Highlight of My Week

Yesterday we were discussing chapter 11 of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in class. I've been trying to change the way I approach our novel discussions. Instead of me "filling" my students with the information I think they need to know, I want them to form their own understanding and create their own meaning. I am often reminded of that, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." --William Butler Yeats. I watched this happen yesterday, and it was truly incredible.

The boys are marking their books independently in an effort to become "active readers." This is new for all of them since they have completed novel packets in the past, and I knew it would take time for them to see the merit in reading actively. They mark things such as figurative language, character traits, and new vocabulary words.

The boys were very engaged in our discussion (I saw "shining eyes!"), and I had to stop myself from pushing forward to "get everything in" and move on to the next thing. (This is the inclination I have to fight the most as I attempt to develop a culture of thinking in my classroom.) One student noticed that Edmund's heart was changing (for the first time, he feels sorry for someone besides himself.) They were all excited to realize they had all put "stick people" (our symbol for character) next to that part in the book. I realized they are beginning to understand the element of character in a new way, and they are now actively looking for ways that characters in the novel evolve and develop. One student pointed out during our discussion that he really likes marking his book because he reads in a different way now and understands the book better. He said he sees things differently now. (How I wish I had my Flip camera ready for that comment!) I don't think there is anything more satisfying than witnessing my students' excitement and ownership of what we are doing in the classroom. I didn't get to everything I had planned for the day, but I am realizing how little that matters-- because it takes time, more than anything else, to develop a culture of thinking in the classroom. It's not going to happen if I plow through as much material as I can.