“This is so boring.” 

There’s not even a hint of force in her expression. I can’t argue with her: a two page worksheet never set my world on fire. And at least she’s punched a hole in the silence and voiced what we’re all thinking. I take the chance to sit and talk.

“If you could make it not so boring, what would you do?” 

A blank stare in reply. We only met earlier in the day; she hasn’t worked me out yet.

She spins the worksheet, pushes it away a little.

I hear a pen tapping on a desk behind me. 

There’s only one door into this classroom, and even though it opens to the outside, with no wind and blue skies …

“What if you went for a walk? There are some lovely pōhutakawa over there. Perhaps you could stand under them and look for something interesting?”

A sideways look. 

“Really? I can go outside?”

“Why not? When you come back, tell me what you found.”

She’s back a few minutes later and tells me about the cicadas, how big some of them were. She didn’t know they could get that big. She picks up her pen.

“Nice to see your mind opening a little. Do you think it’s open enough to to try a couple more questions on the worksheet?”

A wry smile in return. But she pulls the worksheet close and focuses herself on it.

I stand by the door and listen to the cicadas. 

Across the room, someone is being sucked into their Chromebook.

“Mr—can I go back outside and look up in the tree? I’ve done two questions.”

Of course my answer is yes, and just like last time she’s back within a few minutes and we have a quick chat about what she found. But this time, she goes back to the worksheet without any prompting. And she sticks at it.

---

It’s common for people to complain about kids not having any persistence these days, especially teenagers. I wonder what people really mean when they say this? Is this the data point upon which this judgement is made: the work complete/incomplete?

But that’s only one aspect we need to consider, and I must confess I’m not that great a fan of it because it puts all the responsibility for persistence on the kid and ignores the relational and environmental factors that influence it.

When we see it as a disposition that can be grown, we see we can help learners stretch their ability to persist by helping them see there are ways they can approach their work, strategies they can employ, that will help them get through things, especially when things get tough. Non-judgemental, caring relationships are one. Knowing it’s ok to take a break and change the scene is another.

In other words, creating environments where open, refreshed minds feel warmly connected to others who’ve got their back is how we can help learners grow their persistence.

---

“Mr.” I turn and see a hand up. He’s got a mischievous smile. “I’m bored. Can I go and find something interesting too?”

“Sure. What’s the deal though?”

“Come back soon and tell you what happened when I opened my mind.”

“That’s it!” 

We smile at each other, and I think: Awesome, we’re slowly opening up a little space here, and it feels good.