They come in loud. A laughing, back-slapping, exclusive all-boys club. 21 hootin', hollerin' boys between the ages of 8 and 11, crashing into the computer lab like a wrecking ball in full swing. There is no turning back now.
When I first thought of it back in June, I loved the idea of an all-boys club. Take new collaborative technology, the opportunity to write creatively, and the shared camaraderie of boys becoming a cohesive pack, and see where it takes us. That was the idea behind my after school club.
The reality was much scarier than the idea, however. I hadn't actually meant to include 3rd grade, but didn't think to mention that when the forms went home. I also never considered the fact that there would barely be enough computers for all the boys that wanted to join! I assumed I'd have a nice, simple group of 10. 12, maybe. 21? No way. Third grade. Did I mention that part? I'm not sure what scared me more. A huge group of boys that could easily become an unruly pack of kids that wanted nothing more than to play silly games online, or the fact that some of them were barely out of second grade.
But there they were on day one -- all 21 expectant faces asking about websites and online comic creators and blogging. All eyeballing me with obvious concern. Did they feel betrayed? Had no one told them that the all-boys club was going to be led by (gasp) a girl??
How could a woman -- a teacher -- have anything cool to share with them about the Internet?
I probably eyed them with the same concern that day -- how was I going to manage twenty-one rowdy boys on computers at the same time, from three different grade levels? What had I been thinking? Why hadn't I planned this better? Where were my parent helpers?
But I did what I always do when in doubt. Forge ahead. If there isn't a path, make one. And that's what we have done. Together.
Today was our third meeting. Three one-hour meetings and the boys no longer look concerned. In fact, they invite me into their jokes, grab my arm and pull me toward their computers to show me the newest treasure they have uncovered. As of today, I officially feel like a part of the club.
Five of the boys are from my own classroom and already know how to do some of the things I introduce, so they get to be "experts" during this hour, helping me answer questions, fix problems, and run interference. They are IT guys in the making. It's brilliant, because I watch these kids that are typically the awkward, goofy guys in class become leaders. For one hour a week, they take charge. I'm eager to see how it changes our regular classroom environment. I'm eager to see how it changes them.
Today I introduced our club wikispace, and they sank their teeth into it, quickly and repetitively erasing the home page I had created for them before finally figuring out the difference between editing the Home page and editing their own page. It was a humorously frustrating experience. Each time it happened we laughed, learned, and moved on.
One of my youngest members sat quietly working in front of his computer. At the beginning of our meeting, I had asked him to pass out folders, to which he replied, "But I'm just a third grader!"
Now he sat, hunched toward the screen, clicking his way toward discovery. I watched as he learned how to embed his glog we made a week ago onto his page, save it, and then share it with others.
"I thought you told me you were just a 3rd grader?" I said, grinning at him.
His giant smile was all I needed to see. And that's a good thing, because a half-second later he was out of his chair and sprinting to a friend to teach them what he had learned.
I can't wait until next Monday.
What a great group. I enjoy your blog.
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