NCTE Day #1: “We fight ignorance with knowledge.”

Rehashing NCTE leaves a massive smile on my face. Friday was an incredible whirlwind in St. Louis. After flying in Thursday, finding our hotel, and attending the evening session  (“Middle Meet Up”), I was stoked for a great day of learning. The biggest problem I had was deciding what to attend!

Friday General Session — Jimmy Santiago Baca

I have to be honest: prior to Friday, I had no idea who Jimmy Santiago Baca was. Dr. Ellington, the brave professor who ventured to St. Louis with our crazy Special Method’s group, was so excited about Baca presenting. I took this as a first sign on just how amazing he would be; I can honestly say now that I undersold it.

Jimmy Santiago Baca, an award-winning American poet, was incredible to listen to. He entertained the crowd with jokes while also telling us about his life as a child and teen. Baca learned to read while serving a 5 year maximum security prison sentence, later becoming a renowned poet and speaker. He spoke on teaching kids to read, the importance of activism, and using our words for something bigger. It was breathtaking.

Baca spoke on poetry, but he also discussed more. He discussed the demons educators face daily and called for teachers to stop seeking approval and begin entering the “battle grounds” that are present daily. Here are some of my favorite quotes from his session:

• “If you want to rob a house, bring a little meat for the dog.” – Originally said by T.S. Eliot, Baca said this was the mantra he lives by when he is trying to reach children. For example, he brought pizza to a boxing center when he went to teach.
• “True poetry happens in the mistake of life. It happens when you’re not supposed to, but you do.”
• “Confront ignorance; bring knowledge.”
• “Where there is controversy, you’ll find teachers.”
• “I used my life – I didn’t let my life use me.”

Don’t Give Up on Boys! — Jason Reynolds, Ralph Fletcher, and company

This session was on my list of “must attends.” I’m not a boy. I have no way to enter the mind of a boy. I really related to what the panel’s facilitator said regarding her experiences: “I am planets and universes away from some of my kids.” This panel of all-stars, however, are men and bring to the table a host of different experiences and insights.

In society, girls are often thought of as having a lot of stereotypes to deal with. Though this is true, I think we sometimes forget about the ones boys have. English is not a class that boys are typically thought to “like,” which is something I want to break through. One thing that was mentioned during the panel was a fill in the blank exercise. The statement read like this: “I wish we could _______.” The speakers told us that most boys will fill in that blank with the words “write what we want.” Wow. Powerful. Allowing all students to write what they want in whatever style they want to express their thoughts/feelings in puts the ownership squarely back in their court.

This leads me to another big takeaway: offer kids everything. Literally. Books, poetry, genres, translations, etc. Educators should promote the books they don’t like and let the readers decide what they do like. We need to set out books for them to find. Jason Reynolds (be still my beating heart) also discussed the canon quite a bit in this panel. The canon, for those who don’t know, is a set of literary works that are considered to be “the best.” The Western canon, or the one our educational institutions generally recognize, includes works such as Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, Les Miserables, Crime and Punishment, and more. Calls to shake up the ill-constructed canon could be heard ringing from every session, but Reynolds directly spoke on it here, reminding educators that not everyone views classics in the same light. Those included in the canon tend to be quite similar: dead, white, and male. What about the rest of the population writing? For example, what about the Alice Walkers of the world? Kids need to know that their language and the way they speak is not wrong, and the canon sends out the opposite of this message.

Reynolds also called for educators to make their classrooms places for imagination and real writing. Canned writing is not true writing, and no writing is “bad.” He, a man who did not read or write until later in life, finished the panel by reminding the audience that he failed English 101 twice and is now an award-winning author. Every person is capable and has a story to tell; it’s our job to create the space and allow them to do so.

Reading as a Personal Art — Penny Kittle, Kelly Gallagher, & Nancie Atwell

You may not be aware, but this session was literally ran by the MVP’s of English Education. Seriously – these people are the absolute best in the game. Walking into the session was like walking into a state championship tournament: I felt anxious, nervous, and so incredibly excited to see the culmination of 3 of the greatest coming together to present.

Atwell began the session outlining what the “reading state” is and argued for teachers to forget mastery and focus on finding ways to engage students in a reading and allow them to enter into the reading zone. The reading zone, an interior space we go to when we are lost in a book, is essential to creating life-long readers. Books have the opportunity to bring the entire world into a small classroom who may or may not be able to experience it without the stories. Atwell discussed the improper use of Lexile scores and the importance of a workshop community. Students shared what helped them enter the Reading Zone:

• Book Talks
• Choice
• Mini-Lessons
• Comfort while reading
• Utilization of TBRs
• Recommendations
• Homework reading
• Daily Reading Time
• Individual Conversations with Teachers
• Special bookshelf filled with kids’ top choices

Next up was Kittle and Gallagher, and I felt like a kid in a candy store. They discussed the fact that our reading diet is off balance and suggested a new equation: 50% independent reading, 25% core texts, and 25% book clubs. Their portion of the session centered on showing us what this looked like in their classrooms along with sharing testimonies and videos from students involved in their cross-country book club (Kittle is a teacher in New Hampshire while Gallagher teaches in California).

Teachers are creators and facilitators. What we discuss in class tells students what we believe is important; we are constantly delivering a message, which is something to be cogniscent about. Books, they argue, are an imaginative rehearsal for the real world. They pack so many life lessons in the pages, and by sharing our readings, we can create a culture of love and diversity.

Perhaps the best part of the session was the discussion of every day practices. Every day in their classrooms, Kittle and Gallagher make sure their students participate in these activities:

• Read
• Write
• Study
• Create
• Share

The book choices during the Social Justice Book Club

The importance of hitting all 5 areas every day could not be stressed enough. Engagement in all of these leads to an engaged student who is thinking and pushing the boundaries within a safe place. This safe space needs to be open to exploring different perspectives, which is done through the cross country book club. Kittle and Gallagher shared the texts involved in their Social Justice Book Club and discussed the selection criteria, which coincidentally did not take into consideration the Lexiles of those involved.

Friday was, clearly, spent with the powerhouses of English and education. The main theme I took away was summed up in a quote I heard during Baca’s presentation:

We fight ignorance with knowledge.

Letting students choose and truly engage with the “real world” creates learners who are aware and look at situations from every angle. If we expect students to become better humans, we need to look at our practices and see if we have the environment to support them.