April 19, 2011
Even if the State Department of Education didn't require that we teach about the Oklahoma City bombing, I'd do it anyway. April 19, 1995 came before any of my students were born and only two of them have even been to the Memorial. I didn't live in Oklahoma until 1999, and I know I didn't experience that day as tragically as others did, but I still understand the significance of that event in our nation's history. I was searching websites for videos that were appropriate to show 3rd graders and finally found a couple that I thought would be a good fit. We sat and watched and my kids' eyes were glued to the screen. I could see it on their faces and later in our discussion - they were shocked that someone could even come up with that idea, much less have the nerve to carry it out. Several questions were asked following the video, including these: "Who did that?" "He really killed children?" and "Why would someone think that was ok?"
The most difficult was this: "Is he in jail?" And when I replied "no" they got angry. I could see they were upset that someone who killed so many innocent people would be free. After much discussion about what should've happened to those responsible, I finally brought it to a close with "Well, he's not in jail and he's not free either. When people kill people, a lot of times they die too." It was amazing when my students' expressions went from angry to shocked to calm in a matter of seconds. I realized that they, in their innocence, thought this was the only fair thing to do. It brought peace to a classroom of 22 third grade students to know that justice had been done.
While April 19, 1995 will forever be remembered as a day of tragedy followed by years of healing, April 19, 2011 will be a day that is etched in my mind as well. It was today that I caught a glimpse of children dealing with emotions that were new to them. Emotions brought on by a 10-minute video about people they never met and an event they weren't even alive to experience.
The most difficult was this: "Is he in jail?" And when I replied "no" they got angry. I could see they were upset that someone who killed so many innocent people would be free. After much discussion about what should've happened to those responsible, I finally brought it to a close with "Well, he's not in jail and he's not free either. When people kill people, a lot of times they die too." It was amazing when my students' expressions went from angry to shocked to calm in a matter of seconds. I realized that they, in their innocence, thought this was the only fair thing to do. It brought peace to a classroom of 22 third grade students to know that justice had been done.
While April 19, 1995 will forever be remembered as a day of tragedy followed by years of healing, April 19, 2011 will be a day that is etched in my mind as well. It was today that I caught a glimpse of children dealing with emotions that were new to them. Emotions brought on by a 10-minute video about people they never met and an event they weren't even alive to experience.
Comments
Post a Comment