I am so loving this challenge.

I mentioned in an earlier post that as an Instructional Coach, I don’t have my own class, so I borrowed a class to share the challenge with me.  They are a veritable mixture of intellect, nationalities, personalities, and commitment to the daily writing.  Reading their  blogs not only entertains me, but it serves as inspiration for things that I can write about too.  I often don’t understand what games they refer to or movies they review.  Despite my “old person ignorance”, I CAN relate to many of their experiences and responses to these challenges or celebrations.

Commenting and receiving comments is my favorite part.  I love being able to mention encounters or feelings that we share; I always comment with my similar story if possible.  And they do the same!  Yesterday, I vented about political stuff.  One sweet girl’s response was, “Sometimes it’s good to let it all out.”  Indeed!  The cool thing is, she was the inspiration for this particular post, because she had written a venting piece the day before.  She gave me permission to do the same.  Similarly, one student listed his 5 favorite area restaurants, complete with a tantalizing description of what fares they offered.  Don’t be surprised if you see a post of my favorites soon.

And some posts are just delightfully written, fraught with soft detail, as well as bold descriptions.  These young writers love tinkering with their word choice.  Liked any writer, sometimes it works; sometimes it will work next time.  But seeing them playing with their language, making sure it reflects their thoughts precisely, brings joy to this teacher heart.  Their teacher (remember, not me) does such a wonderful job of giving them plenty of student choice on their posts, allowing them to explore sometimes the most mundane life moments and bring them to life through words.  Her daily commitment to reading them and commenting highlights her willingness to give of herself, so they can get this writing experience.

Of course, to be honest, some of the students are not enjoying this challenge.  To them, this is something to check off; they would rather not write about a slice of their lives.  And that’s OK too.  Hopefully by the end of the month, these teens will look back and find at least one post they produced that they are proud of, or read several that they enjoyed, or got to know a person in the class or across the country a little better.

We can inspire each other, and do so daily.