I believe so strongly in the power and value of WORK. Have To’s. Things you are committed to.
How you do your job is important. There are days you do not want to face life, your job or the world. It seems too hard.
But it is by stepping into the breech of responsibility, with professionalism and common sense, that Divine Inspiration can flow in, and that transformative moments can occur.
Today was one of those unavoidable “Elephant in the Classroom” days. Some students are thrilled and excited, some are sad, even heartbroken or scared.
Many have so much they want to say…and many would like to hear what we teachers have to say.
I’m currently teaching THE TAMING OF THE SHREW to High School Senior Girls. I began the class reminding them of the issues of devoicing of women that this play addresses, and how we all know that to be in relationships and to get along in this world we have to know when to speak, how to speak, and to whom. Ideally we utilize compassion and respect to navigate this terrain, which each of us must do for ourselves.
However, even when you know that it might not be the best time to say out loud what you are thinking, that does not mean you need to to silence yourself.
I then invited them to take ten minutes to write down a letter to themselves, to their possible future children, and to whomever else they feel a need to address. They folded up the notes, I collected them, and I’ll return them to them–unread–at the end of the year.
It is my hope that this exercise honored the need for my students to vent their feelings, as well as respected the fact that there’s a time, a place, and a way to do so. #teachingshakespeare #highschoolenglish #tamingoftheshrew