Beautiful Saturday!
I was able to hold small-group Zoom sessions with more of my incoming freshmen this afternoon. They gave me more favorite book titles: "Everything, Everything," "American Sniper," "Harry Potter" books, and "This Is Where It Ends," three of which I've read and another I know about.
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Sometimes teachers wonder how to prove kids have read books. Here are my suggestions:
- Trust them.
- Invite them to tell you about the books they've liked.
- Ask them if the book was a mirror, a window, or both--and how.
- Believe them.
Sometimes teachers wonder how to get kids to read. Here's what works for me:
- Listen to them.
- Read voraciously and eclectically in YA, high-interest non-fiction, and accessible "adult" books.
- Spend half your salary on books for your classroom library.
- Hand kids (sanitized) books that will suck them in and hold them tight.
- Or give them a different book.
One Zoom session today was attended by three boys who told me they were best friends.
As luck would have it, they all had siblings who were involved in my journalism program. I promised not to compare them to their brothers and sisters (but I do admit I love teaching multiple students from the same families).
Later, as I considered this, I thought about how kid after kid after kid gives me gifts of effort, trust, and time.
Over 23 years of teaching, I don't think I've had a single student who didn't worm himself/herself/themselves into a nook or cranny of my heart. Even the students whose behaviors rubbed against me like sharkskin (and I against them) made me a better teacher.
My job--what I'm PAID for, for chrissake--is to support, advocate for, and grant a wide swath of love to my students. For the next 9 months, I will commit to the 81 students on my roster.
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"Did you all sign up for this session together intentionally?" I asked the trio of boys.
They laughed and said yes.
Actually, I feel sorry for people who don't teach teens. It's the best job ever.
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After Zooming with students, I Zoom-Bridged with my dad. Oh, we played beautifully, which is not always the case,
Before I signed off, I asked my mom to come onto the screen so I could see her. She and my dad argued (mildly) if they'd blown bubbles today or yesterday.
Again, I turned my computer camera to show them the view across our terrace and into the farmland, bringing happy sighs from all three of us.
"That makes me homesick," my mom said.
Enough.
Be well.
Write.
Allison
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| My math-teaching daughter in Denver with her look-alike dog. |
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