Dylan’s Waiting Thought

Dylan brings a smooth stone to the class circle. He found it beside a river with Grandad. Anna is telling everyone about a feather. Dylan has a thought he wants to share before it slips away.

He starts speaking while Anna is still talking. Two voices fill the circle. Dylan stops, but his words keep moving in his head. He worries that he will forget the river and the little fish they saw.

Ms Reed notices his tight grip on the stone. She offers a small card and pencil. “Would a quick drawing help you keep your thought?” Dylan draws a curved river and one tiny fish. The picture only needs to make sense to him.

Anna finishes. Ms Reed looks towards Dylan and offers him a turn. For a moment, he cannot find his first words. He looks at the drawing and points to the fish. “There was one right by my shoe,” he begins.

The class hears about the river. Then Anna asks whether the fish was bigger than the stone. Dylan holds it up to show her. He has something new to think about, and this time he adds another little mark to his card.

After the circle, Dylan feels pleased that his thought was heard. Keeping a picture helped him wait without losing it. Next time, he might draw, write a word or ask Ms Reed to help him remember.