Category Archives: conversation

Reaping the results of the conscientious, earnest, and dedicated efforts of my colleagues

Posted on October 1, 2015 by jyourist

Yesterday my 8th graders had their first Around Table discussions of the year. The Around Table is a structure of formalized classroom discussion that allows the students to be totally in control of the conversation. They don’t raise their hands … Continue reading →

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A Lady in Search of Closure

Posted on July 5, 2013 by jyourist

At least that’s what JH shared with me yesterday at a July 4th celebration/ birthday party as we were catching up on our lives since the last time we saw each other. He had shared that he recently had a … Continue reading →

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What “this” is…

Posted on September 9, 2011 by jyourist

This was the first week back to school with the students and I am utterly exhausted this evening. There was a glimmer today of a real connection between us. There was a glimmer today of something real. We had finished … Continue reading →

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Conversations…

Posted on July 27, 2011 by jyourist

We pass it practically everyday, more than once. Occasionally we will comment on it, even suggest we ought to stop and explore it. This has been going on for four years. A few nights ago we were meeting friends for … Continue reading →

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Expanding our front porches…

Posted on May 25, 2011 by jyourist

My father told me when I was young that his mother, born in the Ukraine, used to tell stories every day. All the women in the neighborhood would gather on her front porch in the afternoons as she wove a … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, animation, conversation, family, memoir, short films, story, videos | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hey, does this mean we can get out of Afghanistan now?

Posted on May 2, 2011 by jyourist

Today in class we talked about the assassination of Osama bin Laden. (My students were 3 or 4 when 9/11 occurred.) Some students were very excited by this turn of events. There were others who felt weird, I think “awkward” … Continue reading →

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Miracles happen

Posted on April 21, 2011 by jyourist

We just finished reading All Quiet on the Western Front. In our last discussion of the book, my afternoon class spent nearly 45 minutes talking about the last page and a half of the novel. OK, this may not be … Continue reading →

Posted in conversation, death, school, Teaching, truth | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Conversation by the mile

Posted on April 18, 2011 by jyourist

In an attempt to be healthy I have been using a pedometer to make sure I walk a lot. There is something very gratifying about detailing the number of steps I take on any given day. My pedometer actually hooks … Continue reading →

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Would you rather be a garbage man or a mathematician?

Posted on April 12, 2011 by jyourist

We discussed Chapter 6 today of All Quiet on the Western Front, a vivid and disturbing chapter about the realities of war. A man biting his artery so he wouldn’t bleed to death; a soldier holding in his intestines; a … Continue reading →

Posted in books, conversation, death, reading, school, Teaching, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Conversation about “The Lottery”

Posted on October 15, 2010 by jyourist

    This morning we had a discussion on “The Lottery.” We read the story yesterday in class but class ended before we had time to unpack any of it. Many of the kids were totally weirded out. A few … Continue reading →

Posted in conversation, Teaching | Tagged , | 5 Comments