Dear Mrs. Regan

The plan was to not look at work email at all during Spring Break. That lasted for about one day. Checking email is a bit of a compulsion for me, I admit. I regretted not having greater control last week when I discovered a notification of a Covid case at school. Yesterday, however, I came across this gem in my inbox that reminded me of why I love teaching.

Mrs. Regan I don't like the way my writing assignment is going on making a yummy lunch. I decided to do a new one on making a yummy breakfast. I have a pretty good Idea in my mind. I only have one question though for the topics related to the main idea: do you have to describe the topic or put the ingredients?

There is so much I love about this, aside from the fact that during Spring Break a third grader was actually thinking about an assignment we began a couple of weeks ago. 

First, there's the "I don't like the way my writing assignment is going." Ironically, I was working on my own piece of writing when I read this, and I didn't like the way mine was going either. In class, this student had dissolved into tears while planning her writing, so not liking the way it was going was a bit of an understatement. To me, her comment shows honest reflection and a real commitment to her writing.

Next, I love the way she boldly states, "I decided to do a new one." She doesn't ask, she tells. This is a writer who has identified a problem and knows how she wants to solve it. More importantly, she feels empowered to do so.

Finally, I love the statement, "I have a pretty good idea in my mind." This shows me that she has begun to think through her writing in her head and feels confident about what she wants to say. 

Now, I realize that this is just one out of twenty students. I'm certain the other 19 haven't given a passing thought to their writing or anything else we have been working on. But this one has. One out of twenty may not seem like much, but I'll take it.