Why We Banned Legos

Rethinking Schools ^ | Winter 2006 | Ann Pelo and Kendra Pelojoaquin

[Lorianne]

Exploring power, ownership, and equity in an early childhood classroom ___

Carl and Oliver,* both 8-year-olds in our after-school program, huddled over piles of Legos. They carefully assembled them to add to a sprawling collection of Lego houses, grocery stores, fish-and-chips stands, fire stations, and coffee shops. They were particularly keen to find and use "cool pieces," the translucent bricks and specialty pieces that complement the standard-issue red, yellow, blue, and green Lego bricks.

"I'm making an airport and landing strip for my guy's house. He has his own airplane," said Oliver.

"That's not fair!" said Carl. "That takes too many cool pieces and leaves not enough for me."

"Well, I can let other people use the landing strip, if they have airplanes," said Oliver. "Then it's fair for me to use more cool pieces, because it's for public use."

Discussions like the one above led to children collaborating on a massive series of Lego structures we named Legotown. Children dug through hefty-sized bins of Legos, sought "cool pieces," and bartered and exchanged until they established a collection of homes, shops, public facilities, and community meeting places. We carefully protected Legotown from errant balls and jump ropes, and watched it grow day by day.

After nearly two months of observing the children's Legotown construction, we decided to ban the Legos.

[Tired of Taxes]

the children were building their assumptions about ownership and the social power it conveys — assumptions that mirrored those of a class-based, capitalist society

No, it conveys a corrupt and oppressive government that won't allow the other children into the free market system of building and playing with Legos. Sheesh, everyone can see that.

[MrB]

So, these teachers just observed that their socialism and anti-capitalism are

antithetical to human nature.

[SuziQ]

the children were building their assumptions about ownership and the social power it conveys — assumptions that mirrored those of a class-based, capitalist society — a society that we teachers believe to be unjust and oppressive. As we watched the children build, we became increasingly concerned.

Interesting. Kinda tells me that left alone, folks will gravitate toward a capitalist system, NOT a socialist one. I guess that's what alarmed the socially liberal teachers who consider capitalism "unjust and oppressive".

[MrB]

You hit it right on the head.

Human nature ABHORS the concepts of collectivism outside of the family, except in those cases where someone has greed for the property of others.

These teachers are demonstrating that their ideology cannot be substituted in human nature and society unless it is done through force.

[HamiltonJay]

Hilltop is located in an affluent Seattle neighborhood, and, with only a few exceptions, the staff and families are white; the families are upper-middle class and socially liberal. Kendra is the lead teacher for the Big Kid program; two additional teachers, Erik and Harmony, staff the program. Ann is the mentor teacher at Hilltop, working closely with teachers to study and plan curriculum from children's play and interactions.

BWHAHAHAHAHAHA... yea and how many of their affluent liberal parents are letting the homeless or less privaleged use the extra thousand or two thousand or more extra square feet of home space that their's have over the norm?

Bunch of hypocritical white guilt idiots.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Just wait ‘til these ditzes find out that Legos are made by a for-profit capitalist company that protects its valuable brand aggressively and doesn’t share its profits with anybody and everybody who decides they want a cut.

[SuziQ]

I immediately thought of the videos of terrorist being splattered by the Apaches that I have seen all over the internet. When I got to shake her hand in the greeting line, I said, "I've seen your work on the internet... nice job!" and her reply was, "Awesome, huh?".

One of my nephews flew an Apache Longbow D in Afghanistan. My brother (his Dad) was SO jealous!!

[EyeGuy]

“These people are just like Delores Umbrage.”

Book 5 of the Potter series convinced me that, despite the liberal decline of the UK in general, at least the redoubtable Mrs. Rowling is on our side.

[JasonC]

The ideology of the present crop of teachers is as predictable and deterministic as any other cookie cutter product, and is the actual atrocity on display in the article. And until the production line making the little ideologues is smashed, education in the modern world is completely screwed. Smashing it starts with abolishing the public schools (and tenure, incidentally).

[tutstar]

read later

[Mercat]

I’m rereading Order of the Phoenix now before seeing the movie and before reading the new book. The Dummies who are sure that Bush wants to send them to Walmart detention camps probably think that she embodies the evils of the Bush administration but their logic is always so twisted as to not make any sense. But the whole concept of the ministry of magic not wanting the students to learn to defend themselves has to be based on the teachers’ unions.

[longtermmemmory]

When do teachers have the unfettered curriculum right to bash american ecconomics? They have curriculum committees etc.

If a teacher taught an unapproved lesson plan about george wasshington they would be fired.

[EyeGuy]

“I’m rereading Order of the Phoenix now before seeing the movie and before reading the new book.”

My strategy exactly; I love to read a book right before viewing the movie, particularly a series as true to the books as the Potter movies have been.

---

“But the whole concept of the ministry of magic not wanting the students to learn to defend themselves has to be based on the teachers’ unions.”

Probably, but I was thinking it was a screaming metaphor for gun “control” laws

[Chaguito]

These are wealthy people. I suppose they got that way through “negotiated decision-making, collaboration, and collectivity.” I think I’m going to puke.

[SoftballMominVA]

Perhaps, but the school in this article was private, not public. Should it be closed also?

[nicmarlo]

obviously, the school has no problem engaging in the capitalistic system when it benefits them.

Naturally! It's that Animal Farm mentality.

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

Why I continue to say that liberalism is caused by inadequate and poorly functioning mental equipment.

[Kevmo]

Good place to bump this thread.

[Kaylee Frye]

Great story. I have a friend who flies the Apaches - she’s a tough chick and probably almost as brilliant (actually changing to Warrant Officer so she can fly them for the rest of her career). ;)

[Old Professer]

And all the cookies lay neatly in place slumbering peacefully as Ann and Kendra lounged passionately on the soft carpet amid a sea of Legos, lost in the idyllic afterglow of shared conquest.