The Benches

We have a new buddy bench at our school.  The buddy bench comes with some guidelines and procedures.  If you need a buddy and you sit on the bench, you're expected to look around for opportunities for play.  In other words, don't just sit there like a pitiful victim crying about your lonely plight. Take some responsibility and action. Also, if someone comes up and invites you to play, you have to say yes.  In other words, you can't just say, "Well, I'm actually waiting for a better opportunity to come along, but thanks."  Also, if a friend happens to come by to socialize with you, you need to get off the bench and do your chatting elsewhere.

If I were designing playground benches, I would make one called the "ALL ALONE AND I LIKE IT THIS WAY" Bench.  When you sit on these All Alone benches, your solitude is protected and respected.  You can do whatever you want on the bench---ponder, nap, read, stew in resentment---but if you see someone you feel like chatting to, you can't motion them over to the bench.  You need to get off the bench and do your chatting elsewhere.  In that way, my new bench is similar to the Buddy Bench.  Both benches have specific purposes and socializing is not one of them.  I'm ready to move forward with the All Alone Bench.  This project has potential.