Paris and Kirkland in the essay “The Consciousness of the Verbal Artist” say that “teacher educators, for our part, must become conversant in the complex linguistic and ethnic identity work of vernacular literacies” (191), as if to do so is such a simple task.  I am not African-American and I do not know AAL well enough to be able to teach it.  Although I do agree that it is important to teach all vernaculars and not to represent Dominant American English as the only legitimate way of speaking, I also do not feel comfortable being the authority on African American Language.  I might be oversensitive, but I worry a little bit about cultural appropriation if I were to teach it.  The way that I would feel more comfortable teaching it, however, seems problematic.  Paris and Kirkland talk ab

I love Sleeter’s idea of students as curriculum, and am thoroughly impressed by the lengths she, her students, and Keenan go to center their classes around what the students bring to the classroom. However, I struggle a little to understand how the majority of teachers will ever have the time, motivation, or skills to do this. It is much easier to teach to a test, and keep lesson plans straightforward.

the topic of thursday was "restoration" but the word that came most of mind when I went to my site this weekend was "rebirth" 

we talk of collaboration, but this weekend I went about it in a new way.... I shared my site sit for the first time, and with someone special to me (my boyfriend)

On my first day, Mrs. A explained to me that they had a new format of answer reading questions for the PSSAs, which were in six weeks, that had only been given to the teachers last week. Mrs. A was upset about this fact and seemed frustrated. She explained that the school scores had been dropping for a while now and she worried that if they dropped more the school might become a charter and she would be out of a job. This would be particularly difficult for her because she has been teaching so long any might have a hard time getting hired anywhere else because she’s too expensive.

Although Keenan's article mostly focused on student voice and storytelling, I'm struck by how expensive it is to provide students with the opportunity and enrichment from which they can develop their own stories and questions about the world. It is clear that she sees the value in experiential activities like mueseums as well as using technoogy (computers and flip cams) in her room. To do so, however, Keenan needs to spend time and energy finding funding or discounts through websites like Donors Choice. When we think about "culture" within school or neighborhood communities, economic class and disparities play a role in how the educational experiences for students might differ.

We made art at my site. The art is a preview of more art. That art will be ready for Monday. That art is my paper on "genres."

I was thinking of “restoration” at my site today, mulling over how we challenged, complexified, validated, and disclaimed the word in our conversation on Thursday. It feels like the first true day of spring today. This got me thinking...spring can be considered a time of restoration. The earth is “returning” to its former, vibrant and colorful state. Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, the sun finally peaks its way out from behind the clouds. Spring is often treated as a time of rejuvenation and rebirth. But this got me thinking...does springtime “rebirth” always bring about the restoration of flowers and happy thoughts? T.S. Elliot wrote that “April is the cruelest month”. Maybe darker and heavier thoughts also experience a rebirth in spring.

Overdevelopment, Overpopulation, Overshoot

Groups. Crowds. Bodies. #connection

Footsteps to there and then back again. #restlessness

Burning of tobacco and paper. Those eyes staring in one direction but blowing air in the other. #stressed

Clothed vs. unclothed.  Chapped vs. not chapped. Sitting vs. Standing. #variety with a dash of #confusion

Wrapped yarn in the tree. Beer can in the branches. Tree next to concrete. Concrete in earth. #displacement

Droopy eyes but lively movements. #how

Bedtime vs partytime. #choices