I've been teaching all or almost all middle schoolers for about fifteen years now. I love this age, the way they are still little kids, but starting to be adults. They are independent and thoughtful sometimes, and giggly and goofy sometimes. They care desperately what their peers think of them, and have a reputation for meanness that is often earned, but they also have the ability to be extraordinarily kind. I am thankful for my students, all of them throughout the years, who remain forever in my mind as their awkward, maddening, adorable seventh and eighth grade former selves.
Uniformed, unique,
Middle of jokes-grief-laughter,
Bored, curious, twelve.
Birdtober? Gratiku? What's up with me and these made-up words
and daily posting? Well, I've learned that a tiny little burst of
creativity each day helps keep me going, stops me from being entirely
fixated on the mess. That's why I post daily photos on Facebook. And
that's why I'm doing these writing projects. This one is a daily haiku
about something I'm thankful for. (A gratitude haiku - get it?) As long
as the internet keeps working, I'm going to try to post one every day in
November.
1 comment:
I'm grateful for them, too, Ruth, reading your words that I know are true. I taught that age for many years and sometimes people would think I was a bit nutty. But we know how they are and how special they can be, along with all those other words you wrote!
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