How to release a Gruffalo

Previously in Class 1:The S.S.S.C had been 'looking after' (read: poking, feeding with paper mice, talking to) a baby gruffalo for while. It was time for said baby gruffalo to leave.

What I was aiming for:

• To introduce tension*
• To use some different questions/statements and allow the children to lead the discussion more
• To have a class full of children invested in the story** 

Releasing a Gruffalo
I'd decided to try to create more tension for this session. A simple way to do that with small children, as you may be aware, is to label anything TOP SECRET. That, therefore, is what I did. (Possibly an example of iconic representation*** ).

As the children came in to the class I sat on a chair trying unsuccessfully to be in role as the Mayor (possibly dramatic convention no.1.**** Possibly not).  I say unsuccesfully because it's very hard not to revert to teacher mode when half the class are where they should be and the other half are just not. However, once the children cottoned on to the fact that a) they were supposed to be on the carpet and b) I was the Mayor (ish... more practice needed at being in role), the session began.

I held the document, allowing children to read it aloud, and spoke to them about the problem I was having: I knew the baby Gruffalo had to be released, but I also knew that the local people would be unhappy about this and would probably just catch it again. What was I going to do? We agreed that we needed a Top Secret Operation. At this point I left the room, leaving the envelope with the children, and returned as myself. A discussion began, with me trying to discuss with the children while not directing them or saying more than they were. 

"It needs to find its daddy again"
"We have to take it to the woods!"
"We can make it a new den away from the old den"

And then...

"Let's put an electric fence around the den!"

And this thought is where the children stayed. They discussed how to turn it on and turn it off, how to watch what was happened with CCTV, that it could be alarmed. They clearly liked the idea but I did not and despite my best discussion attempts (whilst at all times not saying 'I don't think that's a good idea because...') we were getting nowhere. Then silence, before:

"But what if the electric fence hurts the gruffalo?"

Thank you, small child. It seems that when a child latches onto an undesirable idea (today, 'let's put up electric fences to electrocute people') the best approach is to let other children talk them out of it. I took the small child's thought and before long we'd moved on with that thought. Until another child started talking about the electric fence, again. Then I remembered something I'd scribbled down and said...

"I think we've decided that a wooden fence is better than an electric fence." I'd seen the phrase on a list of useful things to say, and it proved itself indeed to be very useful. This way, it was still the children's decision even though it was secretly my decision to. 

Throughout the whole discussion, I could not quite believe one small boy. He doesn't always talk, but this during this session he didn't stop talking. The class are getting better at discussions and listening to each other, on the whole. I'm learning when to prompt individuals for ideas and when to help children to speak up when they want to, in the face of the Loud and Confident Select Few. It was interesting that even when I thought perhaps a child wasn't interested** I'd gently ask them what they were thinking and they'd come up with a great idea that showed just how much they had been taking in. 

Finally when the usually-quiet-but-couldn't-stop-talking child said,

"We need to dress up as a Gruffalo so the baby follows us to the woods," 

I felt we'd reached the epitomy of creative ideas, and decided it was time for action. I won't list everything the children were doing, (we negotated a list of activities which they chose from) but will instead say that they were all involved in something productive (including building an impressive platform-style den) and they were all incredibly engaged in what we were doing. For my class, this is a satisfactory step forward. 

Things that went well:

• The children were quick to accept that I was in role as the Mayor, unlike last time.
• The children seemed invested in the fiction.
• I managed to step back a little and allow the children to talk each other out of less helpful ideas.

Things to find out more about/practice further:

• Being in role - I shall endeavour to read about the dramatic conventions.
• Actually to have the children acting/being in role. So far, I have stuck to discussions with the S.S.S.C. While I often have the children 'role playing' a story or an event, I do not know how to lead a session of MoE with the children in role as the experts and solving problems.

Notes:

* Tension: introduced at various points to attract the attention of the students and draw them in. I am not sure I am getting this right. 

** Continuum of Engagment: Attraction - Attention - Interest - Motivation - Investment - Concern.  I am aiming for investment/concern: a feeling that we need to do something and it is urgent. 

*** Forms of Representation (Bruner): Expressive, Iconic, Symbolic. 

****There are 33 dramatic conventions and I understand not a single one of them, yet.