ONE YEAR WITH AN ENGLISH TEACHER

Day 108, March 3, 2008

Today Rosie was the "maitre d'" in her class, and she was utterly dynamic in carrying out her duties. She launched right into leading the discussion on "The White Heron", so much so that I could barely get a word in. She obviously enjoyed herself immensely, and I think her classmates liked her leadership. Certainly anything is a welcome change from listening to Mr. Salsich, but I also think the students respected what Rosie was doing. They saw that she was setting a good example of how to be a good maitre d' -- taking her job seriously, leading the class in a dignified manner, and taking pleasure in what she was doing.

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In the discussion in one of the 8th grade classes, Bobby raised his hand and then asked the class a question about the story being discussed. It was something he was interested in, and he wanted to know what his classmates thought about it. I was pleasantly surprised when he asked the question, because normally a student, when called upon, offers a statement rather than a question. Bobby did something that I want to encourage the students to do more often. After all, we teachers know that good questions are often more important than good answers.

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Later in the same class, it was gratifying to hear Serena say, "I want to connect to something Erin said earlier." We have worked hard this year on making these kinds of links with each other's comments, and it was good to see Serena practicing this important discussion technique.

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In the 9th grade classes, we read over some passages from Great Expectations that the students will be reciting in England, and I was happy to see expressions of attentiveness and interest on the faces of many of the students. They were obviously moved and delighted by hearing these passages that they had read many weeks (and even months) ago.