Former students would probably attest to the fact that few things tried my patience as much as did the statement, “This is boring!” As I reflect back on my many years in the classroom, I can’t help but feel a tad bit sorry for the first kid who made the mistake of uttering those words each year. Well, classes aren’t TV.
The sermon went something like this. “Nobody is BORED in my classroom. I work hard to plan fun and interesting activities that will allow you to learn. When you finish your work earlier than others, there are many choices of quiet things to do. You may use the book nook, puppet theatre, computer, writing center, art center, or the manipulative math corner. Now please, do NOT let me hear the word “bored” again!”
I suspect that each school year’s first offender felt like Calvin in one of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes cartoons. In the first two frames Calvin is sitting at his school desk looking totally bored, but saying nothing. In the third frame Calvin screams, “BORRRING!” In the final frame Calvin is heading for the Principal’s office muttering, “Yeah, yeah… kill the messenger.”
Although not many kids made the mistake of verbally uttering the “B” word a second time, I suspect they thought it (or mouthed it to their friends) more than once. Why do all teachers hear this complaint on a somewhat regular basis? Is it because most kids find the day-to-day classroom work too easy? Not hardly.
Contrary to popular opinion, the “bored” child is not always the academically gifted child who is not being challenged. As a matter of fact, that is rarely the case. More often than not, the “bored” student is one who is frustrated because he is not really understanding the material being presented, or does not yet possess the skill that he is being asked to demonstrate. (None of us like to admit that we aren’t up to doing a task that we’re expected to accomplish, or that we haven’t the foggiest notion about what is being explained to us. And for most of us, it’s easier to say, “I’m bored” than it is to say, “I’m struggling.”)
When a student of any age says he is bored, he oftentimes means something quite different. He is really saying, “This isn’t fun. This is work and I don’t want to work. I want to be entertained! Furthermore, I don’t understand what she (the teacher) is talking about or what I am supposed to do. ” In the mind of the student (albeit subconsciously), his cry of boredom shifts the blame and the responsibility from himself to the teacher.
If the child is unlucky, the “boredom syndrome” will give the parent a hook on which to hang criticism of the teacher, and no one will win. The parent blames the teacher, the teacher reacts defensively, and the child continues to flounder. An opportunity for helping a kid gets lost somewhere between the pointing fingers of the parent and the defense mechanisms of the teacher. The realities of parenting and education.
And what do I suggest you do if your child says, “School is boring”? Run (forget walk) to the telephone and request a conference with your child’s teacher. Advise the teacher of your concern. Assure “him” that you are not requesting a conference to assign blame to anyone, but rather to get his opinion as to what is really going on in the classroom that might prompt a declaration of boredom. I can assure you that your child’s teacher will appreciate your concern and do everything possible to work with you to determine the cause, and work toward a solution.
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Of all the phases of life, being a parent can be one of the most challenging. Many of us figure we can deal with events that come our way, but when you become a parent, it’s a whole different ball game. You swiftly realize that your children are little individual beings under your care and, while you might feel you can just buck up when it comes to situations that concern just you, being a parent requires that you make decisions for your children which may impact them for a lifetime. All of a sudden, you’re hit with the awesome responsibility of guiding your child in an effective and positive way. Although no one can attain perfection, you can certainly round out your knowledge with a few well-chosen parenting books!
Parenting Books can Help!
Everyone can remember making poor choices in their own life, resulting in a negative influence on the future course of events. For example, perhaps you didn’t heed your parent’s advice on education. Being young and full of life, you decided to be footloose and fancy free, getting a job and partying with your friends for instant fun. The trouble was, that you thereby got locked in to a situation that turned from immediate gratification into years of low income jobs. Now you’ve got kids of your own. You may think, “I’ll be sure my kids don’t fall into that trap!”
The question is, where did your parents go wrong? Why didn’t you heed their wisdom? In many cases, your parents didn’t fail you, and your natural developmental stages and urges spurred you on to a mistake for which you’ve paid for years. Maybe you decided to return to school, taking night courses while working and raising kids. You managed to break out of your poor choices. Yet, you realize that the same cycle might repeat itself with your own kids. Here’s where parenting books can help. More about Parenting Books.
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