The Story of Segu (1) - Doing nothing and doing nothing

(From September 1, 2022, the author has become a staff member of Segu Education in Hong Kong. This series of articles is a record of the author's experience and growth in Segu.)

(In order to ensure privacy, all people mentioned in this article, except for the author, use pseudonyms.)

once,

September 1st every year

I've been living in anticipation and disappointment.

At that time,

As an elementary school teacher, I

Looking forward to seeing the class I'm in charge of

A young innocent face,

I want to meet them,

But on the first day of school,

But always in a classroom with rigid furnishings,

Return the Terms and Conditions Book in the Circular

Spend time explaining procedural rules and training discipline.

September 1st of this year,

I sit on a climbing frame designed in the shape of a star,

A warm wind blows,

Dragonflies fly in midair,

Surrounded by green grass, green hills and white clouds,

I breathe fresh air in silence,

Some children run on the grass,

In buses converted for indoor activities

Then came the clamor of other children.

when i come,

There's no such pompous introduction ceremony,

After saying hello to the other staff - my friends -

I just enjoy my space in this place.

Then,

A little boy passed by me,

He glanced at me with a suspicious look in his eyes and stopped,

Get straight to the point and ask:

"Who are you?"

"My name is Lam, and I'm a new employee. What about you? What's your name?" I replied.

"You can call me Lang Lang, I'm eight years old, although I look short." The little boy introduced himself to me clearly and confidently.

"Hello, Lang Lang! Nice to meet you." I said with a smile. Then he hopped away.

I said to myself in my heart:

"I will remember Lang Lang well, because he is the first child I met in Segu, this is a historic moment, haha!"

When I walk into the place where the kids use the computer,

A girl in a yoga outfit sits at the door and puts on shoes,

I greeted her: "Hi!"

She responded with a smile: "Hi!"

"My name is Lam, LAM, Lam. I'm a new employee. How about you?"

"My name is Evelyn, EVELYN, Evelyn."

"Hello, Evelyn! You dress like you're going to yoga."

"I want to do a cartwheel now. Do you want to see it?"

"Okay." I followed her to the grass.

She ran and jumped freely on the grass,

Played a few cartwheels,

Then ran off to play on the swing again.

I later heard that she had taught yoga to several staff members,

I made plans in my mind, and when I became more familiar with her, I would also ask her to teach me.

The children I met here,

whether there is an opportunity for dialogue,

Still just looking at each other,

They all give me a sense of ease,

They don't have the respectful attitude of children to adults that I often see at school,

Their attitude seems to be showing

They consider themselves equal to adults.

When a few kids want to play football,

Staff J kicked with them on the grass;

in the other corner,

Staff M is talking alone with a teenager who wants to get help;

In the carriage with musical instruments,

Then came the melodious drum music of another young man,

There was no adult to instruct him or give him any evaluation.

our staff,

Each has his own thing to do,

Just talk a few words when you meet in an indoor activity space,

Sometimes they gather at picnic tables and chairs on the grass,

drink water, chat,

Talk about the children, simply discuss affairs, and at the same time get to know each other,

Like a vacation with friends,

Not like a meeting with colleagues at all.

"The tranquility and freshness here makes my heart feel at peace," I said.

"I come here every day, in fact, to recharge." Staff H told me.

"How do you feel?" Staff M asked me.

"I'm very comfortable, and there's no pressure to do anything."

"Yes, Segu is like that.

Sometimes it's really hard to tell people what we're doing here,

Because there really isn't anything specific,

What we have to do is to accompany the children, observe, respond, support,

On many days when such seemingly insignificant things happened,

trust is established,

Let our time come, because of this trusting relationship,

able to participate in their growth. "Staff M said enthusiastically.

(Associated work: https://matters.news/@Michell/183868-do-nothing-education-bafyreif7etinsbd4gqvbnobtvdoyo4o4jqvsjngwvxij3qu26ebptgyrya )