PERSPECTIVE
Each new school year I tell my fourth grade students that I have two goals for the year: I hope the year will be filled with both learning and discovering things together; and I also hope there will be laughter and fun while learning. Andrew Brennan, Head of the Lower School, begins the year similarly with the parents. While informing them about traffic patterns for drop off and pick up, Andrew oſten uses homemade videos to illustrate his point. In one video he was run over by a parent who was on her cell phone or reading a book while waiting in car pool line. Te parents understood the message to be mindful during car pool, and they had a good chuckle while learning it.
Teaching in its most basic form seems simple: take a new concept or skill and help the student understand and use it. But I believe the craſt of our trade is in finding how to help the students enjoy the process. My teaching career began in very non-traditional schools where fun and play were the focus, oſten leaving skills and assessments in the background. I am thrilled to be at a school like STAB, which allows me (and my colleagues) to pursue the joy in learning, but also emphasizes the importance of standards and benchmarks.
One of my first Reading and Language Arts (RLA) classes each year begins with word puzzles. I put something like, “PAWALKRK” in front of them. When one of us solves the puzzle, we give each other clues to solve it, instead of just the answer. One student might say, “Tink something easy.’” Another might add, “Find words within the puzzle and think positioning.” Once everyone has decoded it, we all belt out, “A walk in the park!” I encourage them to use the new phrases in their writing or speech, and we all enjoy the “art” of language in one of our first Language Arts classes.
Across the hall, I see a similar play on words in Leo Connally’s homeroom. He designed and built an eight-foot “Poet-tree” in his classroom. From its branches hang students’ poems and famous poets’ works. Te children love honoring their poetry and enjoy reading their classmates’ and others’ fine writings.
Further down the hallway, I can oſten hear singing and guitar-playing coming from
42 – PERSPECTIVES/SUMMER 2011
In his own words, Mark Raffinan reflects upon ways in which teachers at St. Anne's-Belfield School strive to help students discover the fun in hard work.
the first Chinese emperor wished to protect his newly created country by creating a great wall around it. Karen LeMaire dresses up as the emperor and orders the “builders” (4th graders) to quickly construct the wall to prevent Mongolian warriors from invading. Leo Connally and I don Mongolian outfits and sneak up on the student workers. We mount imaginary horses, survey the land, and discover how the country is now impenetrable. Te students learn about the construction requirements, the purposes of the Great Wall creation, and enjoy laughing at their teachers playing the roles of historical (or hysterical) characters.
While teaching 4th graders about equivalent Don Hancock’s 3rd grade homeroom.
Regularly Don invites his students to join him in the poetry of music. He keeps lyrics posted, so children can practice their choral reading and learn about rhythm from these songwriters. Just recently Don welcomed kindergarten through 4th
grade students and
teachers to gather for a sing-a-long, so we could all enjoy the same fun his homeroom students did. His quintet included two former alumni, an eighth grade History teacher, and two Lower School students.
We have gathered together other times to show the children how much fun learning can be. During Jump Rope for Heart, the PE department explains the fundamentals of heart disease and staying healthy and fit. Students are challenged to raise money for the American Heart Association, are encouraged to dress in as much red as possible (literally from head to toe), and teachers compete for the coveted crown of King or Queen of Hearts. We show them that we all want to fight heart disease, and we have a blast doing it.
Our 4th grade team also looks for
opportunities to work together to have fun while teaching. During our Ancient China unit we try to impress upon the students how
fractions, we begin the class by giggling about the cute nicknames they used to call them when they were little. We smile about the complex derivations their names become on their sports teams. And the children enjoy the various nicknames I have been called as a child, brother, volleyball player, friend, teacher, and father. I talk to them about how all these names still refer to me, but some are me as a bigger person, and some are me as a smaller person. (I am not sure what I would be in simplest form.) Ten we explore how fractions can be split up into smaller pieces or grouped into larger groups and still name the same fraction.
At times teaching alone in a classroom can be isolating, but when I look down the hallways and see and hear the joy of learning happening in other classrooms, I realize the students and I are in a good place. We are all serious about our lessons, but we mix in some fun and laughter with it. If you know a Lower School student, ask him or her about Poem in Your Pocket day, Mr. Brennan’s “Magic Carpet Ride” videos, Zumba-thon, or Mrs. Grosch’s Nature Walks.
I take pride in watching how what I do helps my students understand the world, think more critically, and develop skills, but I get a greater sense of pride from watching them truly enjoy their days at St. Anne’s- Belfield. I know that some day when they are lawyers, accountants, veterinarians or teachers, they will be building on the skills that we are learning now. It is my hope that they are also able to seek out the fun in hard work, as I try to do each day in my 4th classroom.
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