Knock Knock...

I did not mean to, but I ended up selecting another chapter by Christensen and I must say I think she is great! I read the chapter Knock, Knock Turning pain into power. 

Christensen talks about how as educators we need to touch "students' lives in real ways." She references hearing the poem "Knock Knock," by Daniel Beaty and immediately realizing that in order to heal and move past the pain, we must use power. She goes on to talk about a poetry unit and how she showed the clip to her students and how they all connected to the message that Beaty was sharing. The she gave students a place to work through their own pain. I LOVE LOVE LOVE her lesson and the conversations she had because of it. 

It made me think of a moment in my teaching this year. I was able to teach about slavery and the Underground Railroad to my fifth grades. As we learned about the railroad, one of my students raised his hand and said, "the underground railroad reminds me a lot about home my family got here." This student typically struggles to make connections to what is being presented and often needs more time and assistance, but he understood this topic. He was able to relate to the struggles, pain and heartache that came from such a journey. 

In the end of Christensen's chapter she says, "students need opportunities to hone their skills, to write essays, to practice becoming academics. They also need opportunities to write about the tough issues in their lives that rarely surface in schools. Beaty's work opened their veins, so they could write with the blood of their lives." She was able to meet her teaching curriculum expectations, but also allowed for so much more to happen for these students. They had open, honest, and vulnerable conversations, and were able to heal some of the pain that may have been keeping them down. 

Here is a link for Christensen's book, "Teaching for Joy and Justices."