Sleeping Away from Home: Slice #23 Conversations with Eileen

It’s 3:32 am and I really shouldn’t be up.  Yes, I say that to kick off many slices but today, it will be tougher to enjoy the work of documenting the deep conversations to come with Patti and Joseph as we unpack Patti’s new workshop sharing teacher work she has recently experienced and wrote about.

Joseph set up this project a few months ago without really knowing what it would look like until it happened.  But he knew that it would be wonderful and, yes, he was right.

Patti Stock is a wonder.  She’s been a force in deep thinking and writing about literacy for many years.  She has been passionate about the study of English and a gifted college professor.  She has been president of the National Council of English Teachers and a Director and documenter of the work of the National Writing Project.  She is constantly writing and publishing articles and books.  And she is a mother and grandmother, traveling the triangle of Michigan, Bethesda and Poughkeepsie to support her families.  And. so lucky for me, she’s a friend and tonight at the Gramercy, we are roomies, sharing a suite.  And I’m hoping that she’s sleeping on her side of this wall.

On Wednesday she shared a brand new workshop with a group of very passionate and bright writing project teachers and doctoral students at the U of Maryland.  Joseph, had this well coordinated making sure that Patti had the supplies and tech equipment she needed,  and we all had  food for fuel. 

Both Joseph and I documented the event with our cameras at different vantage points,  capturing as much of the experience as we could, knowing that we had more time to debrief the workshop here at the Gramercy together and with some of the teachers who had participated. 

Yesterday at noon, we said good-bye to the NWP work and met up with Patti at Union Station for a drive out to this retreat space for this reflection time.  I used the trip to take the back sleep and nap.  Maybe that’s why I’m up now 🙂

We arrived, took a walk, grabbed some coffee and homemade brownies set up the camera in my lovely bedroom and started talking.  That was all and that was enough.  Of course I had to keep checking to make sure the camera  was focused but we just talked about Patti’s workshop and the new educational reforms that held teachers back from being creative and innovative. Imagine, reformers creating reforms in education that create obstacles to innovation in the classroom.

We were later joined by Michele to help us reflect on her experience.  She stayed with us for a feast at the local Thai restaurant and even as we said good night to Joseph and his wife Joyce, we knew there was on last conversation before we turned off our lights.  There would be more when we met up again but this was so much to talk about… endless conversations…

Yes, I should be sleeping but it’s so much harder on the road.  Yes, I have so much to think about.  Even with an episode of House Hunters on the TV for distraction,  the conversations are keeping me awake.  And Tuvia, back home is keeping me awake.

We have more teachers coming tomorrow, today to share their workshop experiences…. My cameras are charging and I will have the pleasure of taking home my filled  memory cards to download onto my external hard drive to turn into a documentary about Patti’s new work. First I have to finish my niece’s wedding video but I can’t wait to make meaning of this experience and share it with Joseph as he also makes sense of the experience that he made sure we could capture.

I welcome the Google Hangouts we will have in the month to come…

Hey, I haven’t said much about the workshop itself.  That will have to wait until the video work begins.

Okay, the Slice is done and I’m wondering, can I sleep now? If not, I see there’s new slices already posted for today.

I can read and comment …