New Semester

I'm just starting classes for this semester, and I have to say, I'm loving it. I have to poetry classes, one intro and one intermediate. In intermediate class, I have students knocking down the door to get in there. I think I've given out four permission numbers, today alone. I've had ten of them before in class, and I loved them, so I am really excited about the semester. I actually picked books based on what I thought this particular group would like, once I saw the number of students I knew in there. I had another student from last semester email me this evening and request a permission number. She was one of my favorites from last year, and I was thrilled to hear from her. It just put a button on my day.

In my English 102 classes, I'm trying something new. I'm doing a theme class on volunteerism and citizenship. I'm making them read everything from essays on Cesar Chavez and Martin Luther King to media analysis to gay rights to Soul of a Citizen by Loeb. I'm also making them volunteer 15 hours at one of a list of nine agencies over the semester. I was worried that that particular assignment would send them running for the door, but it hasn't. I haven't had one student drop yet. Woohoo! I think it's going to be a really fantastic semester.

On a somewhat related note, I am setting up a blog for my English 102 class where I will have links to all of their blogs about their volunteer experiences. I will also be writing about my volunteer experiences. If you are interested in reading about them, leave me a comment or send me an email and I will forward you the blog site. I am not going to post the link here because these blogs will reveal location and I rather like my anonymity here.

So it has been a really fantastic day, although I am completely exhausted. I am very excited about the possibilities this semester holds.