My second grade teacher assigned homework on Wed nights only. A classmate shared a word search to the class created from his parents. The teacher changed the Wed homework assignment from English to a word search. A word search is a group of random letters organized on a grid. Sometimes the random letters are organized in a shape. There is a list of words below the grid. The objective is search for a group of letters in the grid to find the words. The words are horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, and either forwards or backwards.
I started the homework in the evening. It was difficult. I asked my mom to help. It was difficult for her. Hours was spent on the word search. Bedtime arrived. My mom told me it was okay to submit the incomplete word search. I felt guilty I didn't complete the assignment.
The first conversations Thur morning was the homework assignment. Students told other students how many words they found. Few students found all words. I felt relieved somewhat. What were the adult lessons I could have learned?
The first lesson was some assignments can't be completed. Sometimes assignments need more time. Sometimes assignments lack background information. Sometimes assignments the criteria makes no sense. Time was up. Time to stop. It was bedtime. Be comfortable submitting the incomplete homework assignment tomorrow. I did my best.
Cheating was the second lesson. I cheated. I changed one letter erasing the letter with my eraser to match a word. My mom said no cheating. On the other hand, I reference the movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Admiral Kirk told Lieutenant Saavik he cheated in The Kobayashi Maru scenario by reprogramming the simulation. Kirk didn't believe in the no-win scenario. I could have gotten away with cheating because the homework assignment was just a word search which leads me to the third lesson.
The word search was just a word search. Nothing gained on an insignificant assignment was the third lesson. Nothing was rewarded. Nothing was penalized. Low stakes. It was not studying for a spelling test. It was not arithmetic. It was not a book report. The homework assignment didn't affect my grades. The word search was lighthearted. The word search was supposed to be fun. The bonus third lesson was I should have forgotten the word search. I took the assignment too seriously.
Scott Found Nine Words
I remember one student named Scott. He shouted to the entire class he found nine words. Scott reassured the third lesson. The word search was not worth the effort. Quit. Stop. Go watch TV. Go read a book. Listen to music. I should have done something constructive for a normal second grader.
No comments:
Post a Comment