Hey 4th grade, Teach Me Something!

How to Make Fruit Salad

with Liza Shrestha

It's so good you'll want to eat the spoon

               
Step 1: Smile

Step 2: Mix grapes, oranges, apple, plain yogurt, and sugar

Step 3: Serve to friends with a smile

         Step 4: Keep smiling

 Step 5: Enjoy                            

...with a smile, of course

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hey grade 4, Teach Me Something!

Today was the last day of presentations for class four’s “Teach Me Something!” project. For the last several weeks, students have been getting up in front of their classmates and been addressed as "Ma'am" or "Sir" while they taught a subject of their choosing. I gave the fourth graders an assignment which provided every student with a chance to become the teacher for a period. The rules were to pick a subject they liked and to prepare their lesson before the class started (seems obvious, but these both ended up being crucial points.)

Shurikens!
with Agraj Bhandari

Oh good, shurikens, I can't wait!

...Am I the only one in class who doesn't know what a shuriken is?

From Wikipedia:

"A shuriken (Japanese 手裏剣; literally: "sword hidden in the hand") is a traditional Japanese concealed weapon that was generally used for throwing, and sometimes stabbing or slashing." 

Uh-oh.

It's ok, it's origami and they're made of paper

Still, no stabbing or slashing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The 4^th grade class is a rambunctious group. Every one of those 17 ten year olds is always ready to say something or ask a silly question (there is certainly such a thing as a silly question.) Not a single one of them is shy. This is a great quality in a class, but also an exhausting one. I was very ready to watch each one of them try to tame their fellow friends in order to teach the class something new and fun.

Origami Balloon Flowers 

with Bidisha Silwal

Bidisha taught us how to make cool, blow-up origami flowers

They did great! Because they are all bold ten year olds, every single teacher had wonderful presence and an amazing (and sometimes scary) stern voice for quieting down the class. The students were also quick to accept their peers as a teacher—from day one, they immediately called the presenter “Ma’am” or “Sir” and acted exactly as they would (or close to it) if an adult teacher had been in class.

But you did not want to be a thorn in her side.

 She commanded the usually chaotic class into a group of
submissive kids. I need her up there next time I'm the teacher

Despite her success, Bidisha emphatically informed me
that she does not want to become a teacher.

We learned a lot of new, fun, and tasty things from everybody. Though the subjects they chose made this a fun project, I wanted them to be serious about presenting. The main lesson in this project is how to stand in front of a group and present information so that everyone can follow along. This is not an easy thing to do, but some of these the 4^th graders put some of my grade school teachers to shame. Sorry, Mrs. Bozdogwan…

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spicy Peanuts

with Anushka Kharel

Anushka taught us how to make Spicy Peanuts.
"Step 1: Roast peanut. Put it on a plate."

*Now peanut is ready to serve!
(Enjoy your snacks)

We were on the edge of our seats waiting to eat our lesson

The final product!

High praise all around

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We learned everything from how to do a scissor move in soccer, to how to decorate a Nepali bride, to how to make fruit salad. It is my sincere hope these feisty fourth graders also learned just how hard they are to control so that maybe, just maybe, they will have some empathy for their poor teachers and go easier on them in the future. I can only hope.