Basic HTML Version
8
Spring
2014
There is something very strange going on
in Ain Aar Lower Elementary School. The
students are being, well, ‘nicer’ to each other.
Even the usual playground pangs and nags
seem to have largely decreased. So much so,
that when then grade one students went to
observe conflicts on the playground as part
of their conflict resolution theme, they found
none. Their teacher, Nayla Abu Fadil, was first
to note this bizarre occurrence in the school.
“We went to the playground twice,” she
wrote in an email to the director, “and we
couldn’t find any conflicts.…….”
Moreover, the tykes seem to be on some
of kind of watch to ‘catch’ anyone being
kind. And then they vie to write about it on
little bits of paper and deposit them in special
boxes placed in the hallways. And even then,
it’s all very polite.
It’s enough to make any visiting adult highly
suspicious indeed.
The mystery, however, begins to unravel with
footsteps who, every Friday, stop in front one
of the boxes. After a few seconds of silence,
the footsteps make their way into the first
classroom. The teacher and children imme-
diately turn around. This is the moment they
have been waiting for the whole week: Miss
Lina is going to read out who has been kind.
It’s just too exciting and they all gather around.
Smiling widely, the Lower Elementary
School Director, Lina Mouchantaf, reads the
first paper bit.
“Today Farid fell and Tala helped him to the
nurse,” it stated.
Everyone looked in awe at Tala who in-
stantly sat up proudly.
Another paper.
“Nicole is new to the school and Sofie
waits at the door every day to walk with her
to the bus,” it said.
More admiring looks.
“In the playground, I fell a big fell,” stated
another. “And my friend, Kiana, helped me.”
Back in her office, the jovial director who
only came to Ain Aar last year, spreads the
notes on her desk. “I just got tired of hearing
the kids complain all the time,” she said. “It’s
always: “Miss, he did this to me,” or “Miss
she said that.” There were so many conflicts
and the kids were so negative. And on nu-
merous occasions the parents would interfere
in these conflicts and come in to see me
about them. There had to be a way to point
out all the positive actions too.”
As any parent (and educator) could tell you,
sermons tend to go on deaf ears. Punish-
ments are anti-IC. Still, Mouchantaf had to
take some kind of action. There must be
some way to make her young charges be-
Catch
a
Kind
Act