I definitely agree with this one. I knew I could hurt a child's self esteem by saying something was "easy", and then if the child failed they would feel terrible. However, I never really thought about what it does to the kids who do complete the task easily. It really does invalidate what they did. It pretty much says to them that they should have been able to do anyway and they shouldn't take any pride in their accomplishment. Saying, "I think you're ready for this" eliminates any problems.
This is so true. Try telling a student who is unable to produce a certain sound that "it is easy", just do it or a student who stutters, to speak normally, "it is easy". I don't think so!!
I have been using this for years. I explain to the kids that if they say it is easy that the kids that are struggling may get their feelings hurt because it isn't easy for them. I give them examples of things not being easy for me but not for them. I also add that even though something is not easy doesn't mean that you don't keep trying. I also tell them that sometimes after trying your best that you may decide that it is not your thing. I think it is important that we stress that. I remember in school that musical instruments were always stressed and some kids were compelled to do it even though they didn't like it. I think we need to gives kids a voice to say "it is not my thing".
For some kids nothing is easy! Refrain from using the phrase," It's easy" because it makes kids who struggle feel stupid and lose faith in themselves. I like what they suggest about using language like, "I think you're ready for this." The difficulty of the assignment is not addressed and the interpretation is left to the student. It encourages positive self talk and faith in ones competence.
I agree with MB and Cari. Saying "I think you're ready for this" is a more positive way to say it. Not only does saying "It's easy" make the the students who didn't get it feel bad, it also makes the successful students feel like they didn't really accomplish anything.
This is one of my pet peeves! We just had another conversation in my classroom about saying, "It's easy." What is funny is how my students freak out when someone says it now. They know that we all struggle with different things and when someone says "It's easy" they are putting additional stress on their peers. I use myself as an example a lot. There are some things that are really hard for me to do or see and I tell them that. I also tell them that we will work to figure it out together so the next time it will be easier for them. They seem to respond well to the fact that not everyone understands everything all the time and they are sympathetic to their peers (most of the time).
Using the words "I think that you are ready for this or possibly not quite ready" would be affirming to a student - and also comforting to be told that there are times when we are not ready for being responsible for accomplishments of mastery in learning.
There are times when the kids say, "That was easy!" I usually say something like, "I'm glad you feel good about how much you are learning. We all need to take as much time as we need when we are learning." I don't think I give something out and say this will be easy. Some things come quickly for some kids, but there is such a gap in kindergarten abilities anyway, that I would never assume something was going to be easy. There are some activities that I think will be short and they take forever and some that I think will take a lot of time, but they really don't. I like the suggestions of saying I think you're ready for this. It's a confidence booster.
The kidergarten and first gade teachers have done a very good job at teaching this. Here is a "typical" conversation in my class (usually in math). Student- "Oh yea! This is easy!!" Another student-"Just because it's easy for you, doesn't mean it's easy for everybody."
13 Comments:
I definitely agree with this one. I knew I could hurt a child's self esteem by saying something was "easy", and then if the child failed they would feel terrible. However, I never really thought about what it does to the kids who do complete the task easily. It really does invalidate what they did. It pretty much says to them that they should have been able to do anyway and they shouldn't take any pride in their accomplishment. Saying, "I think you're ready for this" eliminates any problems.
"I think you're ready for this" is a much better statement than "it's easy". I agree with Cari's comments completely.
This is so true. Try telling a student who is unable to produce a certain sound that "it is easy", just do it or a student who stutters, to speak normally, "it is easy". I don't think so!!
I have been using this for years. I explain to the kids that if they say it is easy that the kids that are struggling may get their feelings hurt because it isn't easy for them. I give them examples of things not being easy for me but not for them. I also add that even though something is not easy doesn't mean that you don't keep trying. I also tell them that sometimes after trying your best that you may decide that it is not your thing. I think it is important that we stress that. I remember in school that musical instruments were always stressed and some kids were compelled to do it even though they didn't like it. I think we need to gives kids a voice to say "it is not my thing".
I love, "I think you're ready for this." I would get excited if someone told me they believed I was ready for a new challenge.
For some kids nothing is easy! Refrain from using the phrase," It's easy" because it makes kids who struggle feel stupid and lose faith in themselves. I like what they suggest about using language like, "I think you're ready for this." The difficulty of the assignment is not addressed and the interpretation is left to the student. It encourages positive self talk and faith in ones competence.
I agree with MB and Cari. Saying "I think you're ready for this" is a more positive way to say it. Not only does saying "It's easy" make the the students who didn't get it feel bad, it also makes the successful students feel like they didn't really accomplish anything.
This is one of my pet peeves! We just had another conversation in my classroom about saying, "It's easy." What is funny is how my students freak out when someone says it now. They know that we all struggle with different things and when someone says "It's easy" they are putting additional stress on their peers. I use myself as an example a lot. There are some things that are really hard for me to do or see and I tell them that. I also tell them that we will work to figure it out together so the next time it will be easier for them. They seem to respond well to the fact that not everyone understands everything all the time and they are sympathetic to their peers (most of the time).
I am guilty of saying this and have been for years. This posting has helped me to see that my good intentions may have unintended consequences.
I do catch myself saying this from time to time. It is usually in frustration. I see a reason to get rid of the comment.
Using the words "I think that you are ready for this or possibly not quite ready" would be affirming to a student - and also comforting to be told that there are times when we are not ready for being responsible for accomplishments of mastery in learning.
There are times when the kids say, "That was easy!" I usually say something like, "I'm glad you feel good about how much you are learning. We all need to take as much time as we need when we are learning." I don't think I give something out and say this will be easy. Some things come quickly for some kids, but there is such a gap in kindergarten abilities anyway, that I would never assume something was going to be easy. There are some activities that I think will be short and they take forever and some that I think will take a lot of time, but they really don't. I like the suggestions of saying I think you're ready for this. It's a confidence booster.
The kidergarten and first gade teachers have done a very good job at teaching this. Here is a "typical" conversation in my class (usually in math). Student- "Oh yea! This is easy!!" Another student-"Just because it's easy for you, doesn't mean it's easy for everybody."
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