Traversing the Lily Pads
Over Winter Break my family was fortunate enough to get away for a few nights at an indoor water park. The park was the perfect size, not too big where we had to follow our kids to each section, and not too small where they got bored after an hour or so. Our kids are at the perfect age where they’ll play together or with their cousins while my wife and I could relax at a table reading and just enjoying each other’s company.
One of the attractions at the park was a row of green floating circles, basically lily pads, and a rope strung above them. This was my daughter’s jam! She has always loved physical challenges and obstacles. I’ve always said she’s going to be a future Crossfit champion. She spent 90% of our trip in this area, skipping over the lily pads faster each round, or hovering above, her feet just barely scraping the tops of them, while using the rope as a monkey bar.
I got a kick out of watching her for a while, amazed at her strength and endurance to just keep going. My son came up and said he wanted to try. My son is the opposite of his younger sister. He has fine motor delays and cannot scale through obstacle courses like kids even half his age. My son also has trouble controlling his impulses. When things don’t go his way, or he doesn’t succeed, he can go from 0 to 150. When he said, “Dad, I’m going to go do that too,” I felt that feeling of freedom one has while on vacation leave my body like a spirit escaping a body after a final breath.
I observed, wide-eyed, as he strolled over and got in line. As each kid darted across, I felt the sweat birthing on my brow as his turn approached. I kept asking myself, “Is he going to make it? Is there going to be a scene if he falls in? How is he going to respond to the other kids flying across with ease?” Before I could even formulate a prediction, he was up.
Paralysis overtook as I watched him begin his run. But there was no run. There wasn’t even a walk. My son sat on the first lily pad, holding the rope above with his right hand, feet dangling in the water. He stretched his right leg to the next lily pad, then pulled it directly parallel to the one he was sitting on. Somehow, he scooted onto #2. Then, he did the same for #3, #4, and so on. After what was the longest lily pad traverse of the day, my son was on the other side of the pool, never once falling into the water. Blood flow returned to my body and I was able to sprout up, run over to my son, give him a hug and ask, “Do you want to do it again?” His response, “Nah, I’m going to go back on the slide.”
This got my wheels spinning. There is no one way to accomplish a goal. The end result is the same, but each individuals path to get there will differ. Does it truly matter how one reaches their goal?
We need to remember this for our students. Our classrooms are filled with a variety of learners and learning styles. There is nothing wrong with Student A learning by sitting in a desk hearing a lecture while Student B gets the concepts standing up and working on a project hands-on. Does it matter that Student C masters a skill in 3 weeks while Student D takes 5?
Knowing that our students are all working towards a goal, we must know, accept, and encourage all routes to get there. We can’t expect our students to reach the end with how we are most comfortable getting there. You never know, you may just find yourself down another avenue you never expected to be in!
