It's March, and March means the Slice of Life Story Challenge. All are welcome to join the challenge of noticing and writing about the moments of daily life that are stories.
I kneel down next to Emily.
What are you working on, I ask.
She explains her shapes to me, and through her explanation, they begin to make sense.
I nod and smile as she describes building a snowman.
Then I turn the page of her three-page booklet, hoping
that she’d be able to tell me about what happened once the snowman was built.
What will happen on this page? I ask.
Emily stares. She shrugs. She waits.
What could happen? I persist.
I play with my cat, Emily says, a slight question in her voice.
I hope that she can’t see me bite my lip as contemplate my next teaching move.
The kindergarten True Stories unit is in full swing, but Emily’s been having
a tough time with a sequence of events.
How does the cat relate to the snowman, I ask, still contemplating my next move.
Do I get a new packet? Do I work on verbal rehearsal of a recent recess-related event?
Do I backtrack to a single piece of paper and a one-page story?
My brain is spinning when Emily begins her explanation.
The snowman is coming inside, she says, to meet my cat. And then… she turns to the third page… he’s going into the kitchen to meet my mom.
I smile, and I tell Emily that I can’t wait to read this story.
So much for a true story! I can’t wait to see what that cat thinks of a snowy playmate!
I love these moments, when her author's move is a little better than your teacher move...unless the teacher move was just to ask a question and listen.
ReplyDeleteWhile I think teaching kindergarteners for 6 hours a day is the scariest thing on this planet.... I love when I get to spend an hour in their classrooms and see their minds just go and go and go!
ReplyDeleteThe way you describe working with students is so awesome! Can we clone you and send your clones out and about?
ReplyDeleteI was with you in that teaching moment, wondering what move to try next.
It's incredible how -- once she had the space -- she thought of something. It may not be a true story, but it will definitely be an interesting one!
ReplyDeleteI love that you digested your conferring mind and such a teeny sliver of life with this young writer so adroitly, not only capturing her learning but also your in-the-moment teacher thinking. It's like I could see your wheels turning...
ReplyDelete