I had a completely different plan for what I wanted to write today. Then, I had the most incredible moment of spontaneity while teaching, that I just had to share it with all of you! A student I work with twice a week for reading and writing is raising butterflies as a school science project. He’s a bright second-grader who has been on independent study since the beginning of the pandemic. (He and I still work online as well). As we began our Zoom session, he asked if he could share something. He help up the netted butterfly enclosure to show me a freshly hatched painted lady butterfly! His eyes radiated such awe and wonder at the transformation of this creature from tiny caterpillar to beautiful butterfly. We began chatting about the experience of raising caterpillars, what happened as the butterflies were hatching, and what he’s learned about butterflies and metamorphosis. He was so interested in the butterflies, that I asked if he would rather write about them than do our usual reading routine. I had an entire 45-minute lesson planned, but I knew that he would get some much more out of the experience if we just flowed with what was on his mind at the moment.
We began by brainstorming possible topics (both narrative and explanatory) that he could write about. He settled on writing a story from a butterfly’s perspective. At one point, he asked if he could have some time to just write! Teacher’s dream of students requesting such things! He continued to work on his narrative until the end of our session. At our next meeting tomorrow, we will continue through the writing process. I can’t even begin to express how amazing this session was! And, it was only amazing because I followed my student’s lead rather than my lesson plan. Sometimes, it’s OK to take the road less traveled.
PinaRose Education 