Columnist Susan Snyder: These kids are speaking our language

Friday, May 30, 2003 | 5:34 a.m.

Quick. Name 44 languages.

English, Spanish, German, Norwegian, Russian, Arabic, French, Belgian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Polish ... um ...

Igpay Atinlay?

I'm not very good at this.

Nothing like an elementary school's career day to make you realize how vapid you really are. I never say no when Judy Wright over at Jydstrup Elementary School calls, even though I know the day will be shared with a lion tamer or sky diver or someone who creates video games for a living.

This year I followed a comedian who made the kids laugh, a microbiologist who showed them snakeskin under a microscope and a video logo producer who gave them chocolate. If the accountant from Citibank had handed out money, I'd have sneaked out for recess (after stopping by his presentation, of course).

"We learned how to add money and fill out a deposit slip," one third grader said.

That's nice. I'm a reporter. We learn how to subtract money and fill out checks.

Still, career day is an opportunity to talk with people who are shorter than I am. That's important, because these little people have big things to say.

And at Jydstrup they say it in 44 languages.

"We have Bosnians, Russians, Egyptians, Ethiopians," Wright, a school guidance counselor, said. "Some of them are the kids of Cirque du Soleil performers."

Hmmm. I didn't see any of them on the presenters' list. Thank goodness. The last thing we regular working stiffs need is to compete with someone who can loop his leg around the back of his head while doing a handstand.

Anyway, one of the cool parts of the day was getting a peek at what our pint-size residents are learning and thinking about. For instance, Carolyn Johnson's third graders recently finished a project called, "I Have a Dream."

They created cloud mobiles on which each child listed his or her hopes and dreams for the community, country and world. These artistic philosophers are 8 and 9 years old.

"My dream is for there to be no stupid people," Ryan wrote.

Well Ryan, we all wish that until we grow up and realize that if it were true, we'd have no one to send to Congress.

Ryan also dreams "for there to be no car crashes, no carjackings, no violence, no rapes or kills or littering, no fights and peace."

Pretty weighty list. No wonder their book bags are so heavy. I thought it was merely homework.

"I don't want people to steal," Winnetka wrote. "I want people to help the needless poor people."

Alquelio would like the world to "Stop smoking. No drugs, no weapons, please. No littering."

Littering or stealing, abusing drugs or each other. Wrong has no gray area. We shouldn't do those things to ourselves, our world or other people. It's pretty black and white to third graders, even when they come in varying shades of tan and can say it 44 different ways.

"No stupid people."

You suppose they're talking about us?

"Stop fighting in the country and stop the bombings with Afghanistan," Daniel says.

Yeah, and help the needless poor people.