What I learned about eighth graders- Part I: Love Them

Moving from sixth grade to eighth grade this year was a leap, not just in curricular expectations or unit topics, but also in dealing with personalities. Three students in particular challenged me and made me continuously question how and why I was teaching the way I was. Because of their challenges, I grew as a teacher.

Y- was a little boy in a big boy’s body. Although he was as tall as the other boys, taller than many, and was one of the first in the grade to have an official girlfriend, he was only twelve years old until November, making him the youngest boy in the grade. He acted his age in small but important ways in the classroom: continuously poking his neighbors, especially if they were girls; unable to concentrate for longer than ten minutes—standardized tests were a torture and he would rock or sit on his knees and sigh; he had very little reading stamina, hating each story or book he was given because it took a little effort to get past the beginning. In class, he put his head down on the table. When asked to take notes or to write a reflection, he scrawled a few illegible words. He was simply unengaged. But he craved attention, and he reached out from his world to mine. “Mrs. Pohl, have you seen….?” “Mrs. Pohl, is this right?” “Mrs. Pohl, how do I…?” A huge movie buff, he frequently asked me if I’d seen the most recent movie, or one that connected to what we were discussing. He asked my favorite actor, or musician, or song. He was quick with verbal snipes back to my remarks. And when it was the last day of school and he asked, “Can we go?” I said, “Yes, but you have to hug me first.” He gave me the biggest, tightest hug of anyone. Y- taught me that the curriculum is not going to connect to every kid, no matter the games or role-plays, the choices or multiple intelligences opportunities. But I had better find a way to connect with every single kid even if their behavior is off-putting or negative, because they still want to be loved by their teachers. That will make a difference in a kid’s life.

Blogging Again

Last summer my computer died. This wasn’t as dire as it seems, since I had backed up most of my information, and because the geniuses at Apple got it going again. What hadn’t backed up, however, was my secret sticky note that contained my log-ins for various websites I use, including this one. And because I hadn’t blogged much, I forgot how to get in. My usual Google log-in didn’t work because of some glitch with the school account, and I’d set up another account, which I’d forgotten. Sigh.

Sitting in front of the Atomic Learning Blogging (www.atomiclearning.com/k12/blogging) course today sent me in a direction that solved my problem. I found my username and tried a password that successfully gave me access to my blog, so I am ready to go again. I’ll be trying out some new things from the course, and hopefully I’ll be a better blogger because of it.

So get ready, I’m set, let’s go!

Giving Voice to the Voiceless

I have continued reading around the concept of the democratic classroom: two young adult novels: Nothing But the Truth by Avi, and Monster by Walter Dean Myers, and articles from the May, 2011 issue of NCTE's journal Voices from the Middle. Three separate, but interconnected, issues emerged from these readings. First there is the issue of students having the right to free speech in a safe, democratic classroom. Second, the issue that there are populations in our classes and society that are marginalized or silent. And third, the issue of how biased media contributes to the silence and fear of speaking out about unpopular beliefs.

Certainly these are not new or unfamiliar issues, but I must consider how to address them in a classroom of diverse middle school students. Creating a safe, democratic classroom is the first step. Reading books like Avi's Nothing But the Truth as a read-aloud brings forward the issue of a student's right to practice his/her beliefs, but also raises the issue that others in the class have the right to not have their learning environment disrupted by those practices. Rich classroom discussions can result in a Student's Bill of Rights, a more meaningful form of the standard Classroom Rules generated by the teacher.

Read-aloud can also bring forward discussions of marginalized or silent members of a community. Books such as Monster--about an imprisoned African-American teenage boy, James Howe's Totally Joe-- about a gay middle schooler, or The Acorn People by Ron Jones-- about physically disabled campers, humanize those who are otherwise stereotyped, bullied, or ignored. Although there may not be any members of those groups in my class, reading and discussing books with such characters can bring out empathetic feelings for others who may be socially marginalized, such as the extremely shy or socially awkward child. These empathetic discussions could lead a student to feel safer and more comfortable to share their own experiences of being

marginalized or bullied.

Discussions about a person's right to tell the truth as s/he sees it, to share uncomfortable or awkward experiences, and to examine commonly held stereotypes can also turn to why people feel so afraid to be themselves. Social norms are shaped by family values, friends, and media. Nothing But the Truth includes several scenes in which the newspaper slants a story to create greater "shock value" and a politician exaggerates that same story even further for his own gain. Talking through character motivations and cause and effect within this story can lead to connections in our world today. Students can grapple with questions such as "Why do kids feel afraid to voice an opinion that might be unpopular?", "Why do we label others?", and "Who decides what is right, wrong, or popular?"

This is what I want to do in September: I want to create a space where young adolescents can wrestle with big social issues and, as an extension, make all students feel included. Reading and discussing engaging texts about difficult issues creates those opportunities.

Bibliography

Avi. Nothing But the Truth: A Documentary Novel. New York: Avon Books, 1991. Photo of cover taken from betterworldbooks.com

Howe, James. Totally Joe. Atheneum Publishers, 2007.

Jones, Ron. The Acorn People. Laurel Leaf Publishers, 1996.

Myers, Walter Dean. Monster. New York: HarperCollins Children's Books, 1999.

NCTE. Voices From the Middle. May, 2011. Photo of cover taken from ncte.org

Switching Gears

Today is the first day of summer vacation, which means switching gears: going from the hectic fast pace of the classroom to the more leisurely days of summer; going from full-time worker to no-time worker; going from teacher to researcher-reader-writer-learner-traveler-relative-mother-wife-friend; and switching gears from sixth grade to eighth grade. Yes, eighth grade. And so my research question for the summer, what I have already begun pondering, is: How can I create a community of engaged, supportive, enthusiastic 13-year-old learners instead of having a group of apathetic, negative, eye-rolling, bored young adolescents?

I do not believe that 13 is an age predestined for unpleasantness. Therefore, my search begins with community-building. I have begun reading a book I have had on my shelf for several years now, but had yet to read: "It's Our World Too": Socially Responsive Learners in Middle School Language Arts by Beverly Busching & Betty Ann Slesigner. They advocate setting up a "democratic classroom" in which students will value and respect themselves and others, become active in their learning and in aspects of running the classroom, and in which they connect themselves, literature, and the world to become more socially responsive. The latter goal sounds much like Friere's critical literacy theory, popular in Australia. The previous goals sound very much like the Workshop approach.

I have only read two chapters so far. But I am excited by the possibility that this approach opens: empowering students to make real decisions that affect their daily lives. This sounds like just the ticket for engaging the 13-year-old mind.

Summer Work Update

I see that it's been more than a month since I last posted. This indicates that I have been busy doing many things other than blogging: visiting family, traveling, reading, shopping, driving, and most recently, recovering from jet lag.

This also indicates that my list of tasks to be done over the summer should have been done (see previous post). Here's my update on that work:

Twilight Series: I finished reading all four books, and have decided they have little to recommend about them. However, it's good to know this so I can talk about them with kids. The Twilight books were 4 of the 13 young adult books I read, posted and reviewed on Shelfari (which I recommend highly).

Time for Meaning: I re-read this 1995 book and found it just as rich and meaningful as before. I love Randy Bomer's easy-going self-deprecating yet confident style of writing.

Teaching Grammar in Context and Fair Isn't Always Equal: I didn't get to these two books, but I did order and begin reading through several other books on teaching conventions:
• The Power of Grammar: Unconventional Approaches to the Conventions of Language by Mary Ehrenworth and Vicki Vinton
• Catching up on Conventions: Grammar Lessons for Middle School Writers by Chantal Francois and Elisa Zonana
• Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction (4th ed) by Donald R. Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, and Francine Johnston (and I got the related books for middle school spellers)
• Vocabulary Their Way: Word Study with Middle and Secondary Students by Shane Templeton, Francine R. Johnston, Donald R. Bear, and Marcia Invernizzi

Beatrice And Virgil: This was a fascinating read, and I did decide to use it for Book Club this year. I’m anxious to see what others think about the relationship between the two main characters, and how they interpret the ending!

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: I read this too, but was not thrilled by it. I won’t read the other two, nor will I go see the movie.

Oh yes, summer was busy. Busy with holiday reading, busy with professional development, busy with travel and family, busy with the day-to-day business of shopping and cooking and cleaning, busy with movies and talk and other entertainments. But also busy with reading for pleasure and lifelong learning. Wonder what I'll want to read next summer?