Tuesday, January 17, 2006
writing in class
I often have my class freewrite and I write along with them. However in past classes I found that I was usually too nervous or distracted to really get into it myself--until this class. I don't know what it is that's different, but it is wonderful. For some reason, for teaching only, I use a yellow legal pad. Maybe I use them because I can get them free out of the faculty cabinet. Maybe because they're bigger than normal notebooks; because they're easy to flip through and to tear pages out of. Or maybe because they lend to an illusion of professionalism. Whatever the case--what that yellow piece of paper is to me at 8:15 in the morning, surrounded by 25 others with pens and pencils to paper, scratching, scribbling, thinking--is a little piece of bliss--a moment during the day that my find myself feeling whole.
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2 comments:
Wow. That's really cool. When I have my class freewrite, I never do any writing myself. I usually just spend time sorting out my thoughts so I can be ready to teach when they are done writing. But since it seems so rewarding for you, maybe I'll have to try it sometime. Not everything works for everyone, but I'll never know unless I try.
Well, that's the thing--I used to end up using the time to freewrite about what I was going to say next instead of writing along with them on the given prompt. But doing that I don't feel as involved. Maybe I just needed time to get comfortable.
Anyway, today was the first time that they've read any of their stuff out loud to each other. I think they appreciated hearing what I wrote too. I have to remind myself that it's ok if my freewriting is absolute crap--cuz that's what I tell them. I'm trying to practice what I preach--and show through example. :)-
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