|
This instructor's script highlights
some of the key comments made by the teenagers in the video. These can serve as points of
reference to encourage classroom discussion after viewing the program. Domingo: My name is Domingo. I'm seventeen and I'm a senior in high school. I live with my parents and my little sister. When I was eight years old, I found an M-100 in my brother's room. I lit it and threw it up like it was going to explode in a couple seconds, and it just landed on the floor....plop....and I tried to put it out. Wouldn't go out. Pinching it, spitting on my fingers trying to put it out, but the fuse was waterproof, so it doesn't matter. It just burned right through my fingers. The carpet went on top of it, and then my hands went on top of that, and I was still trying to put out the fuse when it exploded. Blew my thumb off and stuck it in the wall in my room. They said it probably could have blown a huge hole in my chest, or knocked off an arm, or even worse, so I was real lucky...real, real lucky.
Amy: The fire setting stemmed from me not really getting along with my father. He just seemed like he never had the time to listen to me. He always had to work, or be somewhere else. (2) And I wanted to get him to just stop yelling at me for a little while, and listen to what I had to say.
(3) I just thought they would have, like, just gave me a warning, or something like that. I didn't know they were gonna arrest me. They've never caught me before, it was only the first time.
Dozens. I don't know how many. I lost track.
I'm paying for it now...and I'm going to have a harder
life than I should.
(Young) Domingo:
(Seventeen-year-old) Domingo:
My left hand, I can't make a full fist. My right
hand's pretty solid. My left hand took the brunt of it,
so it's not going to be as good, of course, as it was before.
It'll never be that way, but that's the price you pay.
Jason:
Well, I remember when I was little, he would always
be yelling at my mom. He wasn't a very good father.
I'm just sort of glad he left. My mom's doing better now.
Amy: Moving in with my father was really hard. I didn't know who he was, and I was supposed to go in and just be his daughter...but I didn't know how to. A lot of it has to do with the way I grew up and not being able to express myself. I set a fire, and now I have to pay $11,000. And, if I don't pay it, then my dad does...and he's not very happy about that at all. My counselor got me a job working at a graphics design firm. I work 18 hours a week, and then over half that money goes to pay the landlord for the damages I caused. I've been going to counseling with my dad, and (7) I'm starting to understand why I set the fires, and about life, and about how many people are involved and get affected by what you do. (8) I feel guilty that a little girl burned her hands
really bad when I set my last fire. Everybody gets involved
with this...my friends, and the counselors, and the teachers,
and my dad...
Jason: Part of my probation is that I can't, I'm not permitted to hang out with them. But, I think that's unfair, but if I hang out with them, I'm probably headed toward some serious jail terms.
(10) I just got with the wrong crowd. They were the
only people who accepted me...or that's what I felt like.
(Domingo) I've always liked writing. I wrote short
stories when I was real young. I've got a friend who is in
journalism, and she told me, 'c'mon, you'll have fun,' so
I checked it out and I liked it. And then I started writing
for the paper itself. This year, I became sports editor, and
on from there.
(Young) Domingo:
(Seventeen-year-old) Domingo:
Jason: (12) Well, I'm going to try. I want to graduate high school. I wanted to go into the army, but with a felony, I'm not allowed to serve in the armed forces. After I graduate high school, I have to pay $35,000 for the damage I caused. Hopefully, I'll be be able to get a job at the youth center after my community service is over. But, that's up to my administrator...if he will recommend me to the head administrator.
Well, my foster father, he's helping me a lot. And my
mom, my foster mom, home schools me and (13) I feel that
I have a family now...that can actually take care of me.
Domingo:
I'm always worried about, you know, my little sister
or other kids who are getting interested with fire. You
know, when they're real small...We went camping and
she's right there by the fire, trying to throw Coke cans
in and pieces of sticks. I gotta kinda teach her, but I
hope people who watch this realize it's no joke...and
even though you can play with some small little fire
cracker, it can still do some damage, you know, and it's
not something to play with.
|
|
Thoughts and Questions to Encourage Student Discussion. . . think Amy feels about repaying the damages? If you were in Amy's place, how would you feel about this consequence? (2). What advice would you give a friend who feels like Amy does? Do you think Amy's reaction was really the cause of her setting the fires? (3). How many chances should a person get? What's fair? How can you determine what's fair? Does getting caught make something wrong? Do we all break laws? (for example, J-walking, driving without insurance or a valid license, a minor smoking or having a beer) (4). What's a name for this feeling? (regret) Discuss how you experience or think about regret. Does this feeling teach us anything? Do we really learn, or do only some of us learn? (5). What's a name for this experience? (abandonment and/or rejection) Human beings are very sensitive to these feelings. If someone feels rejected or abandoned, what can he/she do about it? (6). Being loved is important for all of us. Do we get enough? Can you get too much? Do you think feeling unloved contributed to Amy's firesetting? (7). Sometimes our actions have significant impact on others. We feel good when our impact is positive. What do we feel when the impact is negative? (guilt) Discuss how you experience guilt. Is there a difference between really being guilty and just feeling guilty? (8). Regret and guilt can be overwhelming. Not being able to go back and fix something can be very painful. Which of the three people in the video do you think is affected most by feelings of guilt...Amy, Jason, or Domingo? (9). Consequences can be longlasting. Has Jason accepted responsibility for what he's done? Do you think Jason feels others are partly responsible? How would you feel if you were in Jason's situation? (10). Being "accepted" is important to all of us, and it can affect who you choose as friends. How much would you put up with to be friends with someone? Do you feel Jason is blaming his friends for something he did? (11). Emotional pain is part of living and it happens to all of us. What does it take to turn pain into something positive? Domingo seems to be doing that. What about Amy and Jason...? (12). Sometimes staying angry keeps us a victim, when being sad and remorseful can help us move on. Do you feel Jason will be able to grow from his mistakes? (13). We all want connections: friends, family, love. What are some of the ingredients that help us to get it "right?" What would make it right for Amy....Domingo....Jason? (14). Domingo seems to have been sad and regretful; then he learned something new, and now he seems accepting of the situation and himself. Do you agree, or is there an aspect of Domingo not captured on the video?
|