This morning, thinking of this day, and of the Open House at the end of it, I read this essay, about how poet Jill Bialosky started writing. She writes: "our professor-poet tells us to write poems about what we know and what hurts."
At this point in the school year, everything is still new, and we're figuring it all out. Part of being a teacher is keeping it new, year after year. I've read ten thousand poems about having a crush, but for every kid who writes one, the feeling is new, and overwhelming. I've also read ten thousand poems from kids who think, "I know! I'll write about how I have nothing to write about!" Each kid thinks this clever idea is brand new. And to each kid, it is.
Here's to teaching, and to meeting a new set of parents, and to reading what our students write, year after year, their bathroom humor, and their tales of trips and first communions and the births of siblings, and yes, their explorations of what hurts.
Here's today's roundup.
What a generous teacher you are not to announce at the beginning of the year "No poems about not knowing what to write about!"
ReplyDeleteAnne Lamott says, in Bird by Bird, "You are going to have to give from the deepest part of yourself, and you are going to have to go on giving, and the giving itself is going to have to be its own reward."
Hoping there are many a-ha moments of breathless wonder and realisation, Ruth.
ReplyDeleteOff to read the essay in a minute, but stopping to say I love the kind of teacher you are. :)
ReplyDeleteRuth, what a gift you are! Just to recognize the depth of these new-to-them feelings instead of minimizing them... yes, they're maybe expected, yes, we've heard them before. But as you say: new to them. And that makes them something to be celebrated. xo
ReplyDeleteI love your thoughts about your new students and their writing and so enjoyed that wonderful, powerful essay. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteCelebrating the feelings and words from each student is a blessing from you as their teacher, Ruth. What a wonderful thing you do for them.
ReplyDeleteYea for teachers like you who are willing to take each day and each poem and each student as some new wonder to explore.
ReplyDeleteHere's to seeing the newness of the world through each students eyes! Happy school year.
ReplyDeleteI remember a professor reminding us library students that even if we've heard a question a million times, it's the first time for each person who asks it, so we need to treat each and every interaction with the respect it deserves. It can be a challenge...but it's the least we can do for the people we serve!
ReplyDeleteYour post pairs perfectly with Keisha's Blank Page post. Did you two collaborate? Seems like you did. Best to you and the new year. I wish you lots and lots of beautiful words.
ReplyDeleteI see that Irene responded to your post the same way I just responded to Tara's this week - "What a gift you are!" So very true of both of you. Thanks for sharing, and thank you for seeing from the perspective of your students, new crop after new crop. Have a terrific year!
ReplyDeleteYes, here's to a new year of reading student writing -- always different, always the same. I look at my incoming 5th graders' work and know that there's lots of work to be done, but they'll be transformed by the end of the year. They won't be able to help it!
ReplyDeleteHere's to a new year. Savor the moments.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what to write in my comment... lol. I always have lot to say. I don't think I ever wrote about not knowing what to write.
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