Three Beautiful Things 03/16/10: Uncertainty and Teaching, Poetry Alive, Simple and Satisfying Sandwich

1. As a classroom instructor, I just never know if what I try to convey about writing and reading is working. When I used to strip zinc, I could look down at the pallet after I'd stripped and stacked a load and see the pile of zinc sheets I'd helped bring into the world. I had material evidence of having done my job. It helps my work as an instructor when, like today, students come by for individual help, I can listen, find out what the student has learned, help the student on the spot. It helps alleviate the uncertainty. I enjoyed having several sessions, one-to-one today. It's the best way to teach and I hope, for the student, a valuable way to learn.

2. It also helps when a student tells me what s/he's learned by dropping by to say so or by writing me a note. When I teach ENG 106, Intro to Poetry, I do all I can not to wreck the poems with needless attention to terms, although I work them in. First and foremost, I try to open up the experience of the poem, its impact, how it moves us to think and feel. I'm happy to report that some of my students expressed appreciation for how we did things in this class. They felt encouraged. Poetry became accessible. Many enjoyed the experience of poetry. I'd like to think my students often forgot we were in school as the poems came alive. After all, not one of these poems was written with a college classroom in mind......

3. I wanted something simple to eat when I returned home from night class and it dawned on me that I couldn't remember the last time I fried up a little bacon, fried a single egg over almost hard, and put the bacon and egg between two slices of buttered toast to make a fried egg and bacon sandwich. So simple. So quick. So delicious.