Next week on October 20th, is National Writing Day. Today I introduced my students to the prompt; Why I Write. Prior to having them begin our process of writing, we had some chuckles about the reasons they write. Some of my students stated they were “forced” to write when they are in school. I played along with them and let my students have their moment. One of my boy writers raised his hand and pointed out that the prompt was indicating he wrote outside of school and he insisted that he did NOT do any writing other than what was required of him in school. I smiled and proceeded to ask my students to raise their hand if they write text messages or do Facebook. Everyone’s hand shot into the air. I explained to them both of those are examples of them writing outside of school. It was almost like I took the wind out of their sails. The expressions were priceless.

My students were now ready to write and I can’t tell you how moved I was by some of their responses. I had a young man discuss how writing was a place to escape for him and how he could visit different places without having to leave the comfort of his room, classroom, or car. There were students who expressed how writing was a means of communication and they knew it was required of them in school. All of these were really well thought out responses and I was pleased with their effort. But, that wasn’t what made me feel uplifted as a teacher and a writer. I had two students in two separate classes both express how writing is a place where they are not judged. The pages did not question what they wrote or laugh at them. In addition, they wrote how it is their place of freedom where they can create whatever they want. After hearing each one of these journal writings, I stood silent and almost speechless. My mind finally jolted me to wake up and respond. All I could sputter out was WOW! Let me remind you this was in two different classes too.

It is safe to say that they get it. Kids and students truly do know the power of writing and what it can hold for each of them. I know I didn’t hear from all of my students, but I didn’t need to. I may not reach all of my students, but I know within the first 6 weeks, I have reached a few. What else can I say about writing, except WOW!

Cheer!

We had our second department meeting this year, though it seems our department meets more than the required amount of times by our administrators. I am lucky to be part of a department that is so very passionate about language arts and how we reach students in the classroom. Today we were discussing the increasing demands we seem to be facing as language arts teachers. It seems we are being asked to implement more and more into the curriculum that we have in front of us. As language arts teachers in our district we feel the Common Core Standards are put together really well and much easier to work through on a whole. Our biggest task ahead of us is going to be working through the CCS and seeing what it is we do in our classroom and lining it up with the standards and then going back and plugging any holes where we are missing items. This is going to be a chore that we have to endure not only in our department meetings, but on our own time as well. Although this will be very beneficial to all of us at each level we teach, there are still questions left unanswered.

The biggest question we are still scratching our heads over is how to teach grammar efficiently I our classrooms. Let’s face it, handing out worksheets and going over examples on our whiteboards isn’t the most affective way to reach students. This “plug and chug” method turns us into worksheet teachers and in essence creates a somewhat toxic environment where students do not want to learn. Furthermore, as language arts teacher our backs are already up against the wall when students come into our classroom. More often than not, students don’t care much for language arts class. Now, since I have incorporated more digital tools into my classroom and changed my approach to writing with boys, language arts has been very pleasant and I hear more and more from my students that they like my class. But the questions remains, how do we get through everything in the curriculum, make our classrooms digital, and have grammar be engaging? Oh, and do all of this without feeling or getting burned out as teachers.

I don’t know how other teachers feel, but I feel like this year has flown by in a whirl wind. I also feel I haven’t covered everything I am supposed to as a language arts teacher. Is is okay? Are other language arts teachers feeling like I am? Perhaps it is because of my new teaching assignment or the overwhelming amount of paperwork. Nevertheless, I will continue to move forward and research new and innovative ways to reach my students. Jeff Anderson and Kelly Gallagher are two professionals who I have researched and have helped me transform my room into a much better place for students to learn. I know there are many other resources out there as well. NWP is a great group for resources too.

Cheers!

My shoes not removed for more than a moment, I hung the key up on the hook. It was then my hand brushed against it causing the hard plastic to bounce against the nylon cord. My head immediately went down to the floor and my mind flooded with many thoughts about what this time of year used to mean for me. I looked up from the cold cement floor of the garage and embraced the whistle into my palm. I squeezed it and closed my eyes. The realization slammed down on my as if a car fell on my back. My knees went weak for a moment and I took a few deep breaths and put the whistle back on hook. Instead of going into the house, I walked back out of the garage and tried to distract my brain from thinking about basketball. My efforts were all for not. I decided it was healthier to let my mind think about it instead of denying what it so desperately wanted.

Feeling like I just lost my childhood pet, I began to pout. I could feel my blood pressure rising. I started to become furious. I was doing everything my way, the right way and I am left standing with a whistle in my hand ready to cry. I know I have blogged about this before and I even denied myself the truth by saying I wasn’t missing it. After seeing that whistle today and feeling the small cork like ball rattling inside the whistle, I miss coaching right now. I don’t miss the parents, I don’t miss the attitudes that came with some of the players, and I definitely don’t miss the late nights. Plain and simple, I miss the game. Furthermore, I will miss the relationships I built with young people. I will miss teaching the life lessons that sports can have.

I am not one to dwell on the past, but basketball has been a part of me since I was in middle school. The positives about basketball being amputated from my being go well beyond the negatives. The time I get to spend with my family is time I can never get back if I were to still coach. Christmas break is going to be awesome this year. My wife and I can enjoy it together. I get to concentrate more on my classroom and my most important job, being a language arts teacher. Oh, and the amount of time I can spend doing things for the writing project is a positive too. I truly am an optimist and I do believe things happen for a reason. I know in the long run I will be better off. Oh, and this blog tonight is another reason why I write. Writing allows you to get your frustrations out and express your feelings. And so the whistle hangs.

Cheers!