I was with rising first and second graders this past week at camp, and some of them surprised me with how mature and smart they were. Before I share more on that, here are my goal updates. My most difficult goals this week were Goals 4 and 5 again.
- Goal 1: Naught new except food and gas
- Yes
- Goal 2: Grow okra
- My sprout is growing, but I haven’t planted a second one yet.
- Goal 3: Eat a pescatarian diet
- I forgot to keep track for a few days, but I believe I ate seafood 6/7 days and vegetarian 1/7 days. For all except one day, I ate vegetarian for both breakfast and lunch.
- Goal 4: No chains/fast food restaurants
- Yes, although I was tempted.
- Goal 5: Computer off by 10pm
- No, I still need to work on it.
- Goal 6: Avoid disposable plastic
- Yes, and I’m recycling as much as possible, but my food still sometimes comes in non-recyclable packaging.
- Goal 7: Continue to attempt to compost
- I checked the bin and it is looking good, but it still needs some more time.
- Goal 8: Track taking the train
- I took the train four of five days this week, and I drove one day because the train was late.
- Additional goals: work on my college thesis for publishing, look into new jobs, climate action
My focus recently has been on having a positive attitude and making an effort to do things that make me happy given the seemingly constant state of uncertainty that we are all experiencing in one way or another. Something that cheered me up this past week was talking to my campers at the science center about math and science (and other silly things that their imaginations offered). Before I share some of the best quotes I wrote down from this past week, I want to share a quick story.
I have been either an instructor or counselor for five-day STEM themed summer camps each week since June 1st, and my first week was teaching chemistry and reactions to rising first and second graders. Of my eight children, only one or two children were engaged and curious about the science of the activities. I helped teach engineering to rising first and second graders this past week, which was week five, and I found that this group of ten campers included two or three precocious kids who liked to ask questions. After asking the class what toppings they liked on pizza, I mentioned that I like vegetables but not pepperoni because I don’t eat the things it is made of. The most mature and arguably the smartest camper in my class asked me why and wouldn’t take “It’s a long story” for an answer. When teaching kids of such a young age, I have to be intentional about explaining things in terms I think they will understand. I gave it a shot and said something along the lines of “pepperoni is made out of pork and beef, which are pigs and cows, and I don’t eat either of those animals because animal agriculture is not good for our environment. Those animals require a lot of water in order to be raised, and we have a shortage of clean water, so basically they aren’t good for the planet.” Her response was “that wasn’t a very long story,” and it helped me realize that, although six-year-olds might have a difficult time grasping the interconnections between factory farming and the climate crisis, they can understand that as people, they will have to make choices, and they are curious about what informs those choices. Smart kids are one of the main reasons I enjoy teaching. The following quotes were from my rising first and second graders this past week.
“If you sneeze into the air a third time, it’s game over, end of the round.” -camper while we were not playing a game but another camper was sneezing
“I love rotten salmon.” -camper during lunch
“I love Ruth Bader Ginsberg. She’s my favorite.”
“When I was a baby, my dad had ruby red hair. I bited it because it was also white and looked like a candy cane.”
“To make bread, you need to start with the wheat plant.”
“Did you know that in college, you can do whatever you want.”
“Why does this smell like four dogs?” -camper smelling her snack
“My shoes are made out of yarn, so they stick.” -camper talking about shoes that were not made out of yarn
“Did you know trash actually has lots of nutrients?”
“I’m actually allergic to my mom.”
“Raise your hand if you like to eat the chair.”
“Raise your hand if you want to name your new baby Peter because your stomach is named Peter.”
Camper: “How long until lunch?” Me: “Half an hour.” Camper: “How many seconds?” Me: “Half an hour is 30 minutes times 60 seconds per minute, so 1,800 seconds.” Camper: “Do you even know what a second is?”
My campers also had a lovely debate during lunch one day about whether infinity is a number or an idea. I sided with the ideas group and offered my reasoning. Retain the beneficial characteristics of youth and may thee use naught new.
Naught New 