when it all comes together

Sometimes it all simply comes together and I really feel it...I feel the sense of accomplishment from a project well done.  I feel like perhaps, just maybe, I really am a good teacher and my students might possibly be learning something from me.

This happened last week.  My English 12 class was doing a thematic unit with short stories and poetry.  We read "Horses of the Night," and afterward I asked them to complete the following project:

Think about the turmoil that Chris faced within the story “Horses of the Night.”  He seemed to have two different “faces,” the one that he presented and displayed in public and with his family, and the one that was more private and inward-looking with which he must confront his “horses in the night.” 

First, write a poem in which you take on the persona of Chris.  Try to represent, as best you can, the thoughts and emotions that he must encounter on a daily basis.  You can think about his will to persist and carry on, his final escape into insanity in the end, the dark days of his time in the war, or even the brighter days of his time with Vanessa’s family.  It should be a poem of at least five lines, and express some aspect of Chris’s turmoil or daily life.

After you have completed this poem, you will print and mount it on a mirror, and then on the opposite side of the mirror create a visual representation that depicts the two faces that we discussed in class and above.  The final projects will be displayed.

The result far surpassed my expectations.  The work the students created was amazing.  The paintings they depicted on the mirrors showed me that they truly understood what we had discussed, and the pain and angst that the main character went through.  The fact that many of them didn't simply just paint a face, but chose to paint things that represented Chris's inner and outer self amazed me.  Their poems are incredible as well.  Truly a depiction of what the thoughts of Chris could be!  I can't wait to display these incredible projects in the school.  It always makes me excited when I see that my students really are "getting it!"  It excites me when they can create something like this that does more than simply regurgitate the information that I gave them, but rather goes beyond into a deeper level of meaning and understanding.  

Here they are...if you can see past the clutter on my desk you can get an idea of the work they did.  Simply incredible!