Devon Makes a Friend - A Book Review

I recently was sent the book Devon Makes a Friend by Jessica Davault by the author and I wanted to share my thoughts about this book. I am not being paid to write this review.

Sometimes it is really hard for some children to make friends. This book really breaks down the steps to take in order for a child to make a friend. Not only is this a fantastic book for parents to use with their children who have trouble making friends but I thought this would be an excellent book for an elementary school teacher to use in a classroom. It could be used as a class lesson and students could even give other suggestions that they think might be helpful. It would also help all students learn proper social skills. Teachers can also use it with individual students who may be struggling with this challenge. If students have a disability that causes them to struggle with social skills, this would be a perfect book for them!

I would highly recommend this book to teachers and parents. If you read it, please let me know what you think.

National Stop Bullying Day

October 12, 2022, is National Stop Bullying Day.

When I was growing up, I was bullied at school. I was bullied because I was the only Chinese girl at school and I was different. I think children tend to treat those who are different badly unless they are taught not to do this. When I was in school, our country was getting into the Vietnam War and people did not treat Asians well. It was tough for me going through school but as I was repeatedly told, what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.

As I look back at those years, I wonder why no adult ever intervened. Maybe they believed that it would make me stronger. Maybe they quietly agreed with the bullying but I hope not.

It wasn’t until the 1970s that the topic of bullying began to be researched. By then I was ending my public school career and moving on to college. College was so much better and life was good. I didn’t experience any bullying in college, thank goodness.

I’m glad to see in today’s society we are teaching students not to bully and we are teaching those who are bullied to stand up for themselves. We are also teaching those who see bullying to stand up for those that need help.

I think it is essential to discuss this in class with all ages of students. It is important to identify acts of bullying and make a list of these. Students share their ideas of what they think bullying is. Then I would discuss what the person being bullied can do. Next, I would encourage students to talk about what should be done if they witness an act of bullying. The more these discussions happen, the easier it will be to stop bullying.

How do you teach about stopping bullying? Please share.

Photo by Ilayza on Unsplash

Effective Design

“The NVIV (Next Vista Inspiring Video) series of posts are written by Rushton Hurley and designed to provide students and teachers with fascinating discussion prompts.”

In Effective Design, Rushton features a video showing a robotic dog

He gives the following prompts to accompany this video:

“Try making a note of each thing the designers of the robotic dog added to make the robot successful. How many different things were you able to identify? What else intrigues you about the robot?

To make this work, the designers engaged in a lot of planning. What is something you’d like to make happen, and how many details can you explore in trying to give yourself the best chance for success?”

I’m always fascinated by robots and to see a robotic dog was even more exciting! I sometimes think that this is something that some people with special needs go through every day. They are different and trying to fit in with the majority of society. As a teacher, I try to find the little nuances that will help them fit in with their peers. This would be a great video to show some of these students to help them realize what they need to do in everyday life in order to fit in with people their own age.

Please check out the video and think of other prompts you might come up with. Please share.

Working Together

In Better Together: 9 Benefits of Team Learning from Lisa Nielsen: The Innovative Educator, Lisa asks,

“Have you attended a learning opportunity with others? If so, did you realize any of these benefits? Anything missing? What are some strategies you’ve put in place for successful team learning?”

I have mixed feelings about working in a group. Sometimes I like it and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.

When it works:

·      I enjoy the fact that I’m not alone.

·      I like that I don’t have all the responsibility.

·      One person is the leader and coordinates all activities.

·      One person makes sure that all parts are being completed in a timely fashion.

·      Each team member uses their individual strengths to work towards a shared goal.

·      Everyone pulls their weight.

·      If we run into an obstacle, we talk out the problem and come up with a solution faster.

·      It is successful if everyone completes their tasks.

When it doesn’t work:

·      Everyone wants to be the leader and take charge.

·      Everyone doesn’t pull their weight.

·      Not everyone in the group gets along because of personality conflicts.

·      When someone makes a mistake, they refuse to admit it.

·      I don’t like that I have to work on everyone else’s timeline. This might mean that I can’t do my part until someone else completes their part. If they don’t complete their part in a timely fashion, I can’t get my part done on time so we might miss a deadline.

·      Everyone blames someone else in the group for the group’s failure to complete the goal.

I think it is important that we teach students how to work in a group. This is not something that comes naturally and requires social skills. It is important to discuss what happens when it works and what happens when it doesn’t work. They need to see that working as a group is like working as a machine.

It would be great to bring in some kind of machine that you can remove a part or two. Show them how it works when all the parts are together. Then take out a part or two and see if it still works. Explain to the students that this is just like working as a group.

Working as a group or team is a job skill that everyone needs to learn. They don’t have to like everyone on their team but when they are on a job, they are required to reach the goal assigned and it doesn’t matter if they like each other.

How do you teach students to work in a group? Please share.

Photo by Quino Al on Unsplash