October 25

A Bedazzled Day

It was one of those bedazzled days that needs to be pulled up from the archives periodically. In a single day, my #Meliora students:

  • Asked to take on more responsibility for their learning. Not their project work, where they already have a lot of #voice and #choice, but in learning the more basic, some would call drudgery, content related to the US Constitution and Government.
  • Offered thoughtful, practical ideas to make our Google Classroom environment function better. Not only does this demonstrate the maturity of their thinking, it shows they trust me to listen and to respect their ideas.
  • Asked to present a “surprise” at the end of class, which was a compilation of (200ish!) photos from a variety of project deep dives and outings over the span of several years. This helped all of us acknowledge our sense of isolation. By reliving some shared experiences, the students are trying to strengthen those weakened human bonds. Additionally, the new students in the class were given a glimpse into the exhilaration that comes with working together on a #project.

One of the great things about my #PBL practice is that many of my students return year-over-year. Not only does that allow me to continue to help them deepen their #criticalthinking skills, they move into a #mentorship role with new students and further develop #leadership skills.

I recognize the sharing of memories among returning students may have made the new students feel left out, not part of the club. I welcome ideas of how to bridge that gap, to ensure new students feel included.

January 11

Voice

A year ago, I dipped a toe into improv performance. Then dove in. More on the backstory another time. My thoughts today are on voice.

The diverse group of players I practice and perform with often use a variety of accents to help define their characters. Regional, continental, whatever comes to mind.

I feel more than a little inept at accents, but have begun playing with different voice registers. In practice some weeks ago, I dragged out a deep voice, as deep as I could make it. The reaction of my scene partner was startled shock. I used it on stage recently, which elicited chuckles from the audience, and some playful behavior on the part of my scene partner.

Last night at practice, I decided to use as shrill a voice as I could muster. It brought the house down. (My throat still hurts today.)

Sound Wave Voice by CSTRSK shared under a CC0 Creative Commons  license.

These experiences caused me to think about “voice.” We often speak of finding our voice, and encouraging students to find their voice. Which is valid and true.

Now I’m thinking we all have many voices. Even everyday interactions support this conjecture. The way we speak to a baby is very different from how we address our colleagues. Not only in the tone we use, but also the vocabulary and formality of language structures.

All of our voices have different things to say, and provide us with opportunities to explore different facets of who we are. What remains constant is the throughline, our authentic self.