Alongside

"I think I just need to actually try this work. Do it myself. I can't teach it if I don't know what I'm teaching."

Amen, I said to myself. "Does everyone else feel the same way? How can I help to make that happen?"

A short conversation ensued, and it was decided that since I tend to have more available time than they do, I would do some work to create an experience for them to mirror the work their children will do in our next unit.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I think this piece is developed."

"What makes you think that?"

We were looking at a student's performance assessment after our last unit, determining where they fell on our district rubric. This is still very new work for our teachers.

"Well, I don't think you can quantify 'developed' in a piece of writing - it can't be just certain numbers of details."

"I agree. But I'm looking at the language of the expectation - that they write a piece in which the development of the piece is appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. I'm not even sure I can tell who the audience is in this piece."

"Well, he did write it to Mom. But it isn't developed at all to be written to his mom - that seems to just be a place header. I see, so when we consider the task (the type of writing the students were asked to do) - it is a developed and organized letter; when we consider the purpose (the reason you are writing the piece you are writing) - which was to compare texts in order to clarify for the reader the similarities and differences between books, we found places where he could have provided more/clearer examples; and when we look at audience (the person you are writing for) - we don't see any evidence, except for that last sentence, that this letter was really for her. I see. That helps."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Boys and girls, I have to tell you. I sat down with your teacher at lunchtime and looked over the letters you had written. They offered me so many new recommendations for books to read that are just like Number the Stars that I can't wait to get to the library this weekend!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Brown!"

Their beaming faces continued walking past me on their way back to their classroom.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Doing something alongside someone else, be it teacher or student, is so powerful. In all three of these instances yesterday, the idea that I am there as a resource to work *alongside* the teachers in their work everyday was reinforced. While all three instances are around the same teacher, it helped me to see that there has been some sort of impact of doing this work alongside her. That a relationship has been built, trust has been developed, and that we are equals. 

It was powerful to sit alongside her yesterday to plan, look at data, and encourage her students.