“The pig is naked!” several children said, pointing at the book and rocking with laughter.  We were reading the book “Piggies” to go along with our latest song and instrument.  So you try to be logical with the kids, right?  “Come on guys. Have you ever seen a real pig wearing clothes?”.  But the problem is, the illustrator must have liked Disney animators because while the pigs in the book may have had on some clothing, their bottoms remained bare, a la Donald Duck.  Hence, the “naked” pigs.  Now, this didn’t happen with all of my kindergarten classes, just two of the five.  The other classes either laughed because they liked the story or just listened quietly and smiled, but not this bunch.  It was difficult to distract them from the “naked” pigs to finish the activity.

When you’ve been teaching a while, especially as an elementary “specialist” as we’re referred to, you begin to see each class as having its own personality.  Some classes are quiet and shy, some are mischievous, some are enthusiastic, some are stubborn.  And because of these different personalities, it’s impossible to expect them to participate in or react to the lessons I prepare in the same way.  My style of teaching needs to change, the way I present the material changes.  I’m thankful that in my subject area, while I do have essential learning outcomes to cover, I can spend more time on things if my kids need it or adjust my plans.  In my mind, that’s making sure my kids get what they need.

Which is why I am confused about how some elementary schools operate in terms of curriculum and teaching methods.  In the name of equality, the curriculum is scripted, making sure that each child gets exactly the same instruction at the same time, and is assessed at the same time in the same way. But the truth is, just a classes have different “personalities” and need different things, so do individual children.  They arrive at the table with different backgrounds and experiences, different maturity levels and cognitive abilities.  And yet again, in education, we want to make sure every child has exactly the same type of instruction, despite those individual differences and needs. It’s not the least bit logical.

If a child is “labeled”, through testing or diagnosis, they are provided services that will allow some flexibility, but what if a child is just slow in terms of maturation?  What if they’re just not interested in the subject matter?  What if they didn’t have breakfast that morning?  What if they didn’t get enough sleep?  It just makes no sense to assume we can teach every child the same way.  We can’t even teach the same child the same way on different days.

And so, those same kindergartners, both the mature and immature will be pushed at the same rate to learn what some educators believe they should be learning at a certain age and grade level.  And about the 3rd quarter, these same kindergartners will come into my room stressed out, crying at the drop of a hat, and short tempered.  They will complain about being tired and will tell me they want to go home.  And unlike the beginning of school, where now the kids are telling me they love school, they will begin to say they don’t want to go to school.  It doesn’t take long to change how a child feels about school when you don’t allow them the freedom to explore and create.

Which is why I believe music is so very important for kids.  Yes, it’s part of a well rounded education, but it is also a refuge for kids who need to slow down a little bit and explore and create.  It’s an opportunity to do something that has no “right” or “wrong” but just “is”.  We can improvise and change and tweak to our heart’s content.  I think this is why kids tend to remember their specials classes more than others.  These are the places where they get away from the prescribed equality for a little while to become individuals again.

So, keeping differences in mind, I will continue to share “Piggies” with both my mature and immature kids, taking the opportunity to teach whatever lesson is needed in the process.  And I’ll also be prepared to laugh with them at the naked pigs again.