Poster Lessons

I spent a good part of today helping my son make his winter break social studies poster.  I expected to learn a lot about Weather and Climate in the U.S.  And I did.  But what surprised me was how much the process taught me (well, at least reminded me) about people skills.  A whole lot of facts might have resulted in a perfectly fine poster. It was the people skill stuff that made a poster both my son and I could be proud of.

So, here are a few of the things I learned:
 
1. A little patience goes a long way.  A lot of patience keeps you going when the way is long.
 
2. Always remember to praise what's right, even if you also have to correct something that's not.  We all know how disheartening, even debilitating, it can be when our best efforts aren't received as perfect, yet we are very quick to correct the efforts of others. And there I was, zeroing in on the witch vs. which and the were vs. where, before I said anything about the interesting weather content.
 
3. If you're amazed by something, say so.  It makes everyone feel better.  I spent my own poster-making youth barely able to draw a straight line with a ruler, much less, fit all the necessary big block letters on the straightish line.  My son wrote his six-word poster title across the top of the poster, freehand, and ended up with equal white spaces on either end.  Wow.
 
4. Take a time out (not a punishment, just some time out). Again, it makes everyone feel better (and in the end, it often gets the job done faster than struggling right through).
 
5. Congratulate your co-workers when the job is done.  (A high-five works too, especially with 8-year old boys.)  No matter what you've been through on the job, this generally makes you want to work together again on the next job.
 
So, back to school my son will go tomorrow, rolled up poster in hand (2 days ahead of the deadline, because he's worried, and rightfully so, that it will get lost or destroyed at home!). While we were working, he talked about wanting the poster to be really good, since it was not just his first poster at his new school, but his first school poster ever.  Add that to the "what I've learned" list.  Even at the age of eight, it's important to make a good first impression!