November 8, 2006

We were in the writing lab. I was disappointed with the students today, but I am not sure why. I know the essay is not so easy, but I really get the feeling they are waiting for me to tell them exactly how to write it. I won't. However, I do wish they would have had more written when they came into the lab. Regardless, I will give them a small grade for being prepared today.

The district allowed the model essays to be seen in GoMyAccess. I was not going to have the students look at them because I feel they will steer the students towards what was written in the examples. I really want the students to think about the message of love in the poem. They should figure out how the writer expresses that message through the characters' actions and words. He also expressed feelings about love through figurative language by the way the poem is written. Finally, I expect the students to comment on the message.

I will take them through an exercise tomorrow on a Bob Dylan song, "Spanish Boots of Spanish Leather." It is a love song as well. I hope by doing what I expect for the essay using the song they will get a better idea of what they need to write.

There is a quiz tomorrow, Thursday.