P4C

Source: clipartpanda

Yesterday, we had another fantastic P4C lesson. St. Clare's are getting very good at listening to each other carefully and building their opinions based on what others have said.

Our stimulus this week was this poem by Edgar Albert Guest:

It Couldn’t Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done

      But he with a chuckle replied

That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one

      Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.

So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin

      On his face. If he worried he hid it.

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it!

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;

      At least no one ever has done it;”

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat

      And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,

      Without any doubting or quiddit,

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,

      There are thousands to prophesy failure,

There are thousands to point out to you one by one,

      The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,

      Just take off your coat and go to it;

Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing

      That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

By Edgar Albert Guest

The enquiry questions each group came up with were:

1. Is anything impossible? 

2. Why don't some people always believe in others?

3. Why do some people think some things are impossible?

4. Why do some people think that you can't do something if they can't do it?

5. Why do some people make assumptions?

We spent some time looking for any assumptions or generalisations in the questions and edited them before voting.

The question that the class voted to discuss was:

4. Why do some people think that you can't do something if they can't do it?

  

We had a very interesting and grown up discussion, well done!