Day 9 of Unit

This morning I woke up at 5:45 AM, like normal. But today I felt miserable. My throat was on fire and my voice sounded so hoarse. But I got myself up and moving and got to Stow by 7 AM. My co-op could hear my voice sounded awful but I knew I could suck it up (isn't that what teaching is all about...taking lemons and making lemonade?). I had to think on my feet and kind of find ways that I wouldn't be doing a lot of talking but still teaching. I gave the students for their quiz the chance to write a summary of the chapter and then write what they thought was the most significant point of the chapter and why. Then we went through the key points of the chapter but I made sure we had time for the students to do a character analysis worksheet. I wanted them to pick a character and they had to make 3 statements about that character then provide 2 quotes per statement of support. It was the light bulb moment for my students. Through these first 7 chapters I worried if they were getting it, if they were seeing the bigger picture. But through their conversations and questions for this character analysis I realized they did! It was such a great moment! As I read through their papers now I am very impressed. They are getting the themes, the symbolism and the parallelism. They are making some great points and I'm very impressed! It was a great way to finish out the week.

I kept apologizing for my voice going out and my students asked if I wanted a glass of water and offered to get one. They truly showed that they cared. It was such a wonderful moment that they really accepted me. Although I am quite different than my co-op, I think my students enjoy it. It's different and it's new which is always fun. I'm not only looking forward to my last day on Monday but also for next semester!