Ethical ELA Friday Teacher Scenes

By far, the most uplifting group I have joined as an educator is Sarah Donovan’s writing group at EthicalELA. Our book discussions and writing times have been both professionally and personally enriching. The networks and friendships formed with some of the top experts in the field have challenged my thinking and opened my eyes about the importance of writing alongside students and the importance of choice in reading.

Someone in our group once said, “Teachers of writing should be writers, writing and sharing the journey with students.” We all froze at the weight of the simple power of this truth, letting it seep into our souls.

Today, I am sharing an article that I wrote for http://www.ethicalela.com as a guest blogger. You can read my article here.

Enjoy these ideas as you consider your own reading identity. And share a book blessing in the comments below!

Here’s my own book blessing: I’m reading Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. This is the next book in Sarah’s reading group The Healing Kind, which we will be discussing on September 17th in our Zoom meeting. Come join us! Details are here. I like it because I love the idea of time travel, and of course I enjoy imagining a cup of coffee in a quiet little cafe with all the magic it brings. I think anyone who enjoyed reading The Midnight Library by Matt Haig would like to read this book.

Photo by Elina Sazonova on Pexels.com

A List to Listen By

I can’t think of a more powerful way to begin the 2022 Open Write than with poetry written by Stacey Joy and Kwame Alexander – two of my favorite poets to read! Stacey challenges us to write list poems to start the year. The link to her prompt is below. Beginning 2022 with a list poem reminds us that poetry can be free of rules and forms – it’s breath and thought and heart all blended in expression.

My one not so little word for 2022 is listen, so I made a starter kit of some ways I’ve discovered I can listen without using the word hear.

A Starter Kit of Ways to Listen 

  1. Pray
  2. Meditate
  3. Observe 
  4. Watch 
  5. Read
  6. Write 
  7. Tune in 
  8. Think 
  9. Reason
  10. Heed
  11. Feel 
  12. Look
  13. Worship
  14. Mind
  15. Consider
  16. Pause
  17. Follow
  18. Sense 
  19. Play
  20. Concentrate
  21. Anticipate 
  22. Dream 
  23. Hug 
  24. Reflect
  25. Notice
  26. Ponder
  27. Plan
  28. Embrace 
  29. Teach
  30. Learn
  31. Change
  32. Travel
  33. Obey
  34. Care
  35. Empathize
  36. Believe
  37. Seek 
  38. Attend
  39. Consider
  40. Accept 
  41. Reach  
  42. Wonder
  43. Imagine
  44. Reimagine

Today’s Open Write link:

For the Love of Lists