#memorablemomentsineducation #25:

#memorablemomentsineducation #25:
Not gonna lie…I’m starting to feel the pressure of producing something worthy and pithy for these things, and if I cover every day this school year with a moment, I’ve got 156 to go! So this moment is brought to you by my current preoccupation–watching the most recent episode of This Is Us on my DVR.

Last year, I met a senior girl who had no shame about discussing her obsession with this TV show. After I was willing to admit I, too, watched this show, accepting and even inviting the fact I would cry during every episode, we developed a bit of a bond. Every Wednesday in class, we ran through the ins and outs of the episode, what happened to the characters, and predictions for where the story arc was headed. It helps that the class is focused on Narrative Art in Lit and Film, so we had tons of fodder for our conversations as this drama loves to play with narrative structure! Part way through the year, another show debuted that piqued our interests, which meant we we had twice as much to discuss!

This fall, my student went off to college, and our shows were on air again. The best part? She emailed me, Mrs. Holladay, just to share what she noticed about the season premieres. That’s what stories, whether visual or written, do for us–they bring us closer together, they give us a means by which to connect, and they enable us to share our loves and interests. That’s one example of what makes my job pretty great!