school dance

Dance, dance, dance

/ Julie Nariman / 1 Comment

glow sticksI find my students touching, and often cute.  However, in thinking of them as “cute,” I don’t always see their wisdom.

Three 12th grade students approached me a few weeks ago.  I call them my “movers and shakers.”  They are active in student government and always looking to plan new activities.

“We want to have a ‘Glow in the Dark’ party,” said Stephanie.*

“Yeah!  Kids are getting stressed out studying for Regents exams and this will be fun,” added Hassan.**

I did what I often do with kids: I told them I would think about it and get back to them. Continue reading →

Taking care among glow sticks

/ Julie Nariman / 3 Comments

Glow stick photo by julie narimanA school is a place where people interact.  It’s easy to rush ahead and think these interactions don’t matter.  After reading about the staff and students in Parkland, Florida, I was reminded of how much of an impact people can make in each other’s lives.  I experienced this impact as I supervised a school dance yesterday.

The student government had planned the dance with a “Glow in the Dark” theme and bought hundreds of plastic glow sticks that students could wear like necklaces or bracelets.  However, nothing was glowing, and not many kids were dancing.  It was still daylight and sunlight was streaming through the large gym windows.  My assistant principal gave a pep talk to the demoralized student government so they could get past their disappointment.  It worked.   Continue reading →