Back when Eli entered first grade at Expo we noticed something pretty special about his class- it was filled with boys who loved to read. We fired up a book club and enjoyed quite a few monthly meetings which included some reading, some discussion, and a whole lot of crazy playing. After first and second grade together in the same idyllic classroom under the direction of the teaching artist Ulla, the boys were spread far and wide into Expo's eight third/fourth grade classrooms and the bookclub died off. Now as fifth graders, they are no closer- almost all of them in different classes, and one in a different school. But Eli showed interest in reuniting the crew, and when I put out feelers, the response was enthusiastic. The adults tried to think back to lessons learned from our last go-round and the only one that stuck out was: meet outside. Eight fifth grade boys do not fit well into any of our living rooms. Especially once they start moving. And despite their shared love to read, they also share a deep love of moving.
We had our initial meeting this past weekend at Maddox. As different pairs rolled up to the park via bikes, feet, or cars, the boys were drawn immediately to the playground while the parents huddled at a sunny picnic table and tried to come up with some ground rules. We found we didn't need them. When we called the boys over they came quickly, sat down, and spent the next 45 minutes enthusiastically throwing out book suggestions, giving quick plot summaries, and the occasional critique (Eli was heard once bemoaning that 'the conflict in the first book of the series was seriously underdeveloped' to which several boys knowingly nodded acknowledgement). We then had a quick lesson in civics when we used instant runoff voting (I think) and then dealt with voter fraud and the buying of votes.
Once the business was taken care of, the boys instantly went back to playing, weaving their way around the younger kids who were out in droves on a rare sunny day in April. Hovering parents of the younger set eyed our boys with trepidation- perhaps nervous that THIS is what their little sweet loves will turn into. Skinny, fast-moving, loud, competive boys playing some crazy version of tag that involves tackling. But I love the thought that we can whistle and the roving pack of pre-teen boys will stop their active play and sit around in the sun and discuss a book. And these are Expo-trained book clubbers. They are analyzing conflict, making 'text to self' connections, discussing the merits of different methods of character development, and generally knocking this book club idea out of the park.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Tag: new school style
My boys have been loving these dusky evenings (that is until this dang cold spell that has ushered us back inside- what happened to spring??) when the greatest entertainment is not found on some screen, but rather out in the yards and the alleys and between the houses. The neighborhood pack of kids has been running hard and running strong this spring. Eli is oldest. Under him is a crew of boys around Theo's age, then a couple 5 year old girls. They all play together quite well, thanks to Eli's tender spot for little ones.
One might question this tender spot after you find out that the latest tag game they have developed is based on the current young adult cult hit book series, The Hunger Games. If you haven't read The Hunger Games, I do recommend it, but with some caution. We read it aloud with both the boys and it was tough for Theo, but once we started it was hard to not finish. It's based in a dystopian society in the future of America. The evil Capitol keeps control by forcing each 'district' to contribute two 'tributes' to the Hunger Games each year. The tributes are chosen through lottery and are pulled from the kids- aged 12 to 18. The odds of avoiding the games favor the rich and connected. Once chosen, the 24 tributes are remade into temporary icons by design teams, then put into an arena, where they battle natural obstacles (designed by evil game-makers) and each other. To the death. They form alliances, make plans, betray each other, and die. It's quite a book.
So imagine my chagrin when I hear that the boys have developed a tag game based on the book. I don't think most of the neighbors have read it, so there's that.... When I questioned Eli about it, he assured me that they don't do more than tag each other, and really, the story is no more or less violent than the previous tag incarnation's origin: Lord of the Rings. Ok. if I had to chose, would I go with my boy impersonating a unfortunate, but crafty, capitol tribute, or a bloodthirsty Orc? Not sure. Eli explained that they gather all the neighborhood nerf weapons in a pile, then stand in a circle around them (immitating the opening Hunger Games scene of tributes circling the cornucopia of weapons/food/medicine). When someone yells go, they can choose to make the dangerous dash for a weapon, or they can hightail it to some hiding spot. Then the tagging begins. It's a sort of 'everybody's it' and if you're tagged you're out. Or dead. They form alliances, and betray each other, and strategize late into the dusky evenings. And I think they all love it. And I think it's relatively harmless.
But then, a week or so back, several neighbors were gathered around the backyard firepit when one of the younger boys ran up, bright eyed and excited, and asked, "Can we play that tag game again? But this time without the pain?" Before an adult could ask a clarifying question a rousing cheer of approval went up from the kids and they were off...moving into the night, already working the sideline deals with each other, eyeing up the competition, making the critical decision to rush in or to hide out... and the adults were left to wonder about intervening. But I think they have figured out how to play 'without the pain', because there have been no complaints. So far. And being out running in the dark, making your own rules, negotiating with each other, that's what kids should be doing when spring finally releases us from our winter cocoons. The context of their game of tag may be different than my own lovely days of playing 'ditch' in the fields behind my childhood home, but the adrenalin, the rush, the liquid lightening feel of running out there in the dark without parents controlling your game or making the rules- that's something every kid should experience.
One might question this tender spot after you find out that the latest tag game they have developed is based on the current young adult cult hit book series, The Hunger Games. If you haven't read The Hunger Games, I do recommend it, but with some caution. We read it aloud with both the boys and it was tough for Theo, but once we started it was hard to not finish. It's based in a dystopian society in the future of America. The evil Capitol keeps control by forcing each 'district' to contribute two 'tributes' to the Hunger Games each year. The tributes are chosen through lottery and are pulled from the kids- aged 12 to 18. The odds of avoiding the games favor the rich and connected. Once chosen, the 24 tributes are remade into temporary icons by design teams, then put into an arena, where they battle natural obstacles (designed by evil game-makers) and each other. To the death. They form alliances, make plans, betray each other, and die. It's quite a book.
So imagine my chagrin when I hear that the boys have developed a tag game based on the book. I don't think most of the neighbors have read it, so there's that.... When I questioned Eli about it, he assured me that they don't do more than tag each other, and really, the story is no more or less violent than the previous tag incarnation's origin: Lord of the Rings. Ok. if I had to chose, would I go with my boy impersonating a unfortunate, but crafty, capitol tribute, or a bloodthirsty Orc? Not sure. Eli explained that they gather all the neighborhood nerf weapons in a pile, then stand in a circle around them (immitating the opening Hunger Games scene of tributes circling the cornucopia of weapons/food/medicine). When someone yells go, they can choose to make the dangerous dash for a weapon, or they can hightail it to some hiding spot. Then the tagging begins. It's a sort of 'everybody's it' and if you're tagged you're out. Or dead. They form alliances, and betray each other, and strategize late into the dusky evenings. And I think they all love it. And I think it's relatively harmless.
But then, a week or so back, several neighbors were gathered around the backyard firepit when one of the younger boys ran up, bright eyed and excited, and asked, "Can we play that tag game again? But this time without the pain?" Before an adult could ask a clarifying question a rousing cheer of approval went up from the kids and they were off...moving into the night, already working the sideline deals with each other, eyeing up the competition, making the critical decision to rush in or to hide out... and the adults were left to wonder about intervening. But I think they have figured out how to play 'without the pain', because there have been no complaints. So far. And being out running in the dark, making your own rules, negotiating with each other, that's what kids should be doing when spring finally releases us from our winter cocoons. The context of their game of tag may be different than my own lovely days of playing 'ditch' in the fields behind my childhood home, but the adrenalin, the rush, the liquid lightening feel of running out there in the dark without parents controlling your game or making the rules- that's something every kid should experience.
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