September 29, 2017

What we are learning...

Ms. Shelli Strate, Language & Literature Teacher
What is your favorite book? The list is ENDLESS, but among them: To Kill A Mockingbird, Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood, A Walk in the Woods, Travels with Charley, and Wicked.
If I hadn't been a teacher, I probably would've been... sad.
Who was your favorite or most influential teacher? Sra. Kleczka because she pushed me past where I thought I could go in Spanish, and Mrs. Hill, my ninth grade English teacher who still read us stories, coached me in Forensics, cried in front of us, and taught me the power of a strong introduction in writing.

Book-ending the MS students’ Language and Literature experience is such an incredible treat. I still remember this year’s current 8th grade class shuffling into my classroom as 6th graders, filled with a mix of excitement and trepidation; hopefully they are still filled with excitement (at least most of the time), but trepidation certainly no longer exists. With our focus on voice this year, we kicked off our public speaking by reading to kindergarteners and are now engaged in a conversation about what creates humor when telling a story. We also dove into our first novel of the year, Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which tells the unforgettable story of Arnold Spirit Junior. Told from Junior’s perspective, it is a master class in voice and humor. As a wise 8th grader observed this week, “I laugh sooooooooo hard, and then I realize he is really describing an amazingly difficult situation - one which wasn’t funny AT ALL - but he relates it in a way that actually is hilarious. He has a really cool way of telling us about his life.” This novel has a lot to teach all of us - about spirit and humor in the face of challenges, about the power within all of us to rise above our circumstances, and about the catalyst moments that can change our lives by propelling us in a direction different than what we ever dreamed. As they cheer on Junior -  as they laugh at his sense of humor, mourn his losses, and admire his courage as he figures out who he wants to be - I hope they feel more connected with their own ability to shape their own lives. Such is the amazing power of books - that we can lose ourselves and find ourselves at the same time. I’m so lucky to teach a class that celebrates books in that way.

Learning about communities in need

In All Schools Chapel this week, we learned about the effects of recent hurricanes on communities in the Caribbean, and we learned about the impact of storms on All Saints Cathedral School in the US Virgin Islands. Each classroom or Advisory throughout the school created a message of support to send to the school. And in Middle School Chapel this week, we welcomed Chung-Wha Hong, Executive Director of Grassroots International, who introduced the idea of food sovereignty and talked about the work that Grassroots does on behalf of local and indigenous communities.