Monday, December 11, 2006
Problem Solved
"What was your favorite part of school today, Max?"
"We acted out my story."
Each Tuesday and Thursday, one child in Max's class gets to create a story all his own and cast each of the characters. The following day, the Chosen act out the script for their classmates. Whether the characters are princesses or pirates, the exercise teaches that every child is an author. And that good stories contain conflict and resolution.
Max wrote his story a few weeks ago, but its debut was delayed by his illness, then Thanskgiving. Today his drama finally opened off-off-Broadway.
"What was your story about?"
"A giraffe, a bear, an owl and a farmer."
"So what happened?"
"The giraffe got out of his cage and went into the woods. The bear saw the giraffe and scared it. The bear and the owl tried to eat the giraffe, but it ran back to its cage and was safe. Then the farmer went into the woods. The bear and the owl ate the farmer. Then the zookeeper took care of the giraffe."
"Interesting story, Max. So who played the giraffe?"
"Ryan."
"Who played the bear?"
"Dylan."
"Who played the owl?"
"Me."
"And who played the farmer?"
"Andrew."
Now the story took on real meaning. Andrew is Max's oldest friend (though not his best). They've known each other since they were a few months old, having met at a Montessori mom-and-me class. Since then, they've shared school, gymboree, swimming, and gymnastics classes, as well as a multitude of playdates and parties.
Enter Dylan. Dylan joined the boys' school last year and has been an object of Max's affection since she hit campus. But she and Andrew live a stone's throw from each other and are nearly inseparable. They carpool. They play after school and on weekends. Their moms rely on each other for emergency babysitting. And if that weren't enough, they seem to adore each other. Or at least Andrew adores Dylan, and Dylan enjoys being adored. (Quite a powerful position, Dylan has already learned.)
Max wants Dylan. Does he want her because she's fascinating and admirable? Does he want her because she seems so disinterested in him? Does he want her because his buddy has her? Who the heck knows. But make no mistake...he does want her. How do I know?
A recent conversation:
"Mom, I'm feeling a little shy about getting married."
"Why, sweetheart?"
"Well, I've never been to a wedding before."
"That's okay, Max. You'll get to go to plenty of weddings before you have to be in one."
"But I don't know who I want to marry."
"Well, you've got lots of time to decide."
"But I do like Dylan...."
Dylan, who seems to be taken for now. And so Max's subconscious threw them together on stage, where he managed, with Dylan's participation, to dispatch Andrew.
"Did you find a way to get rid of Andrew?"
"Yep."
"So you could have Dylan all to yourself?
Max nodded and smiled.
"We acted out my story."
Each Tuesday and Thursday, one child in Max's class gets to create a story all his own and cast each of the characters. The following day, the Chosen act out the script for their classmates. Whether the characters are princesses or pirates, the exercise teaches that every child is an author. And that good stories contain conflict and resolution.
Max wrote his story a few weeks ago, but its debut was delayed by his illness, then Thanskgiving. Today his drama finally opened off-off-Broadway.
"What was your story about?"
"A giraffe, a bear, an owl and a farmer."
"So what happened?"
"The giraffe got out of his cage and went into the woods. The bear saw the giraffe and scared it. The bear and the owl tried to eat the giraffe, but it ran back to its cage and was safe. Then the farmer went into the woods. The bear and the owl ate the farmer. Then the zookeeper took care of the giraffe."
"Interesting story, Max. So who played the giraffe?"
"Ryan."
"Who played the bear?"
"Dylan."
"Who played the owl?"
"Me."
"And who played the farmer?"
"Andrew."
Now the story took on real meaning. Andrew is Max's oldest friend (though not his best). They've known each other since they were a few months old, having met at a Montessori mom-and-me class. Since then, they've shared school, gymboree, swimming, and gymnastics classes, as well as a multitude of playdates and parties.
Enter Dylan. Dylan joined the boys' school last year and has been an object of Max's affection since she hit campus. But she and Andrew live a stone's throw from each other and are nearly inseparable. They carpool. They play after school and on weekends. Their moms rely on each other for emergency babysitting. And if that weren't enough, they seem to adore each other. Or at least Andrew adores Dylan, and Dylan enjoys being adored. (Quite a powerful position, Dylan has already learned.)
Max wants Dylan. Does he want her because she's fascinating and admirable? Does he want her because she seems so disinterested in him? Does he want her because his buddy has her? Who the heck knows. But make no mistake...he does want her. How do I know?
A recent conversation:
"Mom, I'm feeling a little shy about getting married."
"Why, sweetheart?"
"Well, I've never been to a wedding before."
"That's okay, Max. You'll get to go to plenty of weddings before you have to be in one."
"But I don't know who I want to marry."
"Well, you've got lots of time to decide."
"But I do like Dylan...."
Dylan, who seems to be taken for now. And so Max's subconscious threw them together on stage, where he managed, with Dylan's participation, to dispatch Andrew.
"Did you find a way to get rid of Andrew?"
"Yep."
"So you could have Dylan all to yourself?
Max nodded and smiled.
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