Listening to the Students

Have you ever sat back and listened to your students work? Today, I had the privilege of doing just that. My students were writing collaborative stories. They incorporated what they learned from vocabulary, grammar and literature this semester into the writing of their creative stories. "Can something be crystally clear?" "I think we should use distinctively clear instead." Other exchanges were about the theme of the story they were creating. Some chose friendship, some overcoming challenges and others chose love. One group has great plans for expanding their story over the Christmas Holidays into a novel and publishing it. They've even discussed how to split the proceeds from the sale of their novel. Such enthusiasm is contagious and I find that this tired, middle-aged teacher all of a sudden doesn't feel so tired any more. When was the last time you listened to your students work? You might just find some energy you didn't know you had.