more aware of how they leave a communal space -- wrappers and
milk cartons need to be tossed, a school of goldfish crackers shouldn’t be left
swimming on the floor under the table, splashed milk should be wiped up. Students are mostly pretty good about this,
though, at times we need to do some familial nagging to get the job done.
Recently, I have been having conversations with some
teachers and parents that reference the importance of building
independence. As grown ups, we can be
conflicted about how to strike a balance between encouraging independence and
responsibility and taking care of our children.
Some of this conflict arises out of the constant press for time. Parents
will carry backpacks in order to get out of the house on time for school. Teachers and lunch staff will wipe down
tables because another group of kids is coming into the lunchroom and we need
to get moving. We also often worry about
their sense of self. By helping them to
solve social problems or do homework on their own, the more confident they will
become.
Helping our children become independent and responsible is one of the most important ways we can help them become successful adults.
