Flexible

 

I noticed these friends working together in our block area and could hear they all had big ideas.  Often our big ideas are different from those of our friends.  We struggle with wanting to work together, and yet wanting to create our own vision just the way we want it to be.

And so, as I heard these wonderful ideas being shared, I got closer.  

And I sat

and listened

and watched

and stayed silent

And I heard

sharing

compromise

negotiating

working together

"You put one there." CF

"I'll put this one." JL

"I'm next." HW

"We're almost running out of colors!" JL

Hmmm what would happen next?

Once again I sat

and watched

and listened

silently...

"Let's do blue and white now." CF

"Okay!" JL

And then...those colors ran out!  Now what?

"Let's do..." CF

And now I noticed out loud.

"CF I notice that you are choosing every single pattern and there are three friends here."

And then I sat

and waited

and watched

and listened

quietly...

"I have a lot of yellows." JL

"You sure do have a lot of yellows.  What is your idea?" Ms L

"Purple and yellow." JL

That's a great idea!  I love how you are working together sharing ideas!

As these boys continued to fill the mirror with patterns, JL you noticed a tiny gap at the edge of the mirror.  It was small.  Much too small to fit another row of dominos.  Or was it?

Your friends were noticing colors, and you were noticing something completely different.

Different

Unexpected

Unique

Important

You noticed that if you turned the dominos the other direction they would fit perfectly.  So you lined up your pile one after another after another and slid them seamlessly into the slot.

"That's not right!" CF

"They fit." JL

You are exactly right JL, they do fit!  They fit perfectly!  You are looking at these dominos from a different perspective.  You noticed their size and that is what made them exactly right.  The color wasn't what was important to you to accomplish your goal.  

It can be hard to look at something from the viewpoint of another.

To let go of your agenda and embrace the learning lead of another

To be

flexible

And so, these simple yet beautiful dominos became a place of big learning today.

We worked

We shared

We compromised

We grew