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Recently I have been starting my philosophy sessions in the 5th grade with the students raising questions they want to discuss that have come up since I’ve last visited. This afternoon, the students mentioned that they wanted to discuss an event that had happened in the classroom.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n One boy’s iPod touch was stolen this week and, after a long class meeting, the boy from whom it was stolen stated that if the person just put it back in his backpack by the end of the day, there would be no questions asked. At the end of the day, the iPod touch had been returned to the boy’s backpack. The students were still feeling unsettled about the event and wanted to explore it.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Why did the person steal it?” one student asked.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Because they wanted it,” a second student responded. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Or maybe they wanted to get back at me for something,” ventured the child who owned the i-touch.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n I explained the principle of Occam’s Razor to the students, which states that the simplest explanation is usually the best one. We concluded that while it was <\/span>possible<\/span><\/i> that someone was plotting an act of revenge, it was more likely that someone saw the i-touch and just wanted it. We talked about the income disparity in the community, where some children come from families who can afford to buy lots of things and others live with families who have trouble paying for food, and the way in which this created temptations for someone to take something they wanted and couldn’t afford to buy.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n “We all make mistakes,” declared a student. “Here the person made a mistake and then thought the better of it.”<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Does it change how we see an act if it is later regretted?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell the person still stole it and that was wrong,\u201d asserted a student.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n What makes stealing wrong?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt hurts other people. It takes something from them that belongs to them.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt can also hurt their feelings. You could have something you really cared about and then someone takes it away from you, and it affects you emotionally.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cStealing hurts the thief too. You can become someone who steals all the time, and all of a sudden you\u2019re not the kind of person you want to be.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n We talked about what it means to be the kind of person you want to be, and the way in which your whole view of yourself can change based on something you\u2019ve done. We also talked about the effects on the classroom community of this event.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI felt like this was such a great class and all of a sudden it wasn\u2019t anymore.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n The students talked about suspecting other students of being the thief, and the way in which the classroom environment changed during this time. We discussed whether, one the item was returned, it mattered who had stolen it.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n