How big is your problem?

I recently did an activity with a couple students in social work that ended up having more impact than I thought it would have.  I was working with 3 different students at 3 different times on Size of Problem.  We discussed how we have BIG problems, medium problems, and small problems (or Glitches).  This helps us to not overact to problems and make sure our size of the reaction matches the size of our problem.

What turned this could be BORING lesson into much more fun was something that I didn’t plan at all!  I started creating a giant scale (see picture below) with one students and the plan was to make a new one with each student.  However, due to a busy schedule, I never was able to get new paper for the second student.  Like most teachers, I improvised and had the student add to the large scale that was previously created.

Each student that added to the scale was a in a different grade but had surprisingly similar problems to add.  It was good to see kids question WHY someone else had said “not getting to sit at the lunch table I want” was a medium problem when they felt it was just a glitch.  Or learn that getting out in a PE game is a small problem and not a BIG problem.  This, I felt, led to a greater impact on the students because they saw 1) other kids have problems too 2) other kids were telling them the size of a problem and not an adult.  I am also hoping we can add to the scale as the year goes on!

This was just another reminder to me that some lessons may not go according to plan and that it’s OKAY! Sometimes changing and improvising lessons create the best learning opportunities for both students and teachers!

Mrs. Ross, Social Work