Mary’s Minute
“Everyone shines given the right lighting. For some it’s a Broadway spotlight, for others,
a lamp lit desk.”
~ Susan Cain
My son, Bill, has taught me a lot about introverts and
extroverts, since his introvertedness is in direct contrast to my
extrovertedness. A simple explanation of
the difference in the two personality types is that introverts gain energy from
being alone while extroverts gain energy from being around people. Like most characteristics, people cannot be
pigeon-holed into a single type, but the concept is good to help us understand
how our students, friends, and family members operate. I have learned that Bill can function very
well in a crowd and come off to people as being comfortable and confident, but
at the end of a day, he needs to be alone to recharge. For me it is just the opposite, being with
people invigorates me. When I think
about our students, I have to admit that schools by nature favor students who
gain energy from others. I am not sure
of the answer to this, but it does make me conscious of providing opportunities
for students to work both in groups and alone, and to provide “recharging” spaces
for introverts to be alone when needed.
As for me as a mother, I have learned to be more patient when Bill wants
to just be alone, not taking it personally that he doesn’t want to spend time
with me. Our goal is to provide just the
right lighting so that all of our students can shine!
Have
a great week!
Mary
No comments:
Post a Comment