Day 7

Today, I've had "Revolution" by The Beatles stuck in my head.  Check out my earlier post about it.

And I guess I'm thinking:  DO we want a revolution?  And if so, what steps are we willing to take?  What lines are we willing to cross?  Megan's post about what we could actually do to improve our situation as teachers was very thought provoking to me today and stayed at the back of my mind with all my thoughts about revolution.

Today, I did my demo, and I was fascinated to hear the discussion about identity formation and specifically how we form ourselves in online spaces.  Aileen's question: "If you create an image of something [or yourself] can you revise it?" really made me wonder about the permanence of identities.  If we are constantly performing our identities and recreating them, how permanent are our identities?  But at the same time, people are people and impressions last a long time.  Like Rebekah mentioned in class today, we perceive people the way that knew them first/best.

I am really excited about the corporate aspect of our portfolio for SI.  The thinking we have done together has really influenced my independent take on things (if it's even possible for that to exist).  I think collaborating will enhance our views of the learning done in the time we've had together.

As I continue to think about my inquiry, I'm really into the performance aspect again of things that we've done this week.  Thinking today of the Circle of Oppresion, there was so much performance.  For instance, since I started in the center of the circle, I wanted to find my way out.  Once I had found a way out of the circle, I imagined myself to be motivated by the fact that I didn't want to re-enter the circle.  I wanted to avoid it at all costs--I knew what it was like to be on the inside and I didn't want any part of that--the need to seek approval from others and risk rejection.

In theater, we often talk about keeping up with the "inner dialogue" of the character--very similar to what Lil had us do today with the story of Charles.  You explore the characters thoughts that are going on under the surface of the character's lines or the narrative.  Though we call it stream-of-consciousness in the world of English, it serves the same purpose as inner dialogue in theater--letting you know what the character is thinking and moving beyond the surface level to character motivations and choices.

I'm still pulling pieces together.  And I was fascinated by our discussion of shaping identities today.  Thanks for really digging in with me and pushing me to reflect.  Awesome work, team! :)

Day 6

Today I continued to mull over the performance aspect of the writing classroom.  The tableaux this morning was truly awesome.  I loved how we each performed our own thing but were inspired by others and were connected to them physically, through touch.  We had some parameters, but otherwise, it was mainly open to our interpretation of the word Lacy gave us.

The weight of assessment was really heavy as we performed our tableaux.  I know I was concerned about how to assess, and the idea of being assessed weighed heavily on me as we started to work on our portfolio yesterday.  We composed this picture of what assessment looked like to each of us individually, but also corporately, and I could feel the energy in the room.

Again, the performative quality of the writing comes through and the performative quality of teaching shines.  There is so much we have to perform each day and there is power in the choices that we make as teachers, writers, and performers.

Also, I'm very excited about our collaborative final portfolio.  I am really connected to the idea that we each get to write our individual reflection, detailing the specific ways we feel as though we have grown in our writerly identities.  But also, I love the idea that people could talk back to us about our reflections and just about our journeys together.  I could imagine that on this corporate website, we each have a page labeled with our name in a menu on the side.  Each page would then have two parts:  My reflection about me and then everyone's response to the learning that this person has been a part of with them.  For instance on my page, I'm envisioning a "Carrie about Carrie" page and then a section entitled "SIers talk back/about Carrie."  We could also have pages for the different sections ("analytical thinker" "questioners" etc) which we could post under and respond to each other.  Make sense?

Ranting and Writing

​This morning began our second week of Summer Institute.  First, Lil had us write about some things that really irked us about school.  Then we circled up in the middle of the room, as we have almost every day since SI began.  This morning's warm-up was a rant.  We stood in a circle as Lil and Lacy explained the rules.  Everyone would face outward in the circle except when they felt moved to rant.  Whoever was ranting had to continue to do so until the next person jumped in to start their ranting topics.  

Our rants ranged from everything to parents' rights about students' education to breast milk to money to buy Daybooks for our students.  Though we had our backs turned to the center of the circle, I felt that we really supported one another as we each jumped in venting about how we felt about the topic at hand.  Then once the activity had been brought to a close by a lovely demonstration of a teacher robot complete with motions and voice ("Feed me pacing guides.  Yum yum.") we began to brainstorm about how the activity could be used in our classes.

​I suggested that we use it for students to talk about a reading that might have been difficult for them, allowing them to get their ideas going as they pondered what they had read.  We also talked about how it could be a great way to let students just talk about what they have a passion for, showing them that they are the experts on something.  

After some ranting, Aileen began her demonstration based on Harry Noden's book ​Image Grammar.  ​After walking through some major concepts of the book, Aileen had us do some sample activities of working with appositives, adjectives out of order, etc.  She also made us a handy little foldable that will remind us of what we learned.

When Aileen's demo was over, we launched into a pretty awesome discussion about the way we discuss grammar.  One of the comments that came up was how frightening some of the terminology was to use--things like absolutes and participles.  However, it was easy to see how they enhanced writing and were easy to play with once we got over the terms.  

Aileen's demo led us nicely into Tara's demo about Writing Circles.  We chose a social studies topic that we were interested in and then began to work in groups.  As a group we picked a large idea that we would focus on.  Then, each of us wrote individually and we responded to each other's pieces.  Then each group shared out one of the pieces.  One group wrote about the Casey Anthony trial, one about the devastation from Katrina, one about revolution, one about conflict, and my group wrote about poverty.  As we wrapped up the demo, the discussion turned to genres--whether they were merely "containers" to pick and choose from or the other aspects of them we had to consider when using them as writers.  

After lunch we discussed articles from 4 different authors about assessment.  We moved into groups, examining the articles with others who had read the same one.  Then Sally "jigsawed" us until we had someone from each article group talking to each other.  We channeled our authors, arguing with one another and looking how our views intersected and pressed on each other.  

The last thing we worked on was beginning work on our portfolio for SI.  I can't believe SI only has 4 days left!   But it's exciting to go ahead and start looking at all the learning that has taken place.  

A lot of questions were raised today, and some good conversations were had.  More to come as I reflect later this evening about my inquiry. :) 

Day 4 Reflection

I cannot believe our first week of SI has come to a close and that we only have one left.  The thinking we have done is really pushing me, and I am pushing back in order to make meaning.

This morning, Jessie's poetry demo really got me thinking.  There are some things that I've never identified with in the field of English, and poetry is one of these things.  I enjoy poetry.  I read it and it is beautiful.  But I don't write it.

I guess part of this is that I am still uncovering pieces of my writer identity.  I don't really remember writing poetry in school ever except for in the 6th grade.  I won a poetry contest and that was cool.  But for some reason, poetry is difficult for me.  Maybe it's because it is so personal.  Maybe it's because there's not necessarily a formula (although I suppose you could argue that some forms can feel like such).

As I finished up my digital project today, I realized just how interested I am in composing beyond the written word.  The literacy and rhetoric of performance fascinates me.  And based on my experiences, it really is something I would like to continue researching.  I feel like in terms of acting, it's often talked about as "tapping into" this person/character that's already out there existing beyond yourself.  However, from a rhetorical standpoint, it is clear that an actor makes choices about how to portray a specific character and how to construct their personalities, their actions, and even the way they decide those things.  Performance is a way of composing as clearly as writing is.

I really enjoyed Sally's workshop on the Socratic Seminar.  Sally, Aileen, Rashid and I really got into a great discussion about The Declaration of Independence.  Sally gave us questions that really caused us to think, but were open-ended, inspiring discussion.  It was great to see how the class atmosphere we have established enabled me to really speak my mind (such as saying that I probably wouldn't have signed the declaration if I was a person in 1776).  This classroom culture is vital, and I've been reflecting on what has made our classroom successful over the past few days.  I'm sure I"ll blog about that more later.

This afternoon was awesome.  The E-Gallery crawl was amazing.  It was fascinating to see what technologies each person had chosen to implement, but it was also very eye-opening to read each other's stories and understanding how we make meaning based on our histories as writers.  I am already thinking of ways to expand and revise my Prezi.

So, thinking ahead toward my demo next week.  Super excited about it.  I'm waffling between two ideas before finalizing, but I am excited about both.  We shall see.

Day 3

Today was a day filled with lots of possibilities for the Summer Institute.  Stephanie did an awesome demonstration this morning about how to use Storify and the ways she uses it within her class.  As she presented, I imagined this as a great way for students to write their final reflections for ENGL 1101.  They could include twitter/blog posts, videos that we watched in class, portions of papers, etc.  It was fascinating to see all the different forms of media that can be used in Storify and the stories that can be told.  After Stephanie's demo, we talked about the ways to craft a story and to look at purpose within the context of Storify.  It was really exciting to think about the multiple ways Storify could be used.    


Later on, Melissa did her demo about writing into social action.  She started with a video of some of her kids talking about social action.  It was really inspiring to hear these kids and their beliefs that they are able to make a difference in the world.  As one of the 6th graders said, ""It takes one person to change something little and more than one person to change something big." These students awareness of the collaborative nature of meaning making was overwhelming.  They understood the power of a single voice, but also the strength that was added when those voices joined together.  I loved it.  LOVED it.  


When we started out writing our own social actions pieces, I kind of struggled.  There are a lot of things that I am passionate about in terms of social issues, but it was hard for me to narrow in, pick one and really think it through.  I'm sure that would have been remedied by having some more time, and Melissa did a great job in the short time that she had.  But it did give me a peek into the different ways that students might struggle to make meaning of or delve into a specific project.  


As I think about technology, I realize even more my lack of knowledge.  Not necessarily my lack of knowledge in how to use the technology but my inability to find the technology until it is already "old".  It's something I definitely want to incorporate in my classroom frequently.  I just have to come to grips with the fact that I'm a learner too, face my anxieties, and do it.  


I'm thinking.  And thinking. And rethinking. And revising. And Re-visioning.  

Day 2 Reflection

Today, I wrote a poem.  And I don't write poetry.

Now I'm not saying that I've never written poetry.  With enough coercion (and the threat of a grade hanging over my head), I wrote poetry for school.  I even won a poetry contest in 6th grade.  I was excited.

But today we were asked to do things that terrify me.  1) Draw and 2) Write Poetry.

And we had to do both.

However, I'm actually really proud of the poem that I wrote.  It's not earth shattering.  It has a very, very childish feel to it and a simple rhyme scheme.  But it was honest.  And I liked that.

It's amazing to me (as a teacher) the level of anxiety I still have about certain aspects of composing.  Poetry and drawing actually make me physically nervous.  My junior year of college we had to do body biographies and show them to someone via skype in our class, and I literally begged my professor not to make me share it.

And I'll have students that feel the same.  Students that it takes everything in them to get up and riff.  To speak out in class, to answer a question.  The riffing circle highlighted others' anxieties within the class and the responding even more.  We all have areas about which we are uncomfortable.  We all have "trouble spots."  And we as teachers can enhance or minimize students' anxieties.

Why is school such an anxious place?

Day 1 Reflection

I am learning more about digital spaces for composing.  While I'm generally decent with figuring out the technology, I never know where to look for the technology.  By the time I find it, it's already "old"--but isn't that the way technology always is?  How do I stay up and coming with the technology?

Today I've thought more about why I seem to always link theater with writing.  It seems that whenever I do a Murray card activity, the place that I come up with or the activity is always related to theater in some way.  I wrote about it for Lil's class and I wrote about it again today.  For me, today an interesting link was made for the first time.  I've always wondered why I didn't write my stories down growing up.  However, now I realize with some reflection that I simply chose to "write" in a different way--through composing radio shows with Daniel or acting out skits with my cousins.  Being on stage was a way for me to tell stories, and it seems that I valued that oral culture highly, while resisting the urge to participate in writing (a "school" activity) outside of the domain that I saw it in.

I'm known with some of my friends as a storyteller.  Perhaps it's partially because crazy things happen to me.  Perhaps it's because I have a tendency to be melodramatic or embellish.  But for whatever reason, I have this crazy litany of stories that I end up telling my friends.  They're all true (with some slight exaggerations), but friends will ask me to tell those stories.  In fact, some of my friends know them so well, they could recite them themselves.  The oxygen monitor after my first surgery.  The carafe from IHOP.  The drug dealing nurse.  All stories, all mine, all spoken and never written.

This is all very interesting to me and it's something that I feel is rooted deep at the heart of myself a storyteller and meaning maker.