Introducing Ethics-Depth and Complexity

Ethics is my favorite concept from Kaplan's Depth and Complexity to use with young kiddos. In the beginning you will notice that when you ask them a question, they want to answer with what they think you want to hear. If I say do you like pasta? And half the class raises their hands, then I say well I LOVE pasta. What happens? Everyone's hands go up.

So I do a very conscious lesson with them to teach them that they are entitled to their opinion, whatever it is and they should believe in what they believe and be ready to back that up with an argument.

I ask them if taking something from someone else is ever the right thing to do? 

Response: No, never. Stealing is wrong.

Question: what if your house was on fire and your neighbor's hose was right there? Can you use it?

Response: Well, yes.

Question (the Les Miserables argument)-what if you were starving? Or if your child was starving?

Response: I don't know.

Question: What if no one would ever know it was you?

So we talk about how even though the icon for this concept is black and white-there are truly gray areas.

A couple of things to remember with ethics:

1) Their opinion is always correct. If they say the Boy in the Giving Tree was right to take everything from the tree and give nothing in return-as much as I disagree with that--it is their opinion.

2) Going along with that-I never tell them what my opinion is. Even if we have already finished the activity. I am a strict "no comment" because I know I have influence and I never want to change their own opinions.

3) The more you do these activities the better they get at it. I will never forget a discussion we were having-could a woman every be President? A boy said no because girls are not as strong as boys. Cecilia raised her hand and said "Miss Trayers, can I ask him something?-Chase, isn't your mom strong? Did you see Miss Trayers move that table the other day--she is strong". And I cannot tell you how proud I was that not only was she thinking and forming those opinions but voicing them as well.

4) I tell my parents at Open House-I apologize right now, but I am going to teach them how to make a better argument. :) They will argue their cases more.

Some books I love to use to introduce this concept:

Classic book. Was it right that David acted that way? Was it right how the teacher reacted? 

Is it right to call someone by the wrong name if you don't know how to pronounce it? 

What would be the the right way to ask someone about their names?

Is it right to call our class a "family"?

Is it right that we force kids to attend school? 

Was it right for school to get mad and spray the water fountain because its feelings were hurt?

Is it right to say you don't like school?

How I Introduce Depth and Complexity-Multiple Perspectives

I have always taught Kinder and 1st grade. These kiddos often have not ever been expected to think from the perspective of others. The world revolves around them. :) 

This is one of my favorite scenes from Dead Poet's Society:

Dead Poet's Society-Perspective

So to introduce this concept I would love to say I leap up on my table like this but let's be honest, it's more like an awkward crawl. ;) But I stand on the table and model for them looking around-what can I see now that I couldn't see before? The dust on the shelves. The bird's nest in the tree outside. Then for the most exciting part-I have them climb up in their own chairs and do the same thing. After all the gasps and murmurs-can we really do this? They discuss how their perspective changed.

Then we read this story. School is super excited for the 1st day until the students arrive and start complaining about school. Then we write about how our school felt on the first day.

Then we read this story about a principal so excited about school that he ends up changing the calendar so we go to school every day. We discuss a principal's job and they write from the perspective of a principal. They often just write about taking bad kids out of class, but I encourage them to dig a little deeper than that. How would it feel, what would a principal wish?

The more often you do these activities comparing perspectives, the more empathy you will see developing in your kiddos. They will randomly say "I feel sorry for homeless people-where do they go to the bathroom?" or "I feel sorry for the dinosaurs-it must have been so scary to see that asteroid and not know what was happening". But I believe that's a good things. Our world can defintely benefit from more empathy.