I got to school early enough to print and photocopy a few documents before heading down to the classroom. There, I rearranged the desks while I cleaned abandoned paper and almost-lost books out of the shallow spaces under the table tops. I erased the bits of colour that lingered at the edges of the chalkboard, marks I had missed as we left a week ago, then replaced them with today’s date and quote, carefully leaving out the punctuation so that the students would have a puzzle waiting when they arrived.
T was first. He often is. Then E, who came in then left then came back again. Then N, who sat, self-composed, and waited for class to start. And S slid into place next to T. As I asked them about their March Break, I moved around the room, gathering up the books leaning on the ledge of the front chalkboard – casually labelled “New Books”- and taking them back to the bookshelves to settle into their long-term home. I replaced them with books I had scavenged during March Break and rewrote “New Books” above them, in a different colour of chalk, hoping that someone might be intrigued.
By now, the classroom was about half full. Sunlight filtered in through the half-pulled shades; the lights were still off. Some students were already reading; others had their heads down; still others chatted softly. A few more students arrived. The classroom breathed quiet anticipation. Then the hands of the clock moved, and Break was over. We were ready to start again.
Persistence and Pedagogy 
Great post! I was the same this morning – noticing all the things I could have finished in a few minutes before the break if I hadn’t been so tired! It was a good day back. 😉
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It felt like, as I read, the big inhale before we go again. I hope your day continued to go smoothly.
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You painted a quiet moment between then and now. I enjoyed imagining the light.
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Impressive how much happens before things officially start happening. I enjoyed this brief master class in noticing.
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I’m currently reading this book recommended by Angela Stockman, “The Art of Noticing” and enjoying her posts on documentation. This post, and Sherri’s post about collective joy are the fuel to get me through until the next pause.
I noticed this clever routine you have created: “I erased the bits of colour that lingered at the edges of the chalkboard, marks I had missed as we left a week ago, then replaced them with today’s date and quote, carefully leaving out the punctuation so that the students would have a puzzle waiting when they arrived.”
This is a “Thinking Classroom” technique that should be added to a list (a document) of all the moves an English teacher can make to have students thinking. Wonderful idea!
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It started out as a mistake: kids were struggling to punctuate the date even though it was right in front of them, soI switched to a different colour chalk for the punctuation marks to force their eyes to see it – until the day I forgot & one student volunteered the “answer”. Then I started leaving it out of the quote, too. It’s kind of fun.
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There’s so much planning (harkening back to your earlier post!) and preparation that goes into a single day of teaching! It almost reminds me of all of the behind-the-scenes work that we never see that goes into a musical production or play. It’s a LOT of work!
Hope you’re in the groove now!
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Truly, you put us right there. That breath of quiet anticipation.
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