Goodwill Hunting

Yesterday our team started the day with a quick "Hot Chocolate Social". It turns out you can serve 150 cups of hot chocolate to sixth graders for about a quarter each in a minimum of time with not much trouble. After fifteen minutes spent sipping a warm beverage and socializing with their friends, our usually unruly pack of tweens was almost tame heading into the school day. Sure, there were a few naysayers, This hot chocolate is too sweet! insisted one, and a couple were suspicious, Why are they doing this for us? What do they want? another student whispered urgently to her friend, but in general, the group just relaxed and enjoyed the cocoa in a rather well-behaved way. Anecdotally, I feel like I benefited all day: the goodwill seemed tangible.

The same could not be said for today. The mid-year "Safety Assembly" where administrators admonish students for all the rules that are not being followed and all the expectations that are not being met was held first thing in the theater. Tens of powerpoint slides full of DON'Ts in tiny writing filled the screen above the stage as we all sat through a droning review of the rules. Even I, a rule-follower and an adult in the building who would greatly benefit if more students followed more rules, was ready to pull my hood up over my head. Nobody likes to be scolded.

And maybe it's a coincidence, but man! Those kids were right back to their old ways.