Excuse me, Your Strengths are Showing: Lessons from an Elementary School Talent Show
It’s a sunny Friday afternoon in June and Anthony, an eleven year old boy wearing red gym shorts and a white tee-shirt with EARN IT neatly written in black sharpie on the front, steps through a stage curtain suspended from a 15’x 15’ yard tent on a basketball court in the backyard of a small, therapeutic elementary school. The familiar opening notes of Eye of the Tiger pound from the speakers and Anthony begins moving around the stage shadowing boxing to the beat. Jab, jab, upper cut, big right hook. His hands drop; he dances backward; an opponent only he can see is momentarily stunned.
Welcome to The Grow School talent show where kids are showcasing their abilities with pride. Three fourth grade girls demonstrate their pencil twirling skills, threading bright pink, orange and yellow pencils through their fingers, tossing them into the air and (sometimes) catching them to begin twirling again as an audience of classmates, school staff and caregivers of every variety enthusiastically applaud. Next, the audience is asked to turn to the field on the left to see a nine year old third grade boy with shaggy bangs show off his fast running. Shawn, our very our American Ninja Warrior, takes off through an obstacle course that includes slides, dives, rolls and lots of very fast running like. Jimmy is next. In a Super Mario hat, Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses, he spins around the stage on his toes, arms outstretched, to the lighthearted sound of Sonic 1 the Green Hill Zone. He does this for a solid two and a half minutes with only the slightest wobble. It’s amazing. Six year old Marcus break dances to Fitz and the Tantrums’ I Can Make Your Hands Clap and the audience obliges, a hundred pairs of hands clapping their support, their joy, and their love. And so it goes. Singers bring the audience to tears, a comedian makes them laugh in delight at his booger jokes. Each child is showered with appreciative applause.
These are children who struggle with social-emotional difficulties and mental health issues every day. Many act out verbally and physically. They cry; they hit; they bite; and they shut down. They want to do better. They want to feel better. And for this afternoon, they are able to overcome their challenges, capitalize on their strengths and fully be themselves for a few moments. So what are some lessons for educators?
First, we must not let our assumptions create boundaries for our students. One student, struggling with depression this spring, spent hours withdrawn and sleeping in class. He seemed an unlikely participant in the talent show. But participate he did, beautifully swaying and smiling his way through Stitches by Shawn Mendes. Who. Knew. Our primary students likewise amazed as every child clearly articulated Fifty States in Rhyme. These performances remind us that our students, when they are motivated, can achieve at high levels.
Second, every student can be engaged with something. Cody read his original book about getting through the levels of Mine Craft. Nathan and Logan threw and caught a football. Many students worked on the stage crew, determinedly carrying and setting up chairs, tying balloons and testing the sound system. Their movements, focused and deliberate, showed that they knew their tasks and were eager to complete them well .It’s essential that we recognize that singing, dancing, telling jokes or twirling pencils may be the entry way to a child’s imagination, curiosity, and desire to learn more.
Recent research on strength-based learning indicates that as teachers and students work to identify their areas of strength and to use them as the foundation of learning, student achievement increases. In the article The Principles of Strengths-Based Education from The Journal of College and Character, Louis and Lopez say “potential exists in all students and educators do well to discover and implement the kinds of learning experiences that can help their students realize this potential.” How right they are.
Shane J Lopez & Michelle C Louis (2009) The Principles of Strengths-Based Education, Journal of College and Character, 10:4, , DOI: 10.2202/1940–1639.1041
