Update on SI Orientation...Last week I wrote about how a really good friend of mine and I were going to be hosting the orientation for the class we are going to co-facilitate this summer. Well...I’m here to report that it went great! One of the highlights of the session was an experience I led that we in the Writing Project call Murray Cards. The name of the experience is based on ideas from a great man, Donald Murray. Basically, the person leading the experience invites those participating to do a series of “quick writes” jotting ideas down, in an attempt to generate ideas to explore in more detail sharing these ideas with a partner along the way. The “quick writes” are done on index cards and after the first card has been completed, the writer has autonomy as to whether or not s/he wants to continue thinking about what is on the first card or change ideas throughout the rest of the experience. The writing is fun but the real magic happens during discussion/conversation. I was fortunate enough to partner up with two amazing women. I say amazing because they were as honest and open about their thoughts as I was; not an easy thing to do for most people who hardly know one another. We fed off of each other’s ideas and had an incredibly deep conversation about fear, anxiety, and our hopes; as they relate to helping the students we teach navigate their own fears and anxiety. If this experience was any indication of how the week is going to go later in July...I cannot wait for July to get here!