For the last 19 months, I have been trying to avoid the news as much as I can. This is not always possible, since there is so much happening in our world. I talked about it in class with my students yesterday and it gave me a lot to think about.
Social media seems to be as necessary as oxygen these days. It seems like people cannot go without. This development is more than fine, as long as we are aware that the media decides what we get to see in the news (or do not get to see).
‘My kids’ are on social media a lot. Sometimes it is difficult for them to know whether what they see online is true or false. As a teacher, it is my job to get my students thinking. I watch Newsround at the beginning of each lesson (this is a children’s news programme in the United Kingdom). It is a good starting point to discuss every day news on a level that my students can comprehend.
We have talked about Brussels a lot yesterday. It is important to keep the conversation going. Just like adults, our kids carry a lot of questions and thoughts with them about what is going on in our world. We need to give them space to ventilate and help them form their own opinion based on facts.
As I am teaching my students, I get to learn from them day-in-day-out. Today they reminded me how much compassion we can show by expressing our thoughts & feelings into words. This gives me so much faith on a personal level. Each day, my kids help me putting things in perspective and by doing this, they basically keep be sane.
I am so proud that I get to work with the most amazing students. They definitely are my safest bet for our future.
