I have spent pretty much my entire teaching career working at urban schools-- schools where the majority of kids live in deep poverty, speak a language other than English, and know way too much about topics like homeless, domestic violence, substance abuse, and gangs. And in spite of all of the challenges they face, my kids are wonderful- brilliant, questioning, creative, compassionate- and I adore them.
We are required to do twenty minutes of SEL every day. There's not really a curriculum, and so I have kind of developed a lot of my own stuff. Distant mentors, and especially people who have overcome tremendous challenges and gone on to do great things, play a big role in my curriculum. Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor are two heroes we always talk about.
And today I added someone new, Ketanji Brown Jackson, to my curriculum.
Daisy, Sofia, Izel, Penelopi, Mailynn, Romina, Meztli, Mayra, Jocelyn, Mayra, Stacy, Alina, Brissa, Gigi, Julia, Vicky, Casandra, Lucy, Sydney, Butter Biscuit and a thousand more girls I've been privileged to teach, this one is for you!
As I said last night, I'm trying to experimenting with different structures to make my poems tighter. Tonight's poem is a tricube. A tricube is a poem with three stanzas. Each stanza has three lines, and each line has three syllables. I didn't quite make it, I had to add one extra line at the end, but I tried.
"Tenacity"
Remember
RBG?
She did it!
See SoniaSotomayor?
She did it!
ConsiderKetanji.She did it!
You can do it too!
A perfect poem for tenacity. It's be a great week!
ReplyDeleteI am so pleased about today, so grateful to have this President and excited for all the girls you have written your poem message to. And I'm glad for my granddaughters to see change, know that it can happen & does. Well done, Carol!
ReplyDeleteYes! For ALL the girls, but especially the Brown and Black ones!
ReplyDeleteGirl power is the focus of your post, Carol, and I love it. I have to say the new justice has been steadfast and courageous between nomination and announcement.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I love that this is a poem this week. Celebrating with you!
ReplyDeleteOh how I love this poem! Thank you for the work you do, and for sharing this poem of celebration and inspiration with us.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you're there celebrating and writing with your students. They know you care and your influence will be long lasting. Your tricube needed that last line. It's okay to bend the rules for the important things.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is so inspiring and it's simplicity and repetition adds to it. No problem with breaking rules especially when it adds to the poem, as your last line does.
ReplyDeleteThis is our anthem, our compass. I treasure all Wilcox wisdom 💗
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