Troublemakers: Lessons in Freedom from Young Children at School by Carla Shalaby

Author:Carla Shalaby [Shalaby, Carla]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
ISBN: 9781620972373
Publisher: The New Press
Published: 2017-03-07T05:00:00+00:00

“Chocolate milk,” says Sean, intending a request. He’s aggressive in his approach, and Kate reminds him, with a level voice but several times, that she is waiting for a full sentence. She refuses chocolate milk but agrees to strawberry.

“You have to drink it at the breakfast counter,” she says. “Not in the living room.” He comes over, takes one quick sip, and then leaves it behind to tend to the multiple distractions in the living room. Kate redirects him to finish it and he does, but hardly in one fell swoop. He dawdles and spins from spot to spot, his attention not sustained.

Our attention turns to a TV show Sean has recorded—a show called How It’s Made on the Science Channel. He has already seen this episode, and I’m watching with interest, as they are explaining how accordions are made. At first I can’t tell what they are putting together, so I look puzzled. Sean is playing on his tablet but looks up briefly to inform me that they’re making accordions. I am clearly interested and I read some of the subtitles to him since the people featured are speaking Italian. We enjoy the show together.

In the next segment we’re learning how wasabi is made. I don’t know how many times Sean has seen this episode, but he for sure knows how to make wasabi. As we begin to hear about the process, his mom gets interested and comes away from her computer at the breakfast counter. “Scootch over,” she says to Sean on the couch, moving him to the side.

He playfully refuses, “I’ll never move!” so they tickle and tumble a bit. When they finish tussling and she has secured a spot for herself against the arm of the couch, Sean puts his tablet away and moves his body to her side for some snuggling. She holds him close. A few moments later he moves even closer to her, and it’s obviously a familiar and affectionate position for both. In my time with him at school he never struck me as particularly cuddly or even sweet. He’s a feisty little rascal with a strong, willful edge and an assertive, questioning personality. At this moment, though, he is a loving mother’s baby.

He seems content, with everyone’s full attention and togetherness on the couch, and he quiets down and settles in with a calm body. He is perfectly still and intently focused—a rare event. We are all watching with interest the wasabi-making process. He is excited to be expert, as compared to us two adults. “The wasabi comes from a plant,” he explains, before the show can get to that part. “They need hot springs water at a specific temperature for it and it has to be really clean water. They use flamethrowers.”

Here his mom interrupts: “Flamethrowers? For what? What are you talking about?” She challenges his authority on the subject for a moment.

“For the roots. You’ll see. The spicy stuff is in the roots of the plant. They use sharks’ teeth to grate it.

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