The Neighbors!

 When looking at local history, one of the greatest resources is the people who live there. In talking to the neighbors, one can get a greater understanding of the culture of the neighborhood. When implementing a project on local history in the classroom, it is so important to emphasize the role that conversation and communication plays in comprehending history. Students should be empowered to use their voices to have intellectual conversations, to help them make sense of the world around them. Often times, the opinions and thoughts of students, especially young ones, are overlooked to because they are 'too young'. This idea cannot continue as students have such incredible minds and wondering, especially when it comes to their immediate surroundings such as their neighborhood. According to Local Education by Mark K Smith, 

"It is easy to overlook the meaning of 'everyday' talk, and undervalue what local educators do...the conversations of local educators could be called dialogue: they are 'directed toward discovery and new understadning, which stands to improve the knowledge, insight, or sensitivity of its participants' (Burbles 1993:9)" (p. 40).

In having this understanding of how valuable 'every day' talk is to young minds, it can greatly increase their comprehension and understanding of the world around them. When teaching local history, students should be invited and encouraged to have open dialogues with their families as well as neighbors to gain a better sense of the community they are in. The teacher can advise and help facilitate conversations between students and local politicians, business owners, community leaders, and event their own next door neighbors! By giving students the power to have these conversations and dialogues, their understanding of local history will be greatly enhanced.

Interviews With My Neighbors

In interviewing my neighbor Tessa J. I learned about what she likes best about Bay Ridge.

In looking at the neighborhood of Bay Ridge, I decided to interview some of my neighbors to get a better sense of my community.  The first person I interviewed was Tessa J. , who is from England. You can access the brief interview with Tessa here.  In speaking with Tessa and her family, we learned how she really enjoys living in Bay Ridge, and located her as her husband went to Xaverian High School and wanted to stay in the neighborhood. Besides the awful parking situation in Bay Ridge, Tessa loves living in Bay Ridge.

In interviewing my neighbors Brooke H. and Michael A. I learned about how they came to Bay Ridge.

1)What was the most appealing factor to live in Bay Ridge?

One of the most appealing things about Bay Ridge for us is the location.  We have family in Staten Island and Mike's work in the city.  Bay Ridge is right in the middle for us and easy travel to both family and work.  Along with location was the affordability of housing.  

          2) Why did you move to Bay Ridge? 

We started looking for a bigger place to live when we were pregnant with Olivia.  Very quickly we decided to center our search in Brooklyn because we wanted to keep commute time as small as possible and affordability of bigger spaces was greater there too.  We started looking in and around Park Slope because we liked the smaller buildings, parks and avenues with shops and restaurants.  All the places we found were tiny and would have really stretched our budget.  A childhood friend of Mike's family lived in Bay Ridge and told us how much she loved living here, so we decided to check it out.  We found we could afford not only an apartment or condo but a house and the commute  into the city for work would work too.  

3)What do you think of the neighborhood?

We think the neighborhood is great.  It is a true suburban-urban neighborhood.  It has great elementary schools, lots of parks, restaurants and shops all in walking distance.  The subway and commuter bus lines and close by and make getting into the city easy.   For being a fairly urban area it is also pretty safe in all areas and all hours.  The specific location also worked perfectly for us.  Travel time to and from work was a consideration for us and Bay Ridge having a subway line made that easy.  Being able to see family was the other major consideration.  We wanted to be able to see grandma as often as we wanted and being to so close to SI made that possible.  After living here we've realized how easy it is to get to NJ and Long Island a well as other parts of NY.  We love to take day trips and go to the beach so this was a huge plus! 

4)What is your favorite and least favorite part of Bay Ridge?

Our favorite part of the neighborhood is the "small town" feel.  You run into neighbors and friends everywhere you go!  You get to know people who own and work in businesses by name too.  Our least favorite is the traffic and double parking as well as speeding and the "Brooklyn stop" ( I've heard rolling through stop signs described like this!) at stop signs.  

5)Would you recommend living in Bay Ridge to friends? Why? 

We would definitely recommend moving here to friends.  Both Mike and I grew up in suburban neighborhoods and loved it.   Bay Ridge has a similar feel.  The kids have a mix of city and suburban life that we love.   We can get out of town and into the city really easily.

 

The follow transcript is from an interview with my neighbors Elfranko W.   

1)What was the most appealing factor to live in Bay Ridge?

The most appealing factor of living in Bay Ridge is that housing is much more affordable. We came from the Cobble Hill area of Downtown Brooklyn. It was very expensive to live down there, and moving to Bay Ridge was a much more afforadable option for us. We moved to Bay Ridge because we found a house we fell in love with.  When we walked in the door, we knew it was for us even though we knew it needed a LOT of work.

2)What do you think of the neighborhood?

Bay Ridge is more beautiful than we thought it would be.  The food is better than we thought it would be, with all of the different restaruants around. 

3)What is your favorite and least favorite part of Bay Ridge?

We love the proximity to the water and all the trees and plants that are in the area. It is a great escape from the 'concrete jungle' of the city. We have great immediate neighbhors, pretty good grocery store, and we love the folks at the pharmacy, etc. There is a really warm and welcoming atmosphere here in Bay Ridge. 

My least favorite part of Bay Ridge is that some people who either live in or drive thru the neighborhood leaving their trash on the street and especially on the sidewalks around the church. 

4)Would you recommend living in Bay Ridge to friends? Why? 

Yes! We recommend living in Bay Ridge to friends all the time!

 

Interview with Marie O. about what it was like moving to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

1. What was the most appealing factor to live in Bay Ridge? 

A: Before moving to Bay Ridge, I had been living in Bensonhurst for almost 2 years and I never wanted out of somewhere so bad.  I just knew that moving to Bay Ridge was a better option for our family.  Living in BayRidge feels like home.  Everyone knows everyone and most people (Bay Ridge Lifers) are so kind and friendly.  With my husband being who he is and knowing all of Bay Ridge it just made sense for us to find a place to call home there.  The sense of family as you walk into the local pub or restaurant because everyone knows you is what I love the best.  It really is comforting to know people look out for each other and take care of each other as if they are part of their own family.  

2. Why did you move here? 

A: We chose to move to Bay Ridge for a better quality of life for our family.  Our apartment was better, we have parking, and a front yard and balcony, and we know more people in Bay Ridge.  When we lived in Bensonhurst there were times when we drove around looking for a parking spot for an hour.  Not that Bay Ridge is any better with the parking but we have an option for it which we didn't have where we lived before.  The neighborhood, shopping, and restaurants are all very nice here as well.  

3. What do you think of the neighborhood?  

A: I think some parts are very nice and clean and other parts aren't taken care of at all.  Many places are well kept and manicured and look beautiful while on some street corners there's tons of garbage.  

4. What is your favorite/least part about Bay Ridge? 

A: Favorite: The Hidden Gems-like the koi pond down by Xavarian, the steps on 74th and 76th street, 3rd ave stroll (I miss it!),  the 69th street pier (a boat ride away from downtown or the city),  Fort Hamilton, the walk down by the water, the beautiful mansions on 76th street, most of all friends who are more like family, and of course the history behind the Neighborhood.  My husband always tells me interesting facts about Bay Ridge and it makes me feel like I'm back in Astoria Queens where I grew up.  

Least: Some people and how they don't take pride in the Neighborhood. 

5. Would you recommend living in Bay Ridge? 

A: YES! Best part of Brooklyn!!!!! 

In conducting these interviews, it was such a wonderful experience as I was able to connect with my neighbors and learn more about their lives. There is such a significance in being in conversation with others, and it is a skill set that can easily be transferred to the classroom setting. Skills such as active listening, note-taking, and guided conversations are so valuable in the classroom setting. By providing students a real life applicable example shows them the value of having these conversations. 

I learned so much through these discussions, and truly feel like I know more about my neighbors in my community!

Smith, Mark. Local education: Community, conversation, praxis. McGraw-Hill Education (UK), 1994.