At our kid’s elementary school, I signed up to join the WATCH DOGS. At first thought looking at the name, it sounded like the neighborhood watch of schools. Guys patrolling the perimeter, bear spray in holster, chatting up the school resource officer about how to better secure the doors, black hats and dark sunglasses, radio on the shoulder.
Luckily the schools do a great job of communicating what things actually are. A pizza dinner was put on for the introduction of the school for parents, and included a Watch DOGS presentation, which DOGS stands for ‘Dads of Great Students’. We got to hear from some great people doing great things by volunteering their time at the school.
The goal is to get more help in schools while providing positive male role models for kids during the day. It does include some security activities, like making sure no doors are left open and keeping an eye out while on campus. But thankfully it is more about helping staff and having fun than anything else.
The commitment itself is not small but is entirely doable. The request is to have you come and do at least one sign-up during the school year. This can include being there an entire school day or just helping out at lunch and recess.
Before you arrive, you have to buy a shirt from the local Watch DOGS, which ours are these outrageously bright yellow t-shirts. Make no mistake that anyone can spot you a mile away in those shirts; the purpose is for people to instantly know who you are, as without it you look like a stranger wondering the school. Though, I may lobby for an athletic polo next year.
As a side note, I recommend that unless it’s 30 degrees outside that you wear shorts and shoes you can run around in. We’ll get to the why in a moment.
You also should be sent a video or other info about what to do as a Watch DOG, and most importantly, how you are to interact (or not interact) with students and staff. This includes things like not using the kid’s bathrooms, not to be alone with kids, alerting staff to issues rather than trying to handle things yourself (e.g. kid is hurt, lock down, emergency event, etc.), and other things that remind you that you are a temporary guest there to help out for the day.
If you sign-up for lunch only, take note that these schools have multiple lunches and recess events depending on the grade levels. So don’t assume you will just get one lunch with your kids and be done. You may have three lunches and recesses to help with, which may include helping open food packaging, cleaning up, or just hanging out talking about video games and animals.
If you sign-up for an entire day, rest assured you will be put to use. When you arrive, you get your name sticker (I was Mr. Ryan), and you’re given a detailed schedule of where to be. The great part is there is still time to hang out with your own kid(s) at lunch and recess, and they do try to schedule your time to help your kid’s teachers; so, you will be in their class at least part of the day. But there are plenty of things other teachers need help with.
Here is what my day looked like:
Arrived and checked in with front desk.
Began helping with car-rider drop-off. The safety patrol kids already had this moving along, so I chatted them up talking about stuff like baseball and video games.
I missed morning announcements in the process, but generally you’ll be able to get on the mic or video to introduce yourself. This is optional really.
Went to the counselor’s office to get the day’s agenda (made just for you). There were two counselors, and it was great getting to know them and the work they do. They were in a classroom converted into their office, with a sofa and lots of fun things to do. It was a great place to take a break throughout the day.
One thing to note is since they know you’re coming ahead of time, they’ll send a notice to teachers in case they need any work done. After lunch there were also six other requests that came in for help needed.
Here are the various things I did for staff:
Helped art teacher put up large poster, then cleaned and organized art tables.
Printed 250 copies with a gigantic machine I had never used before (ask the front desk for help if you need it).
Cut shapes out of laminated paper (A TON OF IT).
Walked hallways, picked up any trash I found inside and outside. Kept my eyes out on the doors.
Near the end of the day, I ran transportation changes notices across the school. There are a ton of these! You get a lot of steps in during the day, especially if you’re new to the school and don’t know where classes are by number.
Here is the fun stuff with kids:
Had ‘mentor time’ with a couple of boys. The three of us sat outside the class on the floor putting puzzles together. I don’t know why those two boys were picked, but they were having a blast just hanging out. We talked about all kinds of video games, YouTube videos they watch, and how much they liked being out of the class.
Had another ‘mentor time’ with a boy from one class who could tell you literally anything you want to know about animals. We just sat at a little table and chatted about things like narwhals. Really interesting kid.
During lunch, help open packaging, or simply walk around and chat with kids. Help cleanup and eat lunch yourself. I ended up buying lunch in the cafeteria using one my kid’s lunch accounts, but generally it’s easier to bring your own and eat in the teacher break room.
During recess, played basketball and foursquare with three different recess groups. Pushed giant swings (the ones that fit four kids). Refereed gaga ball matches.
A few fourth graders tried to cross me up in basketball but my height advantage made sure my team dominated. Also a reason to wear shorts and sneakers for the day.
This also included hanging out with my own kids for a while, especially during lunch.
At the end of the day, you might record a quick video with the counselor about your time there. Once everything was done, my kids and I grabbed our stuff and got out of there. What a day! I’m in decent shape, but I was beat at the end of running around the school the whole time.
All in all, if you have kids at a school with Watch DOGS, I highly recommend you give it a try at least once. It is a great experience, you get an inside view into how schools work (organized chaos), you become helpful to people who need it, and you get to have fun with kids who may not have a father figure at home. Even if you’re just hanging out in the hallway putting puzzles together and talking about Minecraft, you’re giving a presence that matters more than you know.
Go sign up!