This is a day I didn't think would come.
A day when I continually find it hard just to sit and read.
I have noticed the issue, and I've been trying to understand it. I've tried to tell myself that I'm just not dedicating thetime, that I have been giving more time over to walking or listening to music. But that is only part of the truth.
It seems hard to read.
I have two high stacks of books I had every intention of getting to, knocking out one at a time. But once I finished the last book, I went to my shelf and pulled down an old Carl Hiassen paperback, one that came my way for free. I knew it would demand little from me, and that is true. But even that book seems hard to stay focused on for any period of time.
Today I was turning off my computers and heading in for a nap when I came across this article by Pernille Ripp. In it she speaks of the exact thing I am going through. It is a must read.
My New State of Reading by Pernille Ripp
She says many profound things, but my favorite is this:
...if we, as professional adult readers, are struggling, how does it feel for the kids?
I'm seeing this happening. My advanced readers are having difficulty comprehending a text, and answering questions with any degree of accuracy. My intensive readers have all but disappeared -- I know their academic classes are bending their brains.
This is not a normal time. And our reading minds are being affected.
This second week of crisis schooling was quiet and a bit of a downer. But at the same time, it has opened my eyes to the realization that what we are doing is not working.
I have a four day weekend. I hope before I come out of it, some ideas will surface.
This is the great challenge of teaching during a pandemic. This is what school is like in April 2020. A place of struggle and uncertainty. A grand experiment in getting through.
And we will. I know we will. But only with a willingness to make it different. To get creative.
To be a blank page and find what will be written upon it.
And honestly...I think less reading and more writing. My creative writers have been doing a wonderful job writing about the topic of change. Some are speaking on matters of today, but others have gotten more personal, more generational, and more internal. In addition, I had my advanced kids writing an email as a response to the reading. Nearly 100% who completed the assignment did a fine job on that.
So perhaps less reading...more writing. Less trying to figure out someone else's thoughts, and more expression of our own. An open space to play with ideas.
Hey...it's a thought. Over the next four days, I will think more on this. I'll see where it takes me.
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