First Graders and their Brutal Honesty

Source - Elementary school to me = crayons.. love my crayons.

It's no secret that kids are honest. Kids think what they think, like what they like and typically say it out loud. They have tantrums in public, cry out of pure frustration or if someone hurts their feelings, laugh uncontrollably, and let out the pure rage that might bubble up inside them (a la David After Dentist).

I am going to be a Junior Achievement teacher for a class of first graders coming up at the end of April. My job is in five lessons to teach them the difference between "wants" and "needs" through various activities illustrating the concept. Doesn't sound too tough, right? I don't think the teaching part of it will be too much of a challenge. I'll have the full-time teacher in the room to help me keep order. The thing I am most concerned with is making the kids LOVE me. Basically, I plan on buying their love with nut-free/gluten-free snacks and candies and stickers galore! I might throw in some novelty erasers too. But, all kidding aside, if you can win over a room full of seven-year-old children, you're probably doing a pretty good job as a human being.

Why do I think this? Kids are extremely good judges of character. They see straight to the core of people and know, purely on instinct, whether a person is good or bad. And, as in most things with kiddos, they tell you. They since any hesitations to be open and caring and through their body language or their words, tell you that you are not trustworthy.

This isn't a fool-proof system by any means, but most of the time, it's true.

We as adults could benefit from a bit of this honesty. I've blogged before about my co-worker, the one I've named Bobby Salesguy and what a tool I think he is. Only once or twice have I told Bobby that I don't like what he's doing, or the way he behaves, but he's made me mad countless times.

Why can't I do it the first grader way, and just say it?I'll tell you why; because years of adulthood have stripped away my ability to go with my gut, be it in laughter or tears, and be honest about my feelings. What's wrong with all us? Have we forgotten how to be honest in in lieu of being polite?

So, when I walk in the room in from of my 24 first graders this April, I hope that they sense that I can about them, and I want them to learn what I'm here to teach. And if that doesn't work, I will bribe my way into their good graces. Ha! Just kidding...