When Life Gives You Lemons, Build a BOB

After spending the first decade of my career consistently teaching Grade 6 and 7 English with some Social Studies, the last decade has been less defined. Returning early from my first maternity leave began a series of changes that, in hindsight, made me more fluid and a better teacher. It also contributed to the creation and of the evolution of the Building Outside the Blocks approach that has been so powerful for students in my classroom and many others. Sometimes, though, I feel like a Swiss Army knife.

Swiss Army knives are cool because they pack a lot of tools into one strong bundle and are useful in many ways. Every time you think you have exhausted all of the possible uses, you find something hidden or a new use for something that had not previously occurred to you. What’s challenging about being a Swiss Army knife is that it’s a tool, and you often feel used. As the school’s designated go-to-for-any-teaching position that could-not-possibly-be-filled-by-anyone-but-you helps you feel flexible. At first, coming from my principal, it seems like a world-class compliment. In reality, it means that you have a lot of work to do that may include finding new tools or entirely new ways to use the ones you have. This is particularly challenging for me because I often look forward to the opportunity to do it better the next time- whatever it may be in a given teaching scenario. Being malleable has its plusses and minuses. It’s also good to be elastic, right Daniel Pink?

When I was pregnant with our third daughter, I received an assignment that really threw me. For half of my day, I was to teach Grade 4 Language Arts, which I had taught for 2 years and was started to get pretty good at. Just to make sure I didn’t relax too much, Grade 7 and 8 Science were also added to my plate. Anyone who has ever taught Grade 7 or 8 Science can attest to the fact that some expertise (note the sarcasm here) is a prerequisite. I had none. After some tears and a lot of pleading with my principal, I had to come to terms with the idea that I was going to be really bad at something. That was not a reflection of a fixed mindset, I was just preparing myself for the extreme challenge ahead.

As a life-long generalist, I was okay with not being an expert. My expertise is comfortably about teaching children and not subjects ( I am learning to tell myself this). That did not hold true when it came to a subject I neither knew well nor could conceive of at that level. My principal tried to calm me saying that it was only for the 3 months until I went on mat leave, and that I could do anything. I was sure that it was no longer going to be true. I took a deep breath and began to read through the materials. The feelings of inadequacy rushed over me. No matter how hard I tried, I was challenged by concepts and had real difficulty retaining the content. I started to wonder what would help me learn Science.

That summer, I worked really hard to create learning centres and teach myself Science on my own terms. I also created the Did You Knows that changed everything. The Did You Knows were the Building Outside the Blocks projects before I knew what they were called and actually led to the naming and defining of BOB. They were also ways I could offer every student a road into Science and, for those already on the road, their own highway. Each unit topic would come with a chance to engage individuals in an inquiry based on their interests under the assignment’s general title of Did You Know. In Grade 7, for the Pure Substances and Mixtures unit for example, students could explore any pure substance or mixtures and report on it on their chosen date in whatever fashion they saw fit, with a view to the assignment expectations and rubric. Students presented on the topics such as the ingredients of their favourite perfumes, hand sanitizer, what’s in an immunization vaccine or, even, the contents a lethal injection. One student decided to bake and discovered, to her great surprise, that she loved Science. These projects saved my Science classes and me. They engaged learners in understanding the big ideas and extended learning through these projects because it related to their lives and interests. Funny enough, if you can believe it, some students even thought I was the best Science teacher ever.

Now, whenever I get a new teaching assignment, I brace myself, but I also know that a new Building Outside the Blocks project is surely on the horizon. This year, my workload was almost all new. Although I don’t feel as strong in the content knowledge for Gr. 6, 7 and 8 Social Studies/History/Geography as I would like to be, what keeps me motivated as I become better versed in the content are the BOBs that I build for my students. We are all learning a lot of things within and beyond the curriculum.

Had it not been for the challenges given to me, I would not have created History Beats, Precious Cargo, What’s News, What’s Up, and the Did You Knows, just to name a few. Building Outside the Blocks projects have helped to make my courses accessible and personalized. What I’ve learned from my classroom experience is that when life throws you lemons, build a BOB.(BOB is now officially trademarked!).

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