The faculty community at FBS is friendly. It is not unusual, however, for me to enter the staff room, make a cup of tea, and leave without exchanging more than minimal Mar7aba's (hello's) with my colleagues. They are often engaged in Arabic conversation, and even if they're not, we have little to discuss and are generally not well acquainted.
Today I warmed soup for lunch and sat down by myself in the part of the staff room which is a thoroughfare. It was break time, and people walked through frequently. Not one person, from the stoic guard to the shy history teacher to the tech support person with whom I have never exchanged words, passed me without making warm eye contact and wishing me a hearty "Sa7tain!" I've never had so much pleasant attention in my life! (except when I was in the hospital for my 16th birthday, perhaps). I wonder if my students would be so attentive if I just carried a box of food around with me all class?
Other reasons today has been splendid:
1. Round table discussions are hard. Since Christmas I've been shunning the typical rows in our classrooms and arranging my 15 student literature classes (three) in circles. Knowing when and what to write on the board, when to go to the text, when to respond to one comment in more depth, when to refer back to another student's point, when to get as many ideas on the table as possible versus when to stick with a good idea for a while...
the responsibility of making these spontaneous decisions has made me nervous about each class. Sometimes the questions I ask fall flat. Sometimes people don't share with their partners. Sometimes their factual recall is just wrong. Sometimes I get the feeling they know the book much better than I do.... in which case I'm always grateful that I can still play teacher while saying "Who thinks they know the answer?" or "Do we get any clues from the text?"
Today's class went really well. Everyone spoke. They did partner work. We talked about the plot of the book, got their opinion on characters, talked about omniscience vs. lack of self knowledge, talked about allegories for revolution, and began to develop an idea of what absurdity looks like in literature. It was very exciting, and they seemed truly engaged. It was thrilling.
2. We're going to have an art and lit magazine at FBS! Aware that tenth graders often suffer the Sophomore Slump having outgrown the novelty of the freshman year, not yet bearing the glamorous cross of the junior year workload, not the prestige of seniorhood, I thought that creating an editorial board completely from tenth graders for the school's new lit and art magazine would grant them something of their own.
At today's interest meeting about serving on the editorial board, email addresses spilled onto the back of the sign-up sheet. And I had feared a tepid response. I can't wait to get down to reading submissions. The voice these students have is remarkable.
Interested in helping finance the printing of our final product? Let me know!
mmarstaller@rfs.edu.ps
Today I warmed soup for lunch and sat down by myself in the part of the staff room which is a thoroughfare. It was break time, and people walked through frequently. Not one person, from the stoic guard to the shy history teacher to the tech support person with whom I have never exchanged words, passed me without making warm eye contact and wishing me a hearty "Sa7tain!" I've never had so much pleasant attention in my life! (except when I was in the hospital for my 16th birthday, perhaps). I wonder if my students would be so attentive if I just carried a box of food around with me all class?
Other reasons today has been splendid:
1. Round table discussions are hard. Since Christmas I've been shunning the typical rows in our classrooms and arranging my 15 student literature classes (three) in circles. Knowing when and what to write on the board, when to go to the text, when to respond to one comment in more depth, when to refer back to another student's point, when to get as many ideas on the table as possible versus when to stick with a good idea for a while...
the responsibility of making these spontaneous decisions has made me nervous about each class. Sometimes the questions I ask fall flat. Sometimes people don't share with their partners. Sometimes their factual recall is just wrong. Sometimes I get the feeling they know the book much better than I do.... in which case I'm always grateful that I can still play teacher while saying "Who thinks they know the answer?" or "Do we get any clues from the text?"
Today's class went really well. Everyone spoke. They did partner work. We talked about the plot of the book, got their opinion on characters, talked about omniscience vs. lack of self knowledge, talked about allegories for revolution, and began to develop an idea of what absurdity looks like in literature. It was very exciting, and they seemed truly engaged. It was thrilling.
2. We're going to have an art and lit magazine at FBS! Aware that tenth graders often suffer the Sophomore Slump having outgrown the novelty of the freshman year, not yet bearing the glamorous cross of the junior year workload, not the prestige of seniorhood, I thought that creating an editorial board completely from tenth graders for the school's new lit and art magazine would grant them something of their own.
At today's interest meeting about serving on the editorial board, email addresses spilled onto the back of the sign-up sheet. And I had feared a tepid response. I can't wait to get down to reading submissions. The voice these students have is remarkable.
Interested in helping finance the printing of our final product? Let me know!
mmarstaller@rfs.edu.ps
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