A Gentle Reminder

I wanted to highlight some of my favorite quotes and images from last week's blogs. It is always remarkable to me when my students uncover deep truths, and find a way to remind me what it means to be human. Or, to just help me celebrate the beauty. As teachers, I think it is important to be constantly reminded that our students are capable of introspection, growth, and creating change - if we give them the space to do it. Let the thought provocation begin!!

"I feel like it is easy to get caught up in life and not realize what we are doing- if we are truly being kind or not." - Ellie

- Zach P.

"We have a lot more to get done, but I am still satisfied." - Shae

 

 - Subin

"I have a new respect for people who have natural ability and still work hard to get better." - Seyller

"I know that by the end of the school year, I’m probably not going to have finished this, but this might help me get started with this or find out if it’s possible." - Lane

- Laura

"We watched a lot of videos about girls in third world countries & what they go through. When I was watching those videos, I wanted to cry because it was so sad." - Latisha
 

"I think everybody should try something new and blog about your experience and feelings." - Madison Brown

 

Finishing Douglass and Preparing for Our Debates

We finished reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass this week. I had many students who really wrestled with this story this time. Every time I have taught it, the students have enjoyed the work and found it eye opening. However, this was something deeper. I could see the students really trying to wrap their heads around the idea of slavery – both how it affected the slaves and slave owners. They also seemed very troubled by the idea of “humane” slave owners. How can you participate in such an evil enterprise, but not actually be evil all the time? That was an actual student question. And what a question it is.

We spent a great deal of time talking about Douglass’s use of rhetoric. As we moved through the piece, the students were really able to appreciate just how clever he is, and how well he understands his audience. My hope is that this understanding will translate to their persuasive letters about how to solve the issue of modern slavery.

 

Next week the students will be introduced to the ideas of Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. DuBois – and to the epic philosophical battle that took place between them. They will use their understanding of these two authors to inform their beliefs about how best to tackle poverty in modern America, and prepare to debate one another about the topic. Our guest speaker will also help the students to prepare for this debate. 

What can I say? Overall I am just so pleased with how the students are stretching themselves. On Tuesday, we will conduct a World Café to foster discussion on key questions brought up in Narrative and the documentary. If you have never witnessed or been a part of a World Café, you are missing out! You can learn more about the concept here. We will address the following questions: How did slavery affect African Americans? How did slavery affect the slave owner? What current issues are there in today’s society that might be aftereffects of slavery? Why do “good” people participate in “bad” things? What is the most effective way to resist injustice?

I LOVE doing this activity, and have never had a bad experience with it. The pictures on this post are from last semester’s World Café’s, and I think they speak for themselves!

Make sure to check out some student blogs – they are moving and grooving!

20% Time Research Projects

The projects are rolling along! Some of the ideas, and more importantly some of the progress, really just blows my mind. I am loving how the kids are taking complete control of their projects. And, hey, most have to because honestly I couldn't help them anyway (I am thinking of you Lane).

One aspect of the this project that I am really emphasizing is the importance of getting better, learning more, and improving. My English curriculum includes extensive research standards, so I decided to tie my usual research project to the 20% Time projects. The students already formulated some research questions on their proposals - some needed some work, but it's all good. Now, the students are using Internet to find reliable sources to answer the research questions. I use a checklist to help students to analyze whether or not an Internet source is appropriate for research. I think that instead of fighting the Internet as a source of information, it is infinitely more important to help students become intelligent consumers of information on the Internet.

After the students find their sources, and ensure they are reliable, they begin creating research note cards. They also create a works cited page that will eventually become a part of their final research paper. The source analysis, note cards, and works cited page make up the first part of the research project.


Once this assignment is done, the students will write a formal research paper. So far, this has been the most excited students have ever been about researching - and I know it is because they are researching a topic that they already want to know more about. I am working right now to figure out exactly how I want the students to share their research. Perhaps a gallery walk...

20% Time Blog Highlights

Here are some of the latest and greatest!

Check out Zach H's innovative idea to the change the way fisherman get their information in Alabama!

Anthony W. has found a way to learn more about cars, and help those of us who don't know a thing!

Wait until you hear how Calley blending research with creativity!

And Tamya is going to take on the epic task of teaching us all (including me!!!) how to dance!

20% Time Project Proposals

 

This week the students worked on putting together a formal project proposal for their 20% Time Project. They used a template, and I created one as a model. This turned out to be incredibly helpful for the kids. Many of them had great ideas, but were really struggling to turn those ideas into final products or goals. Also, I was getting that “mouth open, eyes squinched, what-are-you-talking-about” face when I told them to be prepared to actually begin making progress on their projects by Friday. The proposal forced the students to think about getting from Point A to Point B. Also, we had great discussions and did some serious work on how to be specific when writing. Next week the students will present their proposals to the class along with a visual aid.  

 

The process students have gone through as they refined their ideas, and moved closer to their true passions has been very eye opening. I am working on trying to figure out how to create a structure that would help the students capture that process and journey, but beyond their personal blogs I don’t have any ideas at the moment.

An effect of Snowmaggedon last week was that we were not able to have our 20% Time. That means today was really the first day that the kids were actively working on their projects. Most of the kiddos got to work right away, but there were definitely some that still felt stuck. However, I am happy to report that by the end of our time together every student was moving and grooving.

New student blogs should be posted over the weekend, so check some out!

Geering Up for Black History Month

Next week we will jump into one of my favorite units. As a class we will study excerpts from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Douglass and Carver: A Live in Poems by Marilyn Nelson, and we will watch the brilliant HBO documentary Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives.

I love these works of literature. Period. I would teach them at any time, during any month. However, it just makes sense to plan the unit for February, which is Black History Month. Each year I tweak it a little, but the overall themes have remained the same. This unit allows students to contend with the complexities of slavery and its aftereffects. Up until this point, their main exposure has been “slavery=bad and emancipation=good.” Of course, I agree with the generalization, but it often undermines the struggles of the African American people after slavery because we don’t talk about the “what happened next.”

These works also provide a wonderful jumping off point to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of different formats of communication. The look on students’ faces when they uncover the cleverness of Douglass’s rhetoric is priceless. So are the tears some have shed when reading the beautiful poem “Friends in the Klan,” or the anger expressed during the documentary.

This year, a new component of the unit has been added. AND. I. AM. SO. EXCITED. The students are going to read excerpts from W. E. B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington that highlight their fundamental disagreement about how to go about educating the first generation of free African Americans. The following day a professor, and expert in 19^th Century American history, culture, and literature, will lead a symposium with the students about these two viewpoints. The students will also get to choose a side (Team Du Bois! Team BTW!), and debate the merits of their historical figure’s beliefs. History smackdown! Bam!

For me, teaching English will always come back to one core goal for my students: when you are ready to change the world, I want you to have the communication and research skills to do it. This unit, therefore, must circle back to this belief. As a key component of the unit, students write their own memoirs or autobiographical collections of poetry. This allows them to search their own histories for lessons about life. Also, I created a Google Map that students can explore, and use to learn more about contemporary slavery. The students then write letters to their congressman discussing their thoughts about how the United States can best help to end slavery in the modern world.

I have found that at this stage in their lives, students still feel a deep, strong sense of what is just.  And, unlike adults, they have little concern for limitations, policies, or challenges. Instead, the students simply believe the right thing should be done. If we, as teachers, could truly harness that energy, and just plain decency, I wonder what the world would begin to look like.

*If you would like any of the documents associated with this unit, just email me. I will be happy to send them!*