Mike Parker: ‘Life’s Little Instructions’ struck pedagogical pay dirt
Thinking back to the years I spent as a classroom teacher sometimes makes me proud. One of a teacher’s most gratifying experiences is giving students an assignment that seems to resonate with them – well, most of them.
In my final year as a teacher, we had just finished reading the excerpts from Ben Franklin’s “Autobiography” and aphorisms from “Poor Richard’s Almanack.” I gave my students an assignment I hoped would inspire them with Franklin's wisdom. My English III students were to compile a collection of aphorisms used in their families.
For those who have been out of school for a while, an aphorism is a witty saying that captures some insight or truth about life. For instance, Franklin advised: “Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead.” Another Franklin-ism is “A small leak can sink a great ship.”
I assigned students to collect 15 aphorisms and put them into a booklet titled “Life’s Little Instructions.” They had to explain either the meaning of the aphorism or how it applied in today’s life. Students also had to write an introduction and a dedication to their booklets, as well.
One young man wrote in his introduction:
“Luckily for me, my teacher allows me to get these aphorisms from my immediate family and friends, which is actually quite easy since they use aphorisms all the time trying to tell me what to do, what not to do, and how to do it. Strangely enough, I can’t remember a single one of them, so I am going to ask them to repeat them … again. ‘Joy to the World’ for them … Hell on earth for me.”
Students dedicated their booklets to parents, to grandparents, to aunts and uncles, to friends, and to siblings. One young woman dedicated her booklet to a yet-to-be-born son or daughter. She wrote:
“I want you to know what life throws at you, and I want you to know that everything is not easy, and life is going to be hard, but you just have to live and do you [be true to yourself]. Give respect and you will earn it back … so live a wonderful life and behave.”
Some of the aphorisms the students collected are familiar to most of us:
“A penny saved is a penny earned.”
“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”
“Watch what you wish for … you just might get it.”
“Everything that glitters is not gold.”
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Other aphorisms had a decided modern flavor.
“Trash in; trash out.”
“Make your words soft to chew; you might have to eat them.”
“Statistics are human beings with the tears wiped off.”
“Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”
“If you get knocked down seven times, get up eight.”
One young man pulled a saying from his grandfather’s high school yearbook. When his grandfather was a senior, he chose the quote “Look before you leap.”
His grandson observed: “My grandfather should have listened to his choice of aphorism. He often leapt before looking. Maybe his advice was good for swimming in the Neuse River, but he did not use it much in life. His story shows that we should follow our credos.”
One student ended his book with these words:
“Ben Franklin’s Advice On Living Is As Good Today As Ever.”
What a wise young man.
Mike Parker is a columnist for the Neuse News. You can reach him at mparker16@gmail.com.
