Just because it was so entertaining today. :)

I'm a volunteer with an exhibit with what I'll call RLE, part of a greater organization I'll call MTI, that is meant to open the public's eyes to poverty, conflict and disaster in the world. High schools and middle schools in the area take tours through it during the week, as well as college groups and church groups, and my place with the exhibit is to introduce the groups coming through to the exhibit.

Generally schools come and they are rambunctious and talkative before they begin but quickly become quiet when they see the first video of MTI teams helping out people in need. They generally come out of the exhibit feeling an entire range of emotions, from sadness to guilt to anger to humility to hope. They ask great questions along the way as they realize that this is real. "Why is this happening?" "Doesn't anybody help them?" Sometimes they even ask, "What can I do?"

Today was my first middle school group. And it was crazy from beginning to end.

It was a big group--about 36 students plus 4 adults--so we had them divide up into 3 groups in order to fit in the first couple rooms, and then they could go at their own pace and take their time and filter their way through until the end, where they would wait in the debriefing room until their entire group came in. Ideally, that's how it's supposed to work. :)

The first bunch of middle schoolers just ZOOMED through the exhibit. They were clear at the 9th room, the Mexico Garbage Dump in 10 minutes flat, completely untouched by the exhibit, still laughing and talking and flirting and laying on things and generally raucous. Obviously intervention was needed. So I took the back ways so I was ahead of them and then basically stood in their midst and drew their attention to what they were seeing and responded to what they were saying. Volunteers aren't really supposed to talk in the exhibit--it's supposed to be experiential--but I've found that talking to students along the way, especially the younger ones, really helps them focus and take it to heart.

With intervention, the kids slowed down a bit, thankfully. Just in time too--the last 3 vignettes are the ones that get to people the most, no matter what age. Still, the kids got to the end way before the rest of their group. We handed out papers to them in the debriefing room with questions to answer, but the kids just would not sit still, and most of them, if not all, went back out into the exhibit, walking back and forth and distracting their classmates who were still touring. OY! But at least it gave them something to do, and I think that first rambunctious group took in more as they went back and forth. I feel bad for the other groups, though.

I did get some good questions in that last 45 minutes. I can't remember what they were now, much to my annoyance, but I did get some good questions.

After another 45 minutes or so we FINALLY corralled the entire group into the debriefing room. Good heavens. They calmed down a lot once they were in a more familiar, classroom-like setting. And we did get some good comments and responses.

I wanted to relate some of the entertaining parts of the day. At the beginning of the tour, we pass out badges to students that have a picture of a person in the exhibit and a question for the kids to think about when they find that person. One kid got a picture of a woman with AIDS. He kept saying, "Does anyone want to trade? I don't want to have AIDS! Can I trade? I don't want to have AIDS!"

At the end, in the debriefing room, Ann (my supervisor, who was debriefing them) asked, "Did any of you choose to be born in the United States?" One kid stated, "I wasn't born in the United States! I was born in Mexico." Thinking twice, he added, "But not the garbage dump!" He was actually a pretty bright kid, but definitely the worst of the rambunctious group. He had some great ideas for ways his class could help the people he had learned about.

There were a few kids who were surprisingly knowledgeable--and cynical. When given the opportunity to ask questions or make comments, one boy said, "How much money do you keep for yourself? 'Cause some organizations keep, like, half the money and then the people they're trying to help don't get it." He kind of astonished me. I wondered who in the world his parents were. MTI keeps a small overhead, though, and I was quite thankful for that as Ann explained to him that we only keep 4 cents of every dollar for ourselves to maintain the lighting and the cleanliness, etc., and the other 96 cents goes to the people in need.

Another surprising question came from a little girl with a painted butterfly on her face. "Have you ever been out there--like, in the countries, actually helping?" Those are always somewhat alarming and humbling questions. Ann explained that she had been to the Philippines and worked in a garbage dump much like the Mexico one from the exhibit. I would have been able to say that I'd helped out after Hurricane Katrina, but in the starkness of the girl's question I still felt pretty black for not doing more than just talking about the people that need help instead of going there myself. Kids'll do that to you.

All in all, I thought it was good for me to be amidst middle schoolers in all their craziness. It WAS kind of fun...Kind of. :) Good preparation for being a parent, and perhaps to make teaching kids that age a less scary thing.

-Stephanie

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