Sheep, Wolves, & Sheepdogs
Although we live in the dairy state of Wisconsin bursting with farms full of livestock, corn, and more, many of us are not all too familiar with the process of herding sheep. Sure, I may think about sheep as I count these caricatures in bed or sing Old McDonald but other than these ideas of farm animals I personally don’t think about sheep often. Sheep and their helpers, sheepdogs, are an important concept when growing a community at Acton. This concept is so important that the sheepdog reference is a key part of the Acton network lingo of choice words. Just as we’ve become accustomed to using the word learner rather than student or reference the role of Captain or Pirate in the studio, the word sheepdog is a recent addition to our daily Acton lingo.
This Wednesday I gave a guest Launch in Discovery to drive this sheepdog concept home and if you’re curious here is a short video that started the conversation. Here are the highlights.
There are sheep who follow the herd, wolves who prey on sheep, and sheepdogs who help the community of sheep find and take a path to safety. Sheepdogs help the herd find greatness and every sheepdog style is a bit different. Some stare the sheep down, bark, run, or nip at their heels. During the Launch learners voted what animal role they prefer, almost all sheepdogs and 1 wolf. Then we extended the metaphor to the studio and learners took stock of their actions this past session, 5 sheepdogs, 4 wolves (distractors), and the rest sheep. Metaphors are tough so I gave learners a scenario for them to pinpoint learners as sheep, wolves, or dogs.
It is Core Skills and Jimmy, Sarah, Nicole, and Alex are sitting together at a table and are trying to get in flow. Allison is the CS Captain and is tracking the studio’s flow time record. Jeremiah walks by and notices Alex is working on Khan 3rd grade multiplication. He stops and says “Oh I thought you would be done with that Math sooner. I finished that a long time ago, it was so easy. You must not be good at Math like me.” Sarah heard Jeremiah and said “Shut up Jeremiah, go do your work!” Nicole said “Hey, you guys aren’t using kind words. We all need to get into flow.” Jeremiah said “Whatever” and walked away. Nicole gave Alex and the table advice to ignore Jeremiah and she encouraged everyone to set goals on their white boards. Captain Allison watched but did nothing.
Learners debated the wolf and the sheepdog. Some viewed Jeremiah as a wolf and others argued Jeremiah and Sarah were both wolves. The Launch debate was best as learners made arguments that a sheepdog meant standing up for a friend no matter how they acted and other learners believed kindness mattered more. The majority viewed Nicole as the sheepdog but 3 or 4 learners stuck to their convictions that Sarah was a sheepdog too. This is why I LOVE Launches. Stories and debate allow learners to know the feelings of their peers and allow learners to reevaluate their habits without being told by adults. The words “shut up” are strong and unkind however they are a common phrase uttered by children and a phrase we’ve heard those 3 or 4 learners use in the studio. The herd wants it to stop.
This was Part 1 to our Sheepdog conversation and Part 2 will explore sheepdog tools and strategies after a week of learner observational awareness. The call to action for learners in Discovery is simply to notice when a sheepdog rises in the studio and to consider what role they want to assume. Next week I’ll have the privilege to share the same sheepdog Launch in Spark and I can’t wait to see the ripple effect of this new lingo in the studio. If you are a Spark parent who has recently been hearing the words accountability and intentionality get ready for sheepdog!
When do you stand up as a sheepdog? What situations at work, with friends, in your family, or in society do you help the herd move towards greatness? If you’ve assumed the role of wolf or sheep in the past and wished with 20/20 vision that you were a sheepdog consider sharing your reflection journey with your learner. Too often do I think or hear “I wish I would have spoken up…I wish I would have done this rather than going along with the group.” Our children are watching, listening, and ready to learn from our history. Share and be a sheepdog!