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- Herausgeber: novum publishing
- Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
- Sprache: Englisch
How do we deal with children? How do we encourage their creativity? Does our school system encourage creativity or does it restrict it? In this book, the author provides numerous insights into how children can be prepared for a self-determined life and how their enthusiasm for learning can be awakened. However, he also shows the pitfalls of the school system, how the initial enthusiasm of gifted children can turn into boredom and how quickly frustration and coercion can have a demotivating effect. Liveliness and creativity are innate in children and can be used by teachers to motivate them. The examples in this book are impressive. However, they also show that we need not fear for our education system if teachers show the necessary commitment.
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Seitenzahl: 250
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025
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Martin Fährmann-Hanek
Silent Rebellion in the Classroom
A curative education guide for schools and parents
pictures of Beate Hanek
https://beatehanek.de
Foreword 6
Introduction 7
Part 1 - Situations that nobody wants to be in 10
Chapter 1.1 When things escalate 10
Caught in pain 10
Secondary thoughts 11
Knowledge corner 11
When security is missing 13
Unconventional solutions 14
When scolding no longer helps 15
Knowledge corner EFT 20
Secondary idea 21
Chapter 1.2 Stress through performance 22
Knowledge corner Flow 25
Tortured by your own expectations 25
Knowledge corner Aggression as an opener 26
A new error culture 27
Side thought Making mistakes 27
One game is reward enough 28
Chapter 1.3 When inner images become conflicts 29
Traumatic images 29
Blocking images in the classroom 30
Knowledge corner 32
Television and inner libraries 33
Part 2 - Back to balance 37
Chapter 2.1 The phenomenon of opening and closing 37
Chapter 2.2 Left and right hemispheres of the brain 38
Chapter 2.3 The creative process 39
Final thoughts 42
Creative cycles 43
Chapter 2.4 Struggling for balance 44
Recognize restrictions 44
Uniting opposites 45
Balancing needs 46
Chapter 2.5 Art and creativity 48
Chapter 2.6 Reopening learning relationships 50
Creativity as a way of resolving conflicts 51
Open communication 51
Secondary idea 53
Media and opinions 54
Giving time and space 55
Polarization closes 57
Changing perspectives 57
Communication with the whole person 58
Knowledge corner mirror neurons 59
Chapter 2.7 Closing learning processes well 61
Strength through practice 62
Repetition 63
Set boundaries 63
Developing skills 64
Organization and structure 64
Support through bonding 65
Conclusion 65
Chapter 2.8 Using the power of language 66
A language that balances 66
Chapter 2.9 Impulses for creative and open lessons 69
Ask questions 69
Communicating values 71
Open learning situations 72
Tasks with a tactile character 73
Sensual lessons 74
Experiment 75
Open games 76
Creative thinking at eye level 76
Chapter 2.10 Competence through creativity 77
Supporting special children 77
Part 3 - Looking ahead 80
Chapter 3.1 Concerned parents 80
Chapter 3.2 A key competence 80
Expectations of the school 81
Chapter 3.3 Two movements 82
Chapter 3.4 What significance does creativity have in the economy and in public life? 83
Design thinking, Bauhaus 83
Involving citizens in research 84
Chapter 3.5 - Outlook: The role of the school 85
Secondary idea 86
Focus and imagination 86
Chapter 3.6 Keeping healthy 87
Chapter 3.7 Development through creativity 90
Lifelong development and learning 90
Summary 92
Fighting for survival? 92
Arrived at the core 93
Development as innovation 94
Opportunities for a paradigm shift 96
Chapter 3.8 Games and exercises 96
Open listening in the forest 97
Opening vision in the forest 97
Follow the body 97
Blind drawing 97
Let yourself be surprised 97
Games that open 97
Exercises from Brain Gym and Life Kinetics: 98
Improv theater 98
References 99
Part 1 99
Part 2 99
Part 3 102
Foreword
How do children learn? How do you resolve conflicts? What do children need to grow? I have been involved in education all my life. Initially, I never wanted to become a teacher. My own disappointments with school were too deep-seated. But disappointments can be a driving force to look for the reasons why things got this way and to research how they could be better. So, at the age of 46, I studied special education again to get to the bottom of these questions. Only then did I feel that I really understood children. During my studies I got to know Prof. Dr. Werner Bleher, whom I would like to take this opportunity to thank for his kindness in checking my manuscript for its professional quality. However, the greatest teachers for me were the children who stood in my way during my school career. As I learned to let go of my goals in being with children and look for creative solutions while we were in conflict, unexpected things happened that surprised me so much that I wrote them down. I love unusual experiences that give me a new perspective on reality. In this way, I collected many stories that ultimately led to this book. It is a book of experiences, more than a scientific work. I would like to address parents, teachers and adults who are curious about children and invite them to share these experiences with me. The book also contains lots of tips, exercises and games to help you gain your own experiences. A book from practice for practice.
Martin Fährmann-Hanek in spring 2024
Introduction
Many people believe that children are there to be obedient and compliant. Adults think they know what is good for a child. So they dictate everything. So there is no room for contradiction, no room for their own point of view. I experienced this myself as a child. When I asked my parents what they wanted for Christmas, there was always only one answer: dear children. At first it made sense to me, because a child usually wants to be dear. They are full of love. But being obedient and loving without reference to a specific action makes children suspicious. It is not a harmless desire, because as a child you sense that there is something wrong with always being obedient and obeying, even if you are not convinced of every instruction. Blind obedience should be a thing of the past, and yet many parents force their children to obey. There are more parents than expected who have difficulties with their children because of this. According to a study conducted by the University of Fribourg in autumn 2022 with 1013 parents, 50% of all children in Switzerland experience domestic violence.1 Parents who ritualize physical and psychological violence against their children even frequently stated that they feel they are in the right. What is particularly alarming is that the vast majority of parents believe that psychological violence is permissible when children are older. Yelling at or ignoring them is then often even considered legal.
Being kind and obeying cannot be the task of a child. Children want to obey voluntarily because they believe in adults and their mission. They willingly submit when they feel seen and liked. They want to understand why certain things have to be done and learned. Children are creative beings who are eager to be involved in all of life's problems and to be taken seriously. They want to grow with life's problems and find out who they are. They want to cooperate creatively with adults. Creativity is therefore a better response to the bubbling vitality of children than control and coercion.
From the children's point of view, their liveliness is their natural disposition. Out of love for their parents, they often suppress this liveliness. They try to live up to their parents' expectations by striving to get good grades at home and doing everything their parents tell them to do. However, their needs often fall by the wayside. They fail to meet their own expectations and lose heart when the grades are no longer right. In the stress of a thoroughly organized everyday life, they gradually lose their childishness and an increasing number of children end up in burnout.2
From the adults' point of view, children interfere when parents have their well-deserved evening off and the liveliness of the children does not fit in. They want to finally enjoy this time off work in a self-determined way and are annoyed when their children intensively demand their needs. Other parents react violently because they mistakenly interpret the child's behavior as an attack on their authority. It's all understandable. Parenting is a great challenge. It begins with the fact that parents have to take on a second job for which they can hardly prepare: raising children. At the same time, a balancing act begins between work, the world of children and partnership. Parents are strained to balance all the needs of the family. New challenges are soon added at school . Parents have just got through the worst of it when their children suddenly start rebelling at school and nobody knows exactly why.
We need an answer to the challenges that children bring with them at this time. We also need an answer for parents and teachers who are feeling increasingly stressed. What role does creativity play in this?
In my opinion, creativity plays an extremely important role in the education of children, as it always begins with an opening. In doing so, it initiates the possibility of a relationship. Without opening up to each other, the relationship is a farce. Children then play at obedience in order to win over their parents or teachers. However, this is not satisfying for anyone. The relationship is the prerequisite for successful learning to take place at all. Creativity and relationship are the prerequisites for being able to solve difficult situations at all. Without creativity, we can't actually do anything in conflicts. We can only provide temporary calm. Without a relationship, you can't really understand children and without understanding them, you can't teach them anything.
As a remedial school teacher, I have noticed that the best way to reach children is through creative stimuli. This is due to the phenomenon of the creative process. It always has something invitingly opening. It can open our eyes and give us ideas to get out of any conflict. It also opens the child's eyes and invites them to enter into a process with us.
I would like to tell you about this, as well as about unusual situations I have experienced in which creativity was the key to saving the situation. Creativity is not just a learning opener. As an important tool between adults and children, it creates the trust that is necessary for a relationship. It also has an invigorating and inspiring effect on adults and provides them with a balance to their work.
In my research on creativity in social life, I came across astonishing evidence of the high value placed on creativity in science and business. This in turn has implications for how creativity is dealt with at school, which is supposed to prepare children for life.
For these reasons, I have decided to divide the book into three parts:
Experiences from
the reality of school
that pushed me to my limits and opened my eyes to children
The phenomenon of
balance
in the creative process and its significance for education and schools
A
look ahead
: What the economy expects from young people and the sustainability of creativity in life
The first part tells of real situations from lessons, excursions or school camps that nobody wants to have. These are surprising situations in which the concept on which the planned preparation was based no longer worked.
It was in these moments that I learned the most about children. Looking back, I love these stories. During the situation, on the other hand, I was sweating profusely. I want to say: I can empathize with teachers and parents who are reaching their limits. I know how they feel. My gifts of improvisation and patience have helped me in these moments.
In part 2, I talk about the balance that we achieve through true creativity. To do this, we go deeper into the creative process. We experience why creativity offers the solution to many problems and conflicts in life. I have avoided using technical language as far as possible and limited technical background information to the bare essentials. You don't have to read 100 books to understand children. A lot of knowledge comes from our natural common sense and the willingness to always keep an open mind towards children. The ideas I give here can inspire you to do more research yourself.
Part 3 looks ahead to areas that affect our entire lives. The economy is an important part of this. It has been dealing with the topic of creativity for a long time. We look at the process of teaching and education from a different perspective, from the future, so to speak, towards which the children are running. In my opinion, this also includes the topic of health and spiritual development.
So much for the structure of this book. Finally, I would like to mention that all the experiences are real stories, almost all of which I experienced myself. I have made the names of the children unrecognizable in order to protect them.
Finally:
There is a common thread in this book: creativity. I have learned the great value of creativity through the many conflicts I have experienced and resolved with children.
I wish it would reign in all our lives.
Part 1 - Situations that nobody wants to be in
Chapter 1.1 When things escalate
When children interfere, the first thing we notice is that they interfere with our plans. They restrict us. That's annoying. Who likes that? Teachers have to interrupt their lessons, parents need peace and quiet after work. This requires a lot of patience and strength, which you don't always have. From the child's point of view, things look very different. They express themselves as soon as the shoe pinches. It often hurts so much that they can't stand it any longer. They can't wait because their problem has top priority in their eyes. This causes them great distress. They often can't even say why they are angry, sad or upset.
This often leads to conflicts in the relationship.
Caught in pain
It was that moment of deepest satisfaction that fills you when you have prepared for a successful birthday party and think you have thought of everything. It happened at a school camp with a year 5 class. We had had a long, exhausting day and were looking forward to a relaxed evening with a good meal, fun games and lots of children's laughter. Afterwards, we would all fall into our beds tired and sleep contentedly. Or so we thought. However, things turned out quite differently.
My colleague was busy preparing dinner on the first floor when suddenly two girls rushed to me excitedly and reported in panic that a classmate wanted to kill them. "Paul said he wanted to go into the kitchen in the evening when we were asleep, get a sharp carving knife and stab us all!" My thoughts were racing: was he perhaps already on his way to the girls with a knife? I felt anger and indignation: was this the way to thank him for the lovely day we had spent together? Images of the shootings in Winnenden and Erfurt appeared before my eyes in a fraction of a second. Even though children's words should never be taken lightly, I was seized by a certain unease at that moment. Of course, protecting the other children from a potential assassins came first. As I hurried up the stairs, I thought about what to do. I had to find out how serious Paul was. There were indeed very large and sharp knives in the kitchen. The kitchen couldn't be locked. I had to reach Paul and find out what was behind his violent fantasies. I arrived on the boys' floor with a pounding heart.
Secondary thoughts
Even in difficult moments, we operate on different levels. Besides the excitement spread by the children, I managed to stay calm. I thought feverishly. In their emotional helplessness, children often resort to expressions of strength that they would never use in a calm state. This gives them a feeling of strength. However, children can also develop tremendous strength when they are in the greatest emotional distress and cause a lot of mischief. Think of children who are drowning. This can even be a challenge for a lifeguard. Children who have felt helpless and small in their parental environment and have experienced abuse can overcompensate in another situation and go into a violent rage that makes them feel that they are finally no longer helpless. Paul had probably experienced traumatization that was triggered by a similar situation in the camp.
Knowledge corner
When we are stressed, we switch from our frontal brain, which stands for alert, conscious thinking, to our limbic system. It is the gateway to our emotions. Here, deep inside our brain, all emotions are processed. This is where we decide how to react in stressful situations in order to protect ourselves as quickly as possible by fleeing or attacking. Logical thinking is then impossible. It is far too slow. Paul was triggered by something. A trigger initiates something. It reactivates an earlier trauma. As a result, the threatening situation from before is experienced again with the same intensity. Background:
During the Second World War, soldiers reacted to the inescapably oppressive situation in the trenches with trauma.
The deafening noise of crashing shells was unbearable. At that moment, fleeing was just as impossible as attacking. The situation became unbearable. At that moment, they dissociated. They went into a state of torpor and were no longer really present. This was a helpful solution for the soul to not go crazy, to survive. After the war, however, this behavior remained, and many of them had inexplicable physical reactions such as the well-known war tremor, a post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD for short. 3A trigger for soldiers can be when they are asked to talk about their experiences too soon in therapy, or when they enter a confined space that reminds them of the trenches. Witnessing traumatic events can also trigger PTSD. The signs and symptoms of PTSD can include flashbacks, nightmares, persistent anxiety, sleep problems and emotional numbness. PTSD left some police officers unable to work after the shooting rampage in Winnenden.
Paul had crossed a red line that really only allowed one response: he had to be picked up. However, my experience has taught me that it is always an advantage to wait until you have a full overview of the situation before reacting. I therefore forced myself to remain calm and composed as I entered Paul's room.
A friend was consoling him, but that didn't really work. It only made him talk himself into his violent fantasies more and more. So I asked the friend to leave and started to listen to everything he was accusing the girls of. I held back my own thoughts and, above all, my clever answers and got an overview of the situation. It quickly became clear that Paul had been triggered by the girls and was deeply hurt and sad. The anger had to come out. I withdrew with him to a sheltered, secluded room and continued to listen, but directed the conversation more and more towards himself by asking questions. It came out how much he was suffering from the separation of his parents. "I have to move every week, first to dad, then to mom. There's no safe place for me." Finally, when everything was said, his anger turned into a deep sadness, which he was able to allow in this setting. A girl named Lotta was present. She was not afraid of his violent fantasies. When Paul let go of his violent fantasies, he collapsed. There they sat: two children aged 11, one completely dissolved in his pain, the other full of compassion and sympathy in front of him. Normally, they always avoided each other, as girls and boys are at that age. But at this moment, they both forgot their roles and their shyness towards each other. Lotta had accompanied Paul through the whole process. She now felt the strength to comfort him. Paul huddled into her arms, sobbing, and willingly and unashamedly let her comfort him. There was something touchingly real and precious, almost sacred, about the sight. For a moment, Lotta was able to give like a mother, and Paul was able to take without shyness and find peace.
The dangerous situation was suddenly over. Finally, Paul promised to leave the girls completely alone. I felt that he was serious and we were able to end the day in harmony. Afterwards, I was glad that I had waited to take rigid action. Paul was a changed man. He had found himself again. He could see clearly how much he had lost his way. I had learned something new:
More can be achieved in such a moment through silent witnessing, in a space of safety, than through rigid measures and many words. Over the next few years, Paul became a thoughtful, level-headed student. I met him from time to time and we smiled understandingly at each other.
Tips
When security is missing
Children are fundamentally dependent on good relationships. They need security and reliability from caregivers who mean well by them. This gives them stability. Unfortunately, we often don't see what they are missing when they come to school. At first it seems like a mystery when children run riot, get rowdy or provoke other children. The most important thing at this moment is to change rooms with the child and distract them. They need to calm down before we can talk to them.
Horst was simply unstoppable lately. He was just causing trouble, couldn't keep his mouth shut and was constantly provocative and fidgety. I had already tried everything to help him and make it clear to him that his behavior was unacceptable, but nothing seemed to help. At such moments, I automatically leave my program. I wait for an inspiration and only then do I approach the student to take them into an experience that I hope will grab them and change them. With Horst, I immediately thought of the music room. Music has a fascination for all children and I hoped that it would also inspire Horst. But I was aware that it could also be a risky choice, because music has an intrinsic effect that can be very invigorating and upsetting. We went to the mallet instruments. Without giving it much thought, I chose a tone sequence for Horst that always matched a keynote I was playing. I played my note and was excited to see what would happen. I didn't have to wait long. Horst started playing immediately, but without any feeling. It was horrible. But I didn't give up and we switched sides. Now he had to play the root note while I improvised over it. That's when the surprising thing happened: Horst took pleasure in the single note. He heard my melodies and wanted to keep repeating just the one note. He got into a real flow and sank into an introverted, inner peace. The tone was like an anchor in the whirlwind of tone sequences that I played. Apparently, it was exactly what Horst needed to calm down. We played together in harmony for about 20 minutes. It was like a joint meditation that helped us both to calm down. Then Horst was satisfied. He put the mallet aside and went back to class calm and relaxed. It was an unexpected success and I realized that the music had helped Horst to overcome his inner restlessness and become a balanced and productive student again.
Horst was only connected to one keynote, and yet he never felt bored. Keynotes provide orientation for the listener. They provide stability. That is what Horst lacked in his family: security. At the same time, music opens the door to the world of emotions. "Melodies and rhythms have an effect on precisely those regions of the brain that are responsible for processing sadness, joy and longing," says brain research.4 It is therefore easy to understand why children with emotional support needs react so strongly to music.
TIPS
There are subjects such as music and art that can open children up from within. This is an advantage, as children can more easily enter their emotional world in these subjects. Children respond particularly well to creative activities.
We should observe children closely to find out what kind of creativity appeals to them. Are they more visual or more auditory? Do they get creative in nature or rather in quiet, low-stimulus rooms?
Encourage opportunities for children to experience elementary movement. These include balancing, climbing, running and jumping. Emotions can easily regulate themselves here and elementary prerequisites are promoted in order to develop agile thinking, the ability to wait, patience and a high frustration tolerance later on at school.
Unconventional solutions
There are situations with special challenges that require a spontaneous and unconventional approach on the part of the teacher. It is almost impossible to prepare for these challenging situations. They are a horror for anyone who wants to proceed in a 100% structured way, as they throw any structure overboard. But they bring surprises and unusual insights into the nature of the child. Music offers creative solutions. The situation with Horst was a stroke of luck, because I wasn't alone in the class. Sometimes children solve their own problems, because children usually know very well what they need. I was able to experience this with Karl when I was teaching music alone in the classroom.
Karl was a very unconventional boy. He loved anything exciting and crass that might shock other children. His enthusiasm and energy always surprised and impressed me. Karl was a 5th grade student and had a rather unusual hobby: his parents kept many snakes, including venomous and constrictor snakes. He spoke of a constrictor snake with almost tender words when it caught a mouse and ate it. For him, it was like a good friend and I had to hide my inner rejection of this hobby so as not to dampen his enthusiasm. Instead, I concentrated on his devotion to music. Amazingly, I was able to get Karl interested in playing the ukulele. One day we wanted to play a boogie on the ukulele, but Karl didn't have his ukulele with him. He cursed and got very angry because he really wanted to play along. He paced around the classroom restlessly and I was worried that he might ruin the music lesson. Suddenly, however, he had disappeared. My heart was pounding. Should I go after him and look for him, leaving the other children alone?
We often come into conflict ourselves when children express their needs uninhibitedly, because they are then very difficult to manage. I was prepared for anything.
But Karl met me in a very unconventional way.
He remembered that we had studied the creation of sounds on natural instruments in music class some time ago and he got an idea of how he could solve the problem of not having an instrument with him. Unnoticed, he disappeared into the school kitchen and returned to class shortly afterwards with two wine glasses filled with water. He had tuned them, I don't know how, independently and quite accurately to the basic notes G and D and was now actually able to play along. At first I was shocked that he had stolen away. But then I was impressed by his creativity and ingenuity.
Such a solution to the problem cannot be planned.
In a sense, my inattentiveness worked in my favor.
I suppressed the rebuke that was on the tip of my tongue. So we experienced an unusual and extremely harmonious music lesson.
An unconventional response creates trust in the relationship between teacher and pupil and shows that we can find a solution together even in unusual situations.
Music has a strong inviting effect, inviting people to join in. This is perhaps also due to the fact that all people react to music in a stimulating way. It starts even before birth, as scientists have discovered. The violinist Yehudi Menuhin even considers singing to be the actual mother tongue of humans (see above). It is easy to imagine why music has such an opening and calming effect on children with emotional disorders.
