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The Raves
Problem-Solving Magic
The Oakland Press Illusion used to teach children violence prevention
By Diana Dillaber Murray
Of The Oakland PressTo the young audience, it looked like fifth grader John Dalton was enclosed in a box with spikes poked into his back through his stomach.
But to John, who afterward told his friends, “No, there aren’t any holes in me,” it was all a lark.
John, a student at McGregor Elementary School in Rochester, was a specially appointed deputy to fedora-topped detective Les Trouble, P.I. at a special assembly in the school’s gymnasium.
P.I. stands for problem investigator, Les trouble told the young audience.
The illusionist, Doug Scheer, 31, kept students entranced with magic and antics long enough to teach them how to solve problems without resorting to a punch in the nose.
The lessons of the show fit right in with the state Board of Education’s new policy to encourage the teaching of character ethics.
If you forget the four steps of solving problems and preventing violence, just remember one thing, Les Trouble told the youngsters: respect.
“Treat others the way you want them to treat you.”
The four stages of solving a problem are: get the facts; tell how you feel; brainstorm for solutions; negotiate.
“This deals with character and conflict resolution, something every child faces in class, at recess and walking home from school,” said Sally Bailey, McGregor’s new principal. She said the schools Parent Teacher Association invited Scheer to do the Les Trouble P.I. show.
“It fits in with lots of things we have in our curriculum” that deals with conflict resolution, she said.
Les Trouble appeared first in front of a brightly lit backdrop that featured colorful characters, and listed the rules for problem solving. Then he brought out a model of a one-room schoolhouse and said he was going to show the students the trouble at his school.
He opened the door and out popped Swarthout masquerading as the troublemaker Spike, who at first was intent on solving problems by yelling and punching. Eventually, Les Trouble persuaded even Spike that there were better ways to settle disagreements with friends and classmates.Throughout the show, Les Trouble invited youngsters such as John to be deputy problem investigators.
Les Trouble encouraged students not to blame or threaten but to use “I messages,” such as, “I feel like I’m getting a headache because the radio is so loud.”
Student Eric Upchurch complied. He said, “I feel disgusted,” when the illusionist took a burned mangled tennis shoe out of a box in which only seconds before he had put Eric’s good shoe.
After some conversation, a delighted Eric reached into a basket and pulled out his tennis shoe as good as new.
At the finale, standing on top of a blue box in which he had locked and tied Spike, Les Trouble encouraged students to try and feel what it is like to stand in someone else’s shoes.
And suddenly, Spike was standing on top of the box and Les trouble was inside. Scheer, a journalism major, has been doing school shows about two a day five days a week since his college graduation n 1989. He creates his own shows based on what principals say are the needs of the day.
Need more information? Give us a call. There’s a school in your district that’s already seen these programs.
We’ll just let them brag for us.
