Pushing the boundaries

The 9th graders worked on infinitives and the infinitive phrase yesterday. This appeared to be the easiest of the 3 verbals. I spoke briefly about the death of Christopher Reeves and the irony of his portrayal of Superman and his serious accident that left him a quadriplegic. However, his relentless fight for stem cell research brought controversy and praise. I asked the students to write on the topic, "How Will I Be Remembered." I told them they could either write about it as a teen or 10 or 20 years down the line. I got some interesting responses and some that were just awful. We then started reading "Marigolds," and I got a most interesting comment; "Why do you make us read stories only about black people?" What I liked about this comment was that apparently my choices touched a nerve. There are two students of mixed African-American heritage, who didn't seem offended by the statement although one expressed, "There's nothing wrong with it." I explained that there were stories outlined by the school district but I would try to find the ones that were more ethnically diverse or multi-cultural. What I like about "Marigolds" are the two children in the story, who are a little on the mean side. Something I'm sure the students can relate to. They also test the substitute and myself, but overall they're behaving well.

With the 8th graders, we worked on the Holt grammar packet and on their personal narratives. The rough drafts are due on Friday. We have 8 students right now, and as much as they whine and complain, they do their work with a little nudging. However, they sure do love to talk.