3.16.2010

The post in which I...

...tell everyone that I'm not a wife (yet), or a mother (yet). So why am I here? Well, what teacher (which I am) doesn't have a million stories about the unpredictability of those sometimes tiny creatures we gestate for 9 months before sending them out into the world? To speak in the vernacular of those crazy internet cats: storez. I haz 'em.

One of my earliest stories, and one of my all-time favorites, deals with a very precocious 3-year-old named Ethan. Ethan was one of those kids who you just never knew what he was going to do or say. His play was no different. During free time one morning, I noticed that he had an elaborate Lego setup going on one of the tables. And when I say elaborate, I mean huge. The chairs, the table, no surface was safe from the presence of those tiny pieces. I watched him for a while, trying to figure out what was going on in his mind because he was quite intent on the project. After a few minutes I walked over.

"Hey Ethan. What are you building here?"

"I'm building a spaceship!"

"Wow! That's fantastic. Are you going to the moon?"

"Uh uh. I'm going to the sun."

Now I should say here, that this stunned me. And that's not easy to do. But I went with it.

"Won't you be hot?"

He gives me this look. You know. The look all children have genetically programed into them for when they know the adults in their lives are just stupid. I call it the "duh" look.

"I'll wear sunglasses."

I blinked. And then I tried not to laugh. "Okay Ethan. The sun it is."

He went about happily building his ship for the rest of his free time. I learned a valuable lesson that day-- sunglasses can make anything happen. And Ethan, all of 3, remembered to think outside of that proverbial box.

9 comments:

  1. Very cute! I worked as a teacher too. There are so many wonderful quotes from kids. They have limitless imaginations. (Just like writers!)

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  2. I know that "adults are so DUMB" look all too well. My niece is a little smartypants and she gives us that look a lot.

    Also, this reminds me...I need a new pair of sunglasses.

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  3. Great teacher! And good on you for not telling him he couldn't! You never know. Those could have been some super high-tech sunglasses that adults just can't understand!

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  4. I agree with Carole! So great of you to let him do it his way. Last week my daughter's preschool teacher told a boy he couldn't color his dolphin brown, because that was wrong. I thought it pretty sad.

    Thanks for the lesson! ;)

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  5. I know that look! I got it from my son this morning. He's, um, 21. Great story!

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  6. For a lot of teachers, especially those of us in Early Childhood, it is soooooooo difficult to let go of those conventions and just have fun with reality! My first thought with Ethan was to fly to the moon, and that's why his response threw me a bit. This story actually happened... oh my god, 13 years ago. This kid is driving now! LOL But it's a lesson I remind myself to remember every day.

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  7. I love that. My daughter, when she was around 5, once commented on some horses outside on a very hot day, "Won't they get a sunburn?" Precious.

    Nice story.

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  8. I think we should pay more attention to the way those little ones think. They cut to the chase!

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  9. I love three-year-olds! I'm on my fourth one. They are a delight.

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