It is morning break time at Kia Kaha Primary School.
Patrick and Zac are still inside Room 13.
They are looking at the computer.
They are snickering and elbowing each other.
Ms Barry says,
Have you two found something funny?
Patrick and Zac say,
Itās grownups with no clothes and they're wrestling Miss.
But they know that is not what it really is.
Zacās brother Jayden is 12.
He has explained it all to Zac.
He lets them look at his favourite sites.
Ms Barry says, I think you need to go outside for a run.
Morning break time is over!
It is time for Technology.
Ms Barry says,
Today we are going to talk about respect.
Kyra says,
Is that because Patrick and Zac were looking at porn again Miss?
Ms Barry says,
Actually it does have a bit to do with what Patrick and Zac were looking at before.
Patrick and Zac would you like to come up and help me with a little role play?
Patrick and Zac get up and walk to the front.
Ms Barry says,
In this role play Patrick you're going to be a farmer.
And Zac, you are his pig.
Patrick has got you ready to sell to the fat stock buyer.
Patrick, Iāll be the buyer and you can tell me why I should buy Zac from you.
Patrick says to Zac,
You need to get down on all fours bro.
Zac gets down on his hands and knees.
Patrick gives Zac a big slap on his bum!
All of Room 13 laughs!
Patrick says to Ms Barry,
Got some top quality flesh here mate.
Plenty of fat on old Zac here, too.
Plenty of good eating in this porker.
Size of him!
Zac stands back up.
Zac looks angry.
Zac pushes Patrick!
Ms Barry puts her hand on Zacās shoulder and says,
It's okay Zac, we don't need any more role play.
She says, can you tell us why you pushed Patrick?
Zac says,
Cos he called me a fat porker Miss.
Ms Barry says,
But he was calling the pig fat wasn't he?
Zac is quiet for a minute.
Then he says,
But he was still shit-talking me, Miss.
Ms Barry says,
Did you not like being talked about like a piece of meat Zac?
Zac nods.
Ms Barry says to the class,
Who can tell me what we were talking about last time in technology?
Tania says,
Half of itās not real Miss, what we see on the screens.
Ms Barry says,
And can you remember why that was?
Moana says,
Because people can put up anything they like, Miss.
Ms Barry says,
So if Patrick wanted to post a photo on Facebook of Zac and call him a fat pig, would that be an okay thing to do?
The children all say,
No Miss.
Ms Barry says,
But have you noticed that a lot of people will do something like that anyway?
The children all nod.
Ms Barry says,
Can anyone think of another place where a person can get treated like a piece of meat?
Annabel says,
Instagram Miss.
Annabelās sister spends a lot of time on Instagram.
Sometimes Annabelās sister hurts herself.
Ms Barry says,
Do you like looking at Instagram, Annabel?
Annabel says,
Yes kind of. Like, everyone looks super pretty. But it seems, like, fake?
Ms Barry says, It often feels like that to me too Annabel.
Ms Barry says,
Can anyone tell me something that happens on the Internet and on TV and and in magazines like what just happened to Zac?
No-one is quite sure.
Seymour asks,
Is it that it treats girls and women as objects to be looked at and rated?
Ms Barry says,
Well done Seymour! Thatās exactly right.
Ms Barry is also a bit surprised.
But then she notices her laptop is facing Seymourās desk.
Ms Barry says,
A lot of images you see of girls and women in the media are treating them a lot like I got Patrick to treat Zac.
And if it's happening all the time every day, and you're a girl,
you can end up thinking that how you look to other people matters more than the important things,
like what you want to be and how you want to live your life.
Patrick puts up his hand and says,
Yeah, but you don't want to turn into a porker like Zac do you?
Patrick is thinking about the videos he watches with Jayden.
Ms Barry says to Patrick,
Is that respectful, Patrick?
Patrick isnāt sure what the answer is.
But he thinks he is supposed to shake his head.
Patrick shakes his head.
Ms Barry says,
Can anyone give me an example of being disrespectful to women?
Ella has her hand up.
She says,
Mum was reading out something to Dad again last night and she was getting really angry about this guy who was super disrespectful.
I don't know what happened it was something to do with My Food Bag.
And Mum kept saying cleavage and Eurasian Fluff and getting really angry.
Ellaās Mum used to have a boss who kept asking her to go away for the weekend.
Ellaās Mum reads things out and gets angry a lot.
Ms Barry says,
What's another example of being disrespectful to girls and women?
Olivia says,
When they take you to a party and get you drunk and do horrible things to you.
Oliviaās big sister goes to University.
She had to go to court last week to talk about things that happened when they were at High School.
Patrick and Zac are snickering and elbowing each other again.
