This is the teacher I've been looking for: full of doubt and humility before the thing that is the Classroom, a teacher who listens (with a tape recorder, yow) and understands the weight her questions have in steering activity and talk, and the awesome leaps of poetry and profundity that are presented in the children's play.
It would be so easy to sentimentalize this -- to turn it into a kids say the darndest things -- but that's the farthest from what happens.
The questions and conversations in this slim book could launch a year's worth of seminars that I would want to take.
And if I were Queen of All Teachers I would ask everyone to read this, to help us each of us ask again: what learning am I trying to make happen here, what am I saying no to, how can I make this day meaningful. Vivian Gussin Paley Vivian Gussin Paley, PhB’47
Author
Read the adaptation published in our Jan–Feb/12 issue:
http://mag.uchicago.edu/education-soc...
How does a teacher begin to appreciate and tap the rich creative resources of the fantasy world of children? What social functions do story playing and storytelling serve in the preschool classroom? And how can the child who is trapped in private fantasies be brought into the richly imaginative social play that surrounds him?
The Boy Who Would Be a Helicopter focuses on the challenge posed by the isolated child to teachers and classmates alike in the unique community of the classroom. It is the dramatic story of Jason-the loner and outsider-and of his ultimate triumph and homecoming into the society of his classmates. As we follow Jason's struggle, we see that the classroom is indeed the crucible within which the young discover themselves and learn to confront new problems in their daily experience.
Vivian Paley recreates the stage upon which children emerge as natural and ingenious storytellers. She supplements these real-life vignettes with brilliant insights into the teaching process, offering detailed discussions about control, authority, and the misuse of punishment in the preschool classroom. She shows a more effective and natural dynamic of limit-setting that emerges in the control children exert over their own fantasies. And here for the first time the author introduces a triumvirate of teachers (Paley herself and two apprentices) who reflect on the meaning of events unfolding before them. Vivian Gussin Paley I read the Russian translation, didn't feel like a good book at all. Especially the way it ends (or rather doesn't). Vivian Gussin Paley A deep dive into teacher Vivian Paley's method of fantasy play by preschool children that she stumbled into by accident but was theorized about long ago by Soviet psychologist Vygotsky. She has what appears to be an impressive corpus of actual fantasy play conversations which she has woven together to form a cohesive story, narrated by her thoughts and reflections.
I especially love Paley's meta reflections on her past and how, as a new teacher, she once was Jason, the loner child who does not understand the unspoken rules of fantasy play and cannot hear what is going on around him despite it being obvious to all present. Likewise, I am impressed by her conclusion that the timeout chair is actually a violation of children's sense of fair play and that children's construction of a fantasy narrative with its hidden sense of fair play and rules is sufficient to self-police the world of preschool. I suspect only someone truly immersed and accepting of this fantasy world would allow their rules to question the fairness and appropriateness of her own methods. One interesting part of children's sense of fair play is the right of any child to suddenly require attention and be disruptive.
It is interesting how the children consider fairy tales and books read by the teacher to be real, and therefore potentially scary, but anything happening in their self-made fantasy stories can be extreme and include self death etc but is not considered scary to the participants.
Therefore, fantasy play allows the children to go places that they do not go in real activities under teacher rules.
Conversations are retold by her verbatim, with poor child grammar and all. A wonderful deep dive into this classroom's ongoing fantasy world, as children's characters and stories maintain continuity and themes through the year. Main focus of Paley is Jason, who does not seem to understand the concept of cooperative fantasy play and its rules. Slowly he is inexorably socialized by his peers through their relentless efforts to include him in stories on terms he can accept. The children pick up on the teacher's constant attempts to include him and make it their own cause, and ultimately only the children succeed on their own terms. Vivian Gussin Paley I really enjoyed reading all of the stories about Jason and the other children. However, I really took issue with Paley as a teacher. I give her props for writing so publicly about her mistakes, but her judgments about Jason and the way she sometimes handled situations with children or her co-workers was aggravating.
How could she think that Jason was not part of the classroom community just because he chose to be a helicopter and play by himself a lot? Why did she talk so rudely to her co-workers? Why did she seem to be so uncomfortable in certain situations with the children if she was an experienced teacher? Again, I understand every teacher makes mistakes (I make tons of them!), but Paley's mistakes seemed more like judgments than errors. I hope she really did learn a lot through this experience because otherwise, I fear for her students and co-workers. Vivian Gussin Paley
How does a teacher begin to appreciate and tap the rich creative resources of the fantasy world of children? What social functions do story playing and storytelling serve in the preschool classroom? And how can
the child who is trapped in private fantasies be brought into the richly imaginative social play that surrounds him?
The Boy Who Would Be a Helicopter focuses on the
challenge posed by the isolated child to teachers and classmates alike in the unique community of the classroom. It is the dramatic story of Jason-the loner and outsider-and of his ultimate triumph and homecoming into the society of his
classmates. As we follow Jason's struggle, we see that the classroom is indeed the crucible within which the young discover themselves and learn to confront new problems in their daily experience.
Vivian Paley recreates the stage upon which children emerge as natural and ingenious storytellers. She supplements these real-life vignettes with brilliant insights into the teaching process, offering detailed discussions about control,
authority, and the misuse of punishment in the preschool classroom. She shows a more effective and natural dynamic of limit-setting that emerges in the control children exert over their own fantasies. And here for the first time the
author introduces a triumvirate of teachers (Paley herself and two apprentices) who reflect on the meaning of events unfolding before them.
THE BOY WHO WOULD BE A HELICOPTER: The Uses of Storytelling in the Classroom
This is a must read for anyone who works with children; especially children that learn or socialize in a different way. Vivian Gussin Paley One of my favorite books of all time. A great model of what preschool should be, written by a master teacher (and a great writer!). Vivian Gussin Paley Vivian Paley is a teacher who really, deeply listens to what her pre-school students have to say in their stories, fantasies and questions. I found myself continually surprised at her thoughtful reflection on how little moments of play and unassuming conversations between the children shine such a bright light onto their personalities, desires and fears.
Some open questions / reflections:
- What is the role of a preschool teacher (or anyone who interacts with a very young child) in separating reality from fantasy? How does behavioral motivation that stems from fantasy transfer to real life situations? Does it need to?
- Paley notices that her children have a different view than her on fairness - their concept of equality being the equal opportunity to demand special treatment. Each child may at a different point need to be disruptive or make demands. Paley counters the but if I allow this, all children will want to do it fear, with the observation that only some children at certain points of time truly need to be disruptive, and that it is the teacher's job to listen and care for this need. What can I take from this in understanding equity and justice in a world where people have different needs?
The natural order in a preschool classroom rules against any plan that sidesteps fantasy or friendship. The children do not fathom her premises or follow her logic. Had the teacher said, Simon, since you were Joseph's dad before in the bear cave, you must move to his table, then everyone would understand and approve. Or, had a child suggested, Pretend a robber stealed the table and then we finded a different one, the new plan would come alive.
Vivian Gussin Paley Купила книгу, послушав восторженные отзывы знакомых - на полку в детском центре или в подарок коллеге. Предварительно, конечно, очень хотела прочитать сама - и несколько разочаровалась. Мне книга показалась плохо структурированной; описания детских игр разбавлены редкими комментариями автора и её коллег.
Бесспорно, очень много интересных мыслей, но всё слишком вперемешку: нельзя назвать исследованием и нельзя назвать художественной литературой.
Можно прочитать для определённого вдохновения и свежего взгляда на детей, если его вдруг не хватает, но читается очень тяжело. Vivian Gussin Paley A master teacher who pays attention to what her young charges say. Their statements help her comprehend the way they are understanding the world which helps guide her questions. Children need to discover and explore in order to make sense of their environment. Vivian Gussin Paley
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