Thursday, January 06, 2011

Day #72

Missed a couple days this week. Was sick going into the winter break with a cold. Wednesday before Xmas I thought I was out of the woods and feeling fine, then Wednesday night got clobbered and spent the rest of the week in misery. Monday I went to work and realised too late that that was a terrible idea. Ended up in an urgent care facility Tuesday, diagnosed with acute sinusitis and an ear infection. Got a Z-pack and doctor-ordered extra day off. Back today with more energy but not much voice: kind of hard to rein in obnoxious behavior when you can barely talk. But I managed. The kids are digging Poe, and digging the little clues we're picking up as I unveil the expedition to them bit by bit via background knowledge chunks about which they make notes and generate questions.

Some of the kids have already made the inferential leap from E.A. Poe living in Baltimore and being the writer of the Raven to the Baltimore Ravens...one of them jumped up in a kind of Eureka moment today and said "That's why the team is named the Ravens--the mascot's name is Poe! I never knew it!"

We haven't even read the poem yet. Can't wait to show them the Simpsons version.

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