On set not Upset

Today I did background work for the local Canadian hit TV show The Republic of Doyle. I do this every summer for fun, as it is fantastic to see production work being done first hand. It's really cool to see how action sequences, car chases, character dialogue, special guests and "realism" is put into a fictional TV show. It's a truly joyous experience and I encourage you all to do it if you can.

Today was a rather long day. 10 hours to be exact. And the background was used for a lot of that time. By the time you're done, your lower back, legs and feet are aching akin to walking around a museum for 10 hours. A lot of 20 - 30 second movements followed by a stop and wait. And not much sit.

Now, bear in mind I'm not complaining at all.

I was on set, and not upset.

It's such a great thing to experience.

And it got me thinking about our teaching practices in 3 ways:

1) As teachers we go through a lot of stop-start walking for 20 seconds:

We sit with the kids sometimes, but we're moving around the classroom a lot. We're doing a lot of stop start. A lot of short walking and being on our feet. And it makes sense that teachers should be able to wear sneakers/comfortable shoes when teaching as this is best for the lower back, legs, feet and neck.

2) Seeing things from different angles:

Today on the set a few shots were filmed from different angles. This is no different from most other TV shows where each major/minor sequence has to be filmed from different angles. And it got me wondering how much our kids have the ability to see things from different angles. And if we train them to do so.

In the PYP learner profile, this is best known as "Perspective"

And it's something that we really need to try and get our kids to do. We also have to face the reality that our kids are only capable of so much of this, as their brains (especially the elementary child) have not matured enough to see things from others' points of view. So, we really need to be patient when we ask a child to see things from another's point of view, from a character's point of view in a story, or to see another's opinion on something they have an opinion of already. It doesn't happen overnight, we shouldn't expect it to, and we should be positive in encouraging the different angles. Then, over time perspective will develop. We help to scaffold and support this maturing without forcing it.



3) When we look at 21C Learning tools.

A lot of times when we're presented with a 21C learning tool we form an opinion on it right away. Sometimes it's very negative. Other times it's VERY positive, and we blindly accept it.

I think we need to look at every 21C learning tool that we're presented with from the different angles. For example, when shown one we should ask a few of these questions (I'll hopefully expand the list later):

1. Does this help my class achieve more?
2. Does this help my class inquire? Is it supposed to help them inquire?
3. Can it be done more simply with a tool that I or my kids already know?
4. Does it's new cool benefits outweigh the learning curve in getting to know it?
5. Do I need a special device to use it?

These were just some of the thoughts that popped into my mind when on set today.