Recording Meaning...

So 2010 germs must be magnetized and weirdly attracted to me...a new wave of Decepticons, I think.

In the past two weeks I have vomitted, haked up, coughed up, and blew out all types of nasty gunk.  I have never been this ill in my life (and I was a sickly kid).  Being an adult and sick is no fun, especially when it means I miss time with the boys.  Yesterday and last Friday (my last post) were two of those days. 

I didn't get a chance to implement my disguised discussion on Friday, but it did happen on Monday and I was amazed!  The boys were engaged(ing), thoughtful, and I didn't really have to facilitate much at all.  We talked about the story (big props to the silent peer discussion...worked like cake) in a way that I've rarely had the opportunity to do with students at this level.  I'm not one of those teachers that thinks middle schoolers are limited in any way, but my experience with older students didn't necessarily give me the best skill set for scaffolding discussions with students still relatively new to the analytical side of reading comprehension (or so I thought).  Having the boys work in pairs was very essential to the success of the general class discussion.  Each boy had an idea, feeling or bit of information that was valid and enhanced the talk.  We spent a good part of our long period (about 35 minutes) just talking.  Equally important, I think, were those daily assignments that "poked" at issues of gender.  Listing chores, stepping outside the boy box (a game we played for a few minutes in class), chronicling our daily schedules, observing our surroundings (both at home and in an all boys school) all had a role in making our discussion MEANINGFUL. 

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SIDEBAR: What is meaningful?  Where does meaning come from?  Well, for me it is a combination of co-production (actually doing) with critical thinking and awareness.  Using the work of Rosenblatt, Sameshima, and others, I want us (the boys and I) to make sense of what we read because it matters to who we are (becoming/will be).  While it may all sound a little esoteric, I think teaching literature (both the reading of and the writing of it) is a matter of co-creation.
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With an awesome discussion under our belts, I then assigned the semicolon short story.  Fusing grammar/syntax with creative writing, I asked to the boys to imitate Kincaid's style and use the semicolon to craft a story with the word "boy" in the title.  On Monday night (the day I gave the assignment), I had the opportunity to read the boys' stories as they sent them to me via GoogleDocs or email.  In the midst of mindless TV, I was laughing up a storm, thinking deeply, and moved to several, "Yes,"s, "Wow,"s and "I'm so prouds."  So many of the boys seemed to make meaning from the story.  They used their perspectives, lived experiences, and perhaps all the questions we pondered in class to create fantastic stories.  Some faithfully followed Kincaid's stylistic model,  while others went truly creative and used voice/character to make poignant assertions about the roles gender play in life and in literature.  Some fully embraced the complexities of their socialized gender ("This is who I am"); others problematized their roles (motivation vs. parental authority); and others skirted (literally) the issue by claiming those areas of themselves that could be considered feminine ("I help my mom cook and I like it").  Isn't that something?

I can't wait to dig deeper into their stories and transcribe the discussion. 

I'm back, but wellness is elusive right now ;)

Signing off...