"Pah-lease!"

Think about the children in your current classroom and from years past.
There are always faces that flash straight to mind due to one reason or another.

I must say, for me, children with some attitude or flair come to mind. Not necessarily the "busy" or "bossy" ones or the "ohhhh, gotta keep an eye on that one" ones. More so, for me, I reflect on children who seamlessly incorporate a certain tone  to deliver a phrase or in their conversation AND have a way they use their eyes and hands to help express their opinion or announcement. Makes me smile just thinking about Leo and Lara and Marina ...

"No more photos, pah-lease"

My blog today is inspired by my friend Laura's daughter "S" and a caption Laura attached to a recent photo of S  on a social networking site:

"Ah, shades of things

to come...I was taking photos of my daughter on a recent flight to LA when she puts her hand up and says

'No more photos, pah-lease'"

Take a moment to appreciate S and her calm yet clear request to her mother.

Take another moment to appreciate the one leg casually crossed, the one hand propped under her chin, the eyes looking upward and - yes - the hand signal STOP to reinforce the "pah-lease" no more photos.

[Couldn't have been a better photo of this request to stop taking photos.]

Laura and her daughter reminded me about ways that adults and children relate together. I appreciate that S has her own personal style to communicate with her mother. I appreciate that S has an opinion about something - photos, in this case - and how she feels at that moment on the airplane to not have photos. I interpret, though, that this was a comfortable request, not demanding, not defiant. S just happened to also have the hand signal and the eyes up, as though she couldn't have put out the request without the eyes and the hands, too. Pah -lease!

Other phrases or words from children who had the pizazz to go with it:

1. "ACTUALLY" : this has been a popular word over the years, used by a number of children to begin their sharing of an opinion or what seemed to them to be a correction of their peers [or me!]. Often, the word would be said slowly to articulate the four syllables AC-TU-AL-LY allowing the child's audience to get ready for something quite brilliant that was forthcoming. Along with the word, the head might be tilted to one side with eyes focused forward and two hands might be offered out like a tray that will deliver the new 'actual' information.

2. "Let Me Tell You Something!" also known as "Did you know?!..." An informative phrase. Might be when children arrive at school, out of breath running up to me, eyes tilted upward with forehead scrunched as they have information bursting out about a trip to the beach, a bug they found, or what they have in their lunch box.

3."Oh, Man...".  Children have used this when blocks fall over, when they hear the recess bell that recess is over, or when they can't find a chair at the snack table. This phrase has the shoulders slumped, the mouth squished, the eyes squinted in. Disappointment shown at its fullest along with "oh, maaannnnn......" dragged out in despair.

personality, pizazz, & flair at their best.

I hope your children have their personal style to share information, to make an announcement, to communicate with adults and peers. 

I can only imagine you can appreciate the flair and pizazz of PEOPLE - who happen to be young - who express themselves both in word and action. 

Do YOU have an example of a phrase or word that children have used with flair? "Pah-lease" feel free to share! [head nodding, eyes extra-wide open, one hand swishing out to the side]
** special thanks to Laura and S for their inspiration of living life with colorful self expression!