Reflection on Community and Inclusion

I have come to understand some of the true meanings of community and inclusion throughout this quarter and particularly through reflecting upon these readings within the last week. Christenson (2007) and Lyman (2001) both taught me that sometimes the toughest topics are the most useful to creating and strengthening a classroom community. They also gave me quite a bit to reflect upon and contemplate ways I may be able to use death, violence, or other challenging topics to advance education rather than try to keep them hidden. Sapon-Shevin (2001) brought about a fuller reflection upon all-level student integration within the classroom, and how it could bring about positive environments and change in educational settings. Finally, Harris (2001) and Beaton (2001) opened my eyes to the toll traditional discipline takes on classroom communities and feelings of inclusion. I know that I still have much to continue to think about and reflect upon, but I am glad I read these articles to give me a foundation for my thoughts as I move forward.

Where I'm From

-->

I am from acres and barns

owned for five generations

where weather patterns are important

I am from home improvements and projects

handcrafted in dad’s shop.

from the willow who wept

when the tree house fell out.

I am from lefse across the field,

from a blue Dodge colt vista

on two lane county roads.

I am from carsick family bonding,

from summer camps, enrichment,

and empty school hallways.

I’m from you two look so similar

and you look nothing alike

from old family recipes

made up on the spot.

I’m from you’re the light of my life’s

and singing before sleep,

from Lutheran quarrels

and suppressed emotions

with the family rifts they caused.

I am from music and instruments,

piano played by my mom,

from waking to Raffi

and afternoon spongebob

at every stage of my life.

I am from cats, chickens, and a rabbit

half gone to coyotes,

the other half to time.

I’m from corn fields camouflaging

barn kittens gone feral

and what it cost to get rid of them all.

I am from soccer cleats and turf shoes

injuries and proud bruises

at every time of year.

I’m from raspberry bushes in an orchard

separate from the garden out back.

From bonfires and fire pits

and the roasting of slugs.

I am from frog songs, train calls,

and silent starts in the clean air of the night.

Autobiographical Poem

As I was reading chapter 2 of William Ayers To Teach, I came upon the examples of autobiographical poems on page 40. The format for these poems is as follows:

First Name
       Three words that describe you
       Something you love
       Something you hate
       Something you fear
       Something you wish for
Last Name

I found the two examples of the kids' to be quite profound and revealing. They also created quite a bit of room for conversation between Ayers and the students which wouldn't have been available otherwise. Ayers wouldn't have learned or this "raper man" that one student was afraid of, and he began to see this student in a whole new light after their conversation turned to his brother being on trial for murder. While the student's main teacher had wanted to get rid of him because "His mind [was] wandering and he [didn't] want to work," Ayers stumbled onto the root of the problem through this simple exercise.

It bothered me that Ayers didn't talk about the other boy's poem though. The other example creatively used the three words in the first body line to read "flunky but funny" creating a sentence rather than a list of adjectives. It also had the line "I hate being whipped." What? What did that mean? Ayers didn't say anything about this child or whether he asked this child about his statement. I would be very surprised if Ayers had not asked about it, but he didn't even touch on it in his description of this exercise. I wanted to know more and find out what this child's experience with whipping was. Did he actually get whipped by someone, or was it a figure of speech for losing badly? I may never know.

However, this conundrum did not stop me from thinking about my own autobiographical poem. Maybe it will start a conversation, and maybe it wont. It will, however, enable me to reflect upon myself in a different way and provide insight for me to continue my journey to becoming a teacher. And also provide me with an example to use with my class when I use it in the future. ;)

***
       Awesome Ambitious Reliable
       I love creating beautiful things
       I hate close minded people
       I am afraid of spiders
       I wish for more time
******