Cultivating Questioners

After a rough week — well, two days — in the classroom (long weekends and missing school for conferences just seems to yield classroom discombulation), I am really happy to find myself reading a light, but inspirational book to prepare for the class that I TA on Monday evenings at my alma mater. I actually read Sam Intrator’s Tuned In and Fired Up while I was a student in the same course with which I am now assisting. I remember really liking the book when I read it three years ago, but I think it resonated with me more now that I am in the real world of teaching.

The premise of this short book is that Intrator observes a stand-out high school English teacher for one year and seeks to understand what drives the extraordinary moments when students are “tuned in and fired up.” I was particularly appreciative, however, of the realistic tinge to the book: Intrator is very explicit about the fact that these moments are rare. And that in itself, I think, is a valuable message — teaching is clearly a marathon, not a sprint, yet I do sometimes find myself frustrated when each day doesn’t go smoothly and when something that I thought would create a magical moment just flops.

Anyway, this was a wonderful little book to read as the second month of school draws to a close — it was just the boost of inspiration that I needed to head back to the classroom this week with a smile and a revived sense of energy.