Lesson 759: Thinking About Thinking

Hello, Readers.

I'm writing under gray skies tonight,

feeling the fall's damp chill creep into my joints.

It's good to remember the bright,

late afternoons of this past week.

Sunny yellows,

burnt oranges,

warm golds,

bright blues,

and pinks!

This lively group of healthy kids and adults

sure was fun to run into on an after school dog walk.

I spend a lot of time with kids

and thinking about kids during my weeks.

Thinking about kids thinking

got 

me 

thinking.

I came across this quote 

from anthropologist Margaret Mead

many years ago.

Every now and again 

I print a version of it

and stick it in my teacher lesson plan book.

It serves as a reminder

of what is really important.

Some of my students worked on a 

very confusing problem this week.

It was actually a trick question.

Perhaps you know of it.

CLICK HERE for missing dollar problem

If that version didn't make sense,

try this explanation.

CLICK HERE for mystery of the vanishing dollar

Because kids deal with problem solving daily,

multiple times a day,

they are good at it.

Way better than most adults.

Readers of 18, take note.

They argue.

A lot.

When they can't make sense of one another

through words,

they don't take things personally

"and take a break from social media....."

They try to explain their thinking 

in different ways.

Drawing it out.

Modeling the problem.

And they even busted out the primary students' cash register.

Notice the new one has a debit card slide.

Margaret Mead also concluded something 

that really resonated with me this week.

She presented evidence in a way 

I had never thought about before.

I was thinking about my thinking--

and this is really a profound thought.

Weekend Homework.

Read.

Bonus Homework.

Be civilized.

Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.

But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.

A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said."

We are at our best when we serve others. Be civilized.

13Helen Overdorff, Wendy Woods Chwatek and 11 others

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One cool cat enjoying civilization--

not Dick Overdorff.

His sidekick,

Heterochromic Charlie.

Have a great weekend, Readers.

Eloise