Day 92, Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Today Jeanne came to me with her Great Expectations reader's journal, proud to show me that she had done last night's notes as well as the notes from the night before (when she was sick). She was obviously pleased with herself that she had been able to make up the missed work, and in a very thorough manner. Her journal pages were detailed and crowded with reflections, and she entertained the class during the discussion with many absorbing comments.

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I noticed that Daz took his 'positive note giver' job very seriously today. He roamed around the circle during our discussion, reading kids' journals and giving some of them positive sticky notes. It was apparently an enriching experience for him. Perhaps it gave him a sense of importance -- a sense of playing a special role in class, of being smart enough to write intelligent, teacher-like comments to his classmates. It also (I hope) enabled him to see some high-quality work by his classmates, perhaps giving him some ideas as to how he could improve his own reader's journal.

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Wilson told me today that he had finished Of Mice and Men. I congratulated him and was about to walk away, when I casually asked him how he liked it. I'm glad I did, because it opened the door for him to talk with genuine fervor about the book. He loved it, and, for a few moments, standing in the doorway of my classroom, we talked together about George and Lennie and the sad fate that gradually enveloped them both. It was just a simple question I had asked, but those few words enabled me to see, for a few moments, into the heart of my student.