This month I am sharing stories from
classrooms in Berwyn South District 100.
Day 15: The Wonder Years with Amy Gorzkowski (ELA/Lit Coach at HMS)
Sometimes, I wish I was a student in a classroom. In this case, I almost pulled up a chair and returned to my middle school self. Mrs. Gorz was watching The Wonder Years.
I stopped into her room, and immediately recognized Kevin Arnold from my past. Oh, Paul and Winnie and Kevin, back together again. It was just almost 30 years later. I was very intrigued, and then I glanced at the board. They were doing a character analysis, exploring how characters' traits and actions affect the plot. It was a formative assessment for their unit, using a text that was actually media. The show (for those not familiar with my childhood) was set in the 60s and 70s, and was narrated by a grown up Kevin Arnold. Because of this, the show is actually a pretty complex choice for students living in 2017. They would be have to use their character analysis skills, while keeping the setting in mind, and the way the narrator portrays the action. They also had 3 very different characters to choose from, all who impact each other in different ways.
The text we choose has a big impact on the type of work students can produce when given a task. Mrs. Gorz thought a bit out of the box, choosing a show that would be new to most, but still dealt with issues her middle school children could relate to, even in a different decade. I know, because I did the same thing at their age.
That day, Mrs. Gorz almost added a new student to her roster. I wouldn't have minded completing the character analysis to get on the roster. :)
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