Classy participation

Some teachers struggle to get students to take part in class. Not me. My blindness sometimes makes class participation necessary. I take advantage of that.

Take the How to Get a Children’s Book Published session I gave this morning, for example. My publisher at Blue Marlin Publications generously provided me with handouts she uses during similar presentations. I especially wanted to share one called What The Author Might Be Thinking vs. Why The Publisher is Banging Her Head against the Table. Here’s an example from that list, just to give you an idea:

Myth: Publishers like to see the text and illustrations as a package. I’ll just draw some pictures to go with my text.
Fact: NO, please don’t do that unless you are a professional illustrator, and you have written a book to accompany your professional illustrations. Illustration is a career, and there is so much more to this career than just drawing pictures. Publishers work with their own illustrators who are very familiar with the needs and specifications of that publisher. Send only your text to the publisher.

Anthony Latourneau, our illustrator, is a real pro.

The handout listed so many myths that it was impossible for me to memorize them. Instead, I asked the student on my right to read from the top of the list. After we discussed the first myth, the student next to her read the second. And on from there. Voila! Class participation.

if you read the comments to my previous post, you know I was a bit anxious about the Getting Personal Essays on Public Radio session I’d been asked to give today. To start it off, I asked each student to give me their first name and tell me what they’re reading. This had absolutely nothing to do with my session, I just figured if the whole thing was a bust at least I’d leave with a good reading list for myself!

The students were not seated in even rows. Cocking my head to the left, I said, “Let’s start with you,” and prayed to the heavens that someone was sitting there. The heavens answered.

Kate told us what she was reading. Without much fuss, and without me directing traffic, the class intuited who should go next, and then who should go after that. When Kenya introduced herself, she said she was reading a book called White Like Me. “And I’m not White!”

Reading list completed, a student let me know my handouts were sitting on a table at the side of the room. “Would you like me to hand them out?” Humbled by how quickly everyone had adjusted to my blindness, I thanked the student. She introduced herself as Jane and said she’d been a teaching assistant for a long while. “I’m good at this!” she laughed. When it came time to play one of my public radio essays, Jane was at the ready, manipulating the CD player for me.

The session was fun and informal, with lots of back and forths. When it came time to do the writing exercises, we only had two minutes left. Oh, well. We kept talking instead. The students didn’t seem to mind.

I’d writemore, but I’m in my hotel robe, Hanni is already snoring, and I’m thinking about a luxurious afternoon nap myself. Zzzzzzz.