Bring on the Body Biographies...One of My Favorite Activities in the YA Literature Course I Teach. What is an Adolescent? Who Are These Characters?

I didn't want to but forced myself to be patriotic last night and to believe in hope. Not sure how I'm feeling other than more discouraged by human stupidity. 

On a good note, teaching remains one of my favorite activities of each and every day semester. Working with the next generation remains a joy, especially their hopes, ambitions, knowledge of history, and desire to work towards democracy and truth.

That's why we did body biographies last night while reading Chris Crutcher's Angus Bethune, from Athletic Shorts, one of the first short stories I ever read with teens that had universal appeal, humor, and vital thinking to get kids to question the way a story was/is told. We'll come back to this again through the semester, as it's a great way to get the thinking of others (and I have Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian to thank for the ideas - and Cindy O'Donnell-Allen).

The best part? All the professors in the halls walking by wondering what my students were doing? Well, they were learning. That's what it is all about. 

Ah, but time to teach again. A turbo. I go this.