June 13 - Teddy Bear School

​Teddy Bear School this morning, where the kids act as teachers to a class full of Teddy Bears. I'm going to try and let the pictures tell the story. 

Setting up.  

Taking attendance! From L to R: Bat Bear, Corduroy, Robear, Kuma, Pikachu, Charizard, Arctos, Arc, Tyrone, Fauxbear. Pikachar and Paddington, not pictured. 

Pikachu is the smallest so Zephyr built him a special flight suit. Interesting since Zephyr is the smallest in his class. 

Zephyr took the class through some Pokèmon cards. And before you poo poo the educational value of Pokèmon cards, consider that a good portion of the class WERE Pokèmon, so it was kind of like their cultural heritage.  

Zephyr did an interpretive dance at one point for the class? Not sure what that was about, honestly.  

Lyric brought in a blanket for choice time

These guys gathered on the blanket for dramatic play

Kuma played with blocks (and was joined by Pikachu eventually) 

Arctics played with what was supposed to be Legos, but was actually a different kind of blocks

And then pretty much the rest of Teddy Bear School was the two teachers really getting into playing with the blocks. Class dismissed!

Selfgrade: B+. I just let this one happen, which is probably the right way to play it.  

May 17 - Teddy Bear School

Today's class,  Back L to R: Arc, Arctos, Blue robot, Tyrone, Boris. Middle L to R: Fluffington Q. Ursine ("Fluffy"), Robear, Kuma, Perry, Chickens, Ragomorph. Front row: Crocodilus.

For Teddy Bear School today, we finally had a day where a lesson got taught rather than having a discipline matter that needed to be attended to. It was a science lesson! The boys met up before class to coordinate their lessons.

Very seriously discussing how to get through to those Teddy Bears. Real Jaime Escalante stuff.

Zephyr gave the class a quick presentation about how trains run on steam power:

And then Lyric taught the class about bats, and how to make them out of rubber ("Take some black rubber and make a bat with it").

And then it became kind of a lesson about Batman. Not exactly the most scientifically accurate presentation ever, but the students were well behaved, so I'll take it.

April 11 - Teddy Bear School

HYPOTHESIS: Children will let you know what happens at school more accurately if you let them take on the role of the teachers.

PROCEDURE: Subjects gathered and lined up the stuffed animals in "classroom formation". Larger animals (like Gruffalo and Boris the Allosaurus) were brought in because it was "Family Monday", and they were the parents of students in the class watching the lesson.

Back Row: Paddington, Fluffington Q. Ursine ESQ, Tyrone, Arctos, Boris the Allosaurus, Gruffalo (and his son Buffalo). Middle Row: Robear, Kuma, Chickens, Arc, Baby Dinosaur. Front Row: Corduroy.

To start the class, Subjects played the "name game" and had the teddy bears go about and say their names followed by the word "Baconshteen". The meaning and significance of the word "Baconshteen" was not explained to the researcher (me), nor was the fact that every fifth teddy bear was not supposed to say "Baconshteen". But the subjects clearly found it hilarious.

Lyric was about to start the lesson, involving throwing a ball to students.

The lesson was about to start, but then there was a commotion as Baby Dinosaur apparently bit Chickens and had to be seaparated from the class. The two subjects had different ideas of how Baby Dinosaur had to be disciplined, and the researcher let both try their own methods.

Lyric puts Baby Dinosaur in time out.

Younger subject put Baby Dinosaur into a green rocking device and gently explained that biting was never allowed in school. This was unsatisfactory to older subject, who, it should be noted, has recently been dealing with younger subject biting him on occasion. Older subject demanded sterner punishment, and took Baby Dinosaur to other room to go the Principal's office.

Principal Zephyr has a stern talking-to with Baby Dinosaur.

Older subject threatened Baby Dinosaur with expulsion from Teddy Bear School if he couldn't stop biting people. Younger subject came in to plea on behalf of Baby Dinosaur. Researcher stepped in to tell subjects that expulsion might be a little too severe, but it was on the table if Baby Dinosaur couldn't learn that you NEVER EVER BITE PEOPLE. Younger subjects (and Baby Dinosaur) seemed to understand.

RESULTS: Well, we didn't really get a chance to get to a lesson, but I think this exercise served as an effective means of conflict resolution for the two subjects. How effective remains to be seen, of course, but it clearly served as a forum for the older subject to express his frustration with the younger subject and highlight the reality of consequences. I'm not quite sure if this is an accurate reflection of how conflicts like biting are dealt with in school (and the difference in approach could be the difference between a biting incident happening in Pre-K versus 2nd grade), but it did let the kids act out a crisis and attempt to solve it. I rate that as a success.

However, in understanding what "Baconshteen" means, I am still clueless. Total failure on that point.