The View

In addition to being a reading teacher, I am the 5th grade writing teacher. In an effort to get the girls to see writing as more than something you do on a test, or in school for writing class we often take a few days to just write about whatever our hearts desire. Recently in our write-ventures, I asked the girls to dig deep into their imagination and get creative. "Write about ANYTHING that you want," I told them. I was shocked by the lack of enthusiasm that was their response to the autonomy I gave them. Not to mention the number of whiny Ms-Smith-I-Don't-Know-What-To-Writes. Finally, it hit me as I was doing the teacher circulation thing around my room. My girls needed inspiration and I knew exactly where they could get it from! From my classroom, I have THEE most fantastic view! You can see the Nationals Stadium, the Capital, a Metro station with murals painted all over it, our playground, a highway, a construction site, and a bridge among many other things. I decided to send the girls to the window to silently reflect on the midday view and asked them the following questions:

• What do you see? What do you know about what you see?
• What don't you see? 
• What would you like to see?
• What is going on in those buildings?
• Where are those people going? 

For about 3 minutes they were able to just look out the window and it worked like a charm. It was a bonus that they really enjoyed the exercise. It's amazing what taking a second to look around you can do. Have you taken a look at the view from your window lately? Whether you have or haven't, I encourage you to do so and maybe even write about it. 

Our view during the day.

Our view at night.