Ah, the synergy and serendipity of collaboration and conversation.
I’m sitting in my writing shed, something I wanted forever, am very grateful to have, and am still paying off. And the barn-style door does not stay propped open on its own (does anything?). Returning from a walk, I go back to the shed to see what kinds of inspiration can be gleaned from a sunny, anxious depressing, cortisol-filled day. Now, mind you, the garden statuary of the squirrel has a long story, and not sure I’m going to write it right this minute. But I use this statue to prop open the door, and it came to me that this statue is symbolic of a guardian, a talisman, of mine. Quick snapshot, and onto my IG post of the day. Today is the 218/366 (it’s a Leap Year).
And then I thought–whew– wouldn’t this be a good writing prompt idea for my students? I know we all live in different spaces, sometimes sharing an apartment with extended family. But if they could imagine and fantasize about legendary guardians and protectors, what fantasy objects could their “loose parts” help them create?
I’ve often said being an art major informed my teaching. I use writing territories and many low-risk writing strategies. The trick is I’m not going to be ‘there,’ but merely a hologram. Stockman’s Loose Parts reminds me of writing territories but more refined and functional. When I’ve used writing territories in the recent past, some students are confused and don’t grab onto their own stories. The three timeline writing works, but even that can be traumatic. Allow writers to choose from their own writing territories, or collection of loose parts.
It may be wrong or naive of me to hope that the state standardized testing is gone, at least in its current form. The writing has morphed into solely writing to respond. It’s an autopsy of reading, too, and makes little or no connection to the symbiotic act of reading and writing.
Christina Torres is an excellent writer. And like all excellent writers, know when she gets stuck, and seeks advice on how to get unstuck:
Any tips for how to get my brain back in order to write? Mind feels foggy, keep mistyping, struggling to focus. Trying not to run/bike bc it historically doesn’t help and I’m really sore/physically burnt out.
Would also take how to induce panic attack so this finally stops 🤣
One of the dispiriting aspects about the quarantine for me personally, and this is coming from a place of privilege. My husband and I could continue working from home, and have young adult sons that are self-reliant. I have no excuses hindering me from writing, creating, drawing, etc. Global pandemic, U.S. sliding into fascism, concerns about the end of things…but sure…
And because of the voluminous deluge of people who believe and spout the most ridiculous of notions, I flipped it around to try to have some creative fun, and it was!
1/ So, #writing. This tweet made me think about a few things. What anatomy would be good to have, equipped out of the box, so to speak? What anatomy is useless? Keep it appropriate, please. pic.twitter.com/Sw9xhrMpv7
My self derision is constant because here I am, with time, shelter, food, and purpose, and I could not write what I thought I would write if all these things came together. I guess I thought I would open Scrivener files and finish “that novel.” The one I’ve thought about for eight years, and can’t seem to just type it. I’ve done everything ‘around’ the writing but actually write.
But I wrote something this past week, and my COVID19 brain fog was pretty intense. I made a huge mistake in the draft I sent Larry Ferlazzo, and thankfully I asked my husband about it, and he immediately understood and clarified what I did wrong. However, aside from my poor internal editing skills, writing and contributing to this article helped me frame my plans for remote teaching and learning this upcoming year:
And here’s the thing: writing without a partner or group isn’t fun. Yes, I realize hundreds of novels were written in cloistered turrets, but writing in my own spinning head gets me no where fast. I just want to say thank you to my virtual writing group — the folks on Twitter and other spaces who keep me inspired and writing.
One more thing: reading has been challenging, too, but finally broke through with Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and now I’m reading The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern.
My brain made visual
I’m tired of ignorance being elevated to an art form. Of trolls and fascists, and fascist trolls, gaining ground in my mind and soul. But this ignorance is killing us. It’s not funny, it’s not cute. But I can take a cue from other artists, with sublime poise and precision, take down the dotards and dullards, the unimaginative and aggressively boring. And even if I can’t seem to write my novel(s) now, there are goddess and gods who are, do, and can. There is still magnificent prose to read, air to breath, and sun to warm us.
PS and watch someone in another field besides teaching discuss their profession:
We’re not a football family in our house. And like many areas of fandom, it’s okay–no judgment on those who love football, and as far as we know we aren’t judged by others. Wouldn’t matter. So forgive me for not knowing who Emmanuel Acho is. Turns out, he’s pretty amazing! And I am so grateful for other media formats who bring people such as him into my life and help me learn.
And I am an ELA/ELL teacher; however, full disclosure, I was not an English major in college. Most of what I learned about mechanics, style guides, and conventions I relearned and created lessons while teaching. My next question is what are the current grammarians and style guide writers determining about the capitalization of Black and White. Here’s what I’ve found:
The National Association of Black Journalists does not capitalize Black in its publications, including the NABJ Style Guide. Many of the terms related to Black and White people in The Diversity Style Guide come from 100 Questions & Answers About African Americans. The team that put together that guide decided to capitalize Black and White, according to editor Joe Grimm. After much research and consideration, the editor of The Diversity Style Guide elected to capitalize Black and White when used in a racial context, but most would say it’s not incorrect to lowercase those words.
However, when words labeling an entire people are at the root of a language dispute, that’s reason enough to seek direction outside of our usual resources, especially if the resources are outdated. If your editorial directive is to call people what they want to be called—including names, pronouns, and labels—then look to Black media outlets like Ebony and Essence for accepted usage and avoid overriding their terminology. By capitalizing black and white, we also make necessary distinctions between color and race—black hair and Black hair—similar to distinguishing between native and Native. Don’t wait for your style guide to catch up, because it’s waiting for you to demonstrate sufficient usage.
We believe that it is important to call attention to White as a race as a way to understand and give voice to how Whiteness functions in our social and political institutions and our communities. Moreover, the detachment of “White” as a proper noun allows White people to sit out of conversations about race and removes accountability from White people’s and White institutions’ involvement in racism. We are also reckoning with the threatening implications of capitalizing “W” in “White,” often used by White supremacists, to establish White racial dominance. The violence of capitalizing White in this context makes us grapple with the history of how Whiteness has functioned and thrived in the United States; acknowledging that, yes, White people have had power and still hold power in this country. While we condemn those who capitalize “W” for the sake of evoking violence, we intentionally capitalize “White” in part to invite people, and ourselves, to think deeply about the ways Whiteness survives—and is supported both explicitly and implicitly.
Language is powerful, and oftentimes I think ELA teachers don’t teach the true power of capitalization, punctuation and syntax. Because it “wasn’t on the test” we spent the past 14 years teaching to a test that uses excerpts like out-of-context entrails on an autopsy slab. I am going to call on my other experts on history and language to ask their thoughts. I will and do capitalize Black when referring to race, and have been using lower case “w” for white people. My instinctual response was because capitalizing the “w” felt like a nod for white supremacy. However, CSSP makes a strong case. (No pun intended.) Language is ever-evolving and shifting, sometimes for honest, descriptive and precise communication and sometimes for nefarious and subtextual racist communication. This article was written in 2015 by the Columbia Journalism Review: I think we can all agree that we need to be mindful of language and do our best to stay current and mind the impact.
And also, ELA teachers, be especially mindful of your use of Martin Luther King’s, Jr. works.
Every “y’all lost us with the word ‘defund,’” go read A Letter from A Birmingham Jail.
Every “y’all lost us with the word ‘abolition,’ go read some Sojourner Truth & Frederick Douglass.
It is possible-and necessary- to evolve on these things.
Literally. Go read.
— brittany packnett cunningham does not do remixes. (@MsPackyetti) June 14, 2020
AP has changed its writing style guide to capitalize the “b” in the term Black when referring to people in a racial, ethnic or cultural context, weighing in on a hotly debated issue. https://t.co/yeigYh9GWU
How to reframe research writing by using oneself as the subject matter.
Repeatedly I see teachers, including myself, complaining of the struggle to teach students how to write and craft solid research papers. From everything to poor organization, to a frequent lack of works cited, students struggle with this form of writing. We’ve provided scaffolding, mentor texts, learning targets and success criteria (which should be called assessment in my opinion, because that’s what success criteria are) and multiple check-points. And yet.
And yet.
What is missing? This is just my wondering, not that teachers aren’t doing this or they are, but I am wondering if we’re still giving enough of the “why” when it comes to research papers. Why do scientists, lawyers, computer scientists, user experience designers (like my husband) nurses, doctors, historians and yes, literature professors write research papers? What is the purpose of research and its twin, citing sources?
Research is to find facts, opinions and truths and balance them out as objectively as possible. And maybe this is the issue: we humans are not objective by nature. We just aren’t wired that way. Even at our most introspective moments our inner views are more fun-house mirror or Narcissus’s pond than clear view. And even when we think we’re seeing our true selves, we’re not, as Caroline McHugh’s TED talk attests.
I came up with this project to serve both as a scaffold to another research project, and a chance for students to study the one subject they want to know most about: themselves: do a research paper on themselves.
I am a huge fan of John Warren’s writing, Why They Can’t Write: I believe it should be required reading and professional development by every high school English and History teacher (and Science, Math, PE, Orchestra, Art, etc.) for one important reason: he provides a road map to where our students are headed. If the five-paragraph essay is the only path and scaffold to instruct students on organization, we have lost our why. So, this is not a hit on the five-paragraph essay structure as much as it is a call to look closely at the why of explaining organization. Continuing the curation of mentor texts and redefining what an essay looks like is of utmost important to me. I am constantly striving to reconsider, rethink, and reflect on the practice of teaching and learning about writing.
And Shawna Coppola wrote Writing Redefined (and I’m kicking my lazy, procrastinating self for not getting to my own writing book) and provided this take on multimodal learning: https://threeteacherstalk.com/2020/03/04/the-power-of-multimodal-composition/ Multimodal is my thing. Here are some more mentor text examples of essays in the wild and using multimodal pathways to redefine what an essay is:
gracious. ELA teachers: how do you teach voice? It is still super hard for me. I still feel like the basis of voice is word choice and I struggle to separate the two. Help! #ncte#nctevillage#engchat#whyisthissohardstill#ugh
Some of the best educators on Twitter weighed in with their advice and insight, so if you’re on Twitter, I highly recommend reading some of the comments. And since this is my blog and personal pensieve, I choose to explore this a bit further.
Rebecca is correct: the five of the six traits are skill-based, concrete and easily translated into learning targets and success criteria, and Voice stands out as an gossamer butterfly – hard to capture. Her metaphor is better. My apologies for a weak attempt.
My suggestion was to use mentor texts from a variety of sources. A #pairedtexts approach is useful. Thinking of speeches by recent Presidents and other leaders, both great and ignominious, would also provide rich conversations about voice. Ultimately, the goal is to help guide student writers to define, defend, and develop their own voices.
Craft and Structure:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.4 Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.5 Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
– June 16, 2015 – In the same speech announcing his candidacy, Donald Trump said, “I will build a great wall—and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me—and I’ll build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words.” Trump’s belief that Mexico should finance construction for the wall led Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto to cancel a meeting with Trump in June 2017, and again in February 2018. Peña Nieto has repeatedly said that Mexico will not fund the border wall.
Compare Pride by Ibi Zoboi to Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen:
Pride by Ibi Zoboi Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Resource 5
And though this is a great media literacy lesson, too, consider the “voice” the headline uses (word choice, etc.) that runs throughout these headlines:
Maybe voice is difficult to ‘teach’ to adolescents because their voices are still developing; however this does not mean their voices should be marginalized or misjudged. Adolescent voices are often brilliant. Perhaps whenever we have young authors in our care we must remind them, and ourselves, often and kindly, that their voice matters, is growing, and writing is a way to hold onto and reflect on one’s growth. Writing is the best way to provide our own histories with personal primary documents. (I’m going to find those sixth grade journals someday, I swear.) Voice evolves, strengthens, breaks, and regenerates. Consider whose voices to we tune-out, and whose voices do we ache to hear?
PS I’ve been writing this blog for over a decade and want to thank those who read my voice. In truth I’d probably continue to talk to myself, but it’s nice to know you’re out there, too.
One of my decades-long dreams has become a reality. (One that is going to be tough to pay for, but whatever.) After almost twenty-five years, I have a space to create and write that’s my own. It’s warm, well-lit and already cluttered with magical goobobs and whatsitz. And now I’m faced with the glaring mental blank page of fear. I have to do this. Whatever “this” is.
I break these rules.
But–I’m fat, and need to go for a walk. The dog needs brushing. And the floors swept. The laundry room is filthy. The toilets need scrubbing. The thank you notes written. Are my sons okay? Are they happy? Is my husband okay? Does he want to watch a movie? Is he bored? Do I need to solve that? Am I bored? Are my students doing okay? The clothes hung. Underwear and sock drawer sorted. The fridge scrubbed out. Shelves dusted. Budget rectified. Bills paid. Balance checked (red). Lesson plans completed. Playlists made. Creditors called. Check in on parents. On neighbors. On friends. Check social media. Engage. Disengage. Take a shower. Brush teeth. Take meds. Fill the dogs’ water bowls. Feed them. Oh, I really should take one for a walk. Make a schedule, a plan. Break dates. Plan a party. Cancel a party. Check bank balance. Husband has small meltdown about healthcare (justified).
Sigh.
For all my bluster and show about loving to write, it’s been scribbles and stickies. I have bits and threads all over the damn place, and not a cohesive, completed work. I use Scrivener, Evernote, and notebooks. Probably should up my Freedom account again so I don’t stray over to other tabs.
And now: I have time. Time to make a writing plan, and just get to it. Giving myself grace and permission: if it turns out I have nothing worth saying, who’ve I harmed? No one, not even myself. Writing is a natural, zesty enterprise (in the words of Maude Lebowski). My Capricorn husband does tend to look at time/creativity in monetary terms, and I don’t blame him really. We both tend to suffer from a scarcity mindset, and thinking of ways to monetize our time is somewhat of an obsession. It’s our hustle. Oh, well.
Thinking of the generations of women who did find the time, the quill and the ink to write. In spite of having all of the domestic duties and patriarchy weighing them down. But then I think about Herman Melville, who my friend Holly told me had an attic space and he forbade any of the women of the house to disturb him in any way. And this is published on PBS:
In the midst of his initial years as a profitable author, Melville married Elizabeth Shaw, daughter of the chief justice of Massachusetts and a close family friend. The chief justice, Lemuel Shaw, would later support Melville in the late 1850s during his financial struggles. With his new bride, Melville moved to New York City to live with his younger brother, mother, and four sisters in late 1847. Despite these crowded quarters, Melville was able to continue writing, and he finished two more novels within two years.
So…wait…in a “crowded house” that his father-in-law provided the women hung out and did every other domestic chore? The hell, Melville. Go downstairs and wash a dish or two and clear your head so you don’t confuse whales with fish.
This is leading me to another blog post, one which examines women authors from backgrounds, races, time periods and voices. How did they do it? And also – the next generation of authors: what forms and genres will they create, have created, that will take us further?
“It took me a long time to understand how much literacy affected my life.”
Jason Reynolds
Please forgive the sound and editing quality of this video. I tried to add titles on some of the key moments of Jason Reynold’s ideas. He showed the students and staff pure love that day, pure truth, and I am forever grateful to Kristin Sierra for working for over two years to bring him to our area.
My only regret is that I assumed I could use part of the $1500 budget awarded to me and my students this year and use $350 of it to take my students. Still a little bitter about that, and I pray there will be a ‘next time.’ Hopefully my students will watch this shaky video, and know I love them, too, and hear his words and message.
When I was getting two of my personal copies of Long Way Down signed, he mentioned he wants to go to more alternative high schools. I said, well…sure enough…that’s where I am now…so maybe…just maybe…
I am not sure how or why, but am completely starstruck: Larry Ferlazzo asked me to be on one of his BAM! podcasts, and that was so cool! The panel consisted of me, Katherine Schultan @KSchulten and Tatiana Esteban @tmce0419, and it was a pleasure to hear their advice and insight on our topic, authentic writing.
The TL:DR version: be explicit when you tell students they are not writing just ‘for the teacher.’ Their audience is secondary to their voice, passions, burning questions, and their own author’s purpose. Use mentor texts and make the invisible visible. Frame what ‘writers do’ and they are writers, too.
And now that I have the podcasting bug, we shall see!
