I'm grateful for the times when Braeden calls Adam or texts him and says, "We have to talk about this!" It's usually some foreign policy or idea or social construct or Supreme Court case that Braeden and Adam have opinions on. I'm grateful Braeden's mind is being stimulated in so many interesting ways. (I'm grateful he wants to discuss all that stuff with Adam instead of me. My contribution on most of those topics is something like, "Um....")
I'm grateful for the times when Emma texts me things like this:
What's not to love about my girl discovery things and analyzing them herself? It's wonderful to see her match the things she reads to her own beliefs and values.
She also, excited to plan next year, texted me this:
It makes me excited just looking at all she's going to learn.
I'm grateful for the things Mark comes home from school with, eager to tell me. The other day he regaled me with what he'd learned about Athens and Sparta. He told me all the ways mothers and women were more honored and revered in Sparta. He said, "So you think that would be better, but...." Then he told me all the rough parts of being a Spartan.
When Stella was here, she and I were watching an episode of Africa's Great Civilizations (which is fun to do with Stella because she's been to most of the places they talk about). Mark walked through when they were talking about Mansa Musa. I said, "Mark, I taught you about this! Do you remember?"
He said, "Yeah, isn't he the guy that gave away all the gold?"
I love that he remembered that.
Teaching and learning and thinking and applying and remembering and analyzing. It's all so wonderful!
In the English class that I'm teaching Mark, I am having him write a literary essay. If you could line up everything Mark is interested in doing, writing a literary essay would be near the bottom. I showed him the list of topics and said he could pick the one he liked most. Because I know Mark, I said, "If you don't like any of them, pick the one you hate the least."
He said, "I don't like any of them."
I said, "Pick the one you hate the least."
Not my first rodeo.
He sunk low in his chair and lay his head on the table and said, "I hate all the English in the world."
I patted his shoulder and told him to get to work.
Because education! I love it!
Lately, I've started volunteering at an elementary school. It is really fun. They are the cutest kids! First graders who struggle with reading are my love language. Some of them are chatty and some of them are scared to death and some of them are stoic. OK, let's get this over with. Some of them hate reading and by extension hate me because I'm working with. (It doesn't phase me though because teaching my boys uniquely prepared me for that. I know a simple truth: they don't have to like it, they just have to do it.) All of them perk up when I tell them they are smart. Also, if I try to trick them and don't succeed? Even the most morose cracks a smile then.
What a wonderful world! I'm grateful for education.
1 comment:
Great post. When I first glanced at Emma's list for "Sophomore year," I thought it was Mark's. It's fun how all of your kids will be sophomores next year--and how they're all freshmen this year. (Also, I was thinking that your high school is way different than ours in what it offers--well, I'm sure that's still true!)
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