in reading more from anne frank today, we came to a part where anne talks about wanting to carry out her ideals of peace and freedom for all, but she was afraid she would never get that opportunity. of course, we know she didn't. so i was talking about this- how my students must hear "you are THE FUTURE" all the time (because i sure did. did you?)- and all i got was blank looks. turns out they have heard nothing of the sort, which may be why they continue not to understand WHY we are reading anne frank. because the bottom line is, as i have reconciled it, that anne frank is such a classic because it speaks to what young people everywhere go through. but it turns out, some kids don't really think about what their ideals are, and what they want the world to be like. maybe most kids don't, i don't know. i'm pretty sure i did, along with thinking about how i wanted a new shirt and when i got to make-out with my boyfriend again or go smoke cigarettes (i was NO angel 8th grader, that is for sure). so i don't know, maybe anne frank is not for everyone. maybe, firstyearteacher, that is why they are so lost. i don't know, i have to find SOMETHING here, because i struggle with so many kids who don't understand the point.
anyway, beyond that, today i felt both so powerful and so powerless as a teacher, it made me almost dizzy. then i cut class tonight, and that made me really giddy. now i'm off to look up online teen anxiety groups for one of my students and then do more homework. it's a bit manic over here.