Reflection and refraction on yesterday's lesson

The flag ceremony was done.

ESP was over.

English time.

Sat down and thought for a while.

Checked my curriculum guide and saw that its writing time. Read the objectives in random and here are some of them in no particular order:

• Compose clear and coherent sentences using appropriate grammatical structures: -Subject-verb agreement
• Write a 4- paragraph composition showing -comparison and contrast 
• correct spelling - appropriate punctuation marks -transition/ signal words

Hmmm...I said to myself. What about these objectives? Put down the curriculum guide on the table and stared at the ceiling, nah, too fancy.

Looks at the rubrics with its categories/criteria and score. I prevented myself from throwing them out the windows because even I as a teacher, once presented with the categories and the numbers would be thinking about them rather what I want to write or say something about. To tell the truth some teachers, like me, would not even be able to meet these criteria.

So...

I stood in front of the class, asked them to get a whole sheet of paper and write a letter to their friends. 

Some pupils espoecially the girls were excited but many were hesitant and even protested loudly, much too loudl should I say, that they didn't know how to write or speak in English.

I started a monologue: "Dear children Filipinos are good with English. When an American goes to China and asks a Chinese where they could find a taxi, guess what? The common Chinese folk could not understand a single word and that foreigner would have to communicate using their hands, they have to act every word of it out. 

Here in the Philippines when an american asked anyone, even you, where to find a taxi, you can understand, you can reply in English. I mean you can say "over there, go to the left, etc." So, You are all good with English."

Ok! Start writing!

"Sir with margin?" 

"Sir can I write six letters?"

"Sir, what's the English for this or that?"

"Just write!"

"Sir, should we be writing to our friends here in the classroom or outside the classroom?"

"Write to any friend you like, in the classroom, outside  the classroom, imaginary, real, any friends..."

"Sir how many sentences?"

"What should write about?"

"Anything"

"Just write!"

After five minutes many are already passing their papers...

Write more, write the first thing that comes into your mind.

I was looking at them and was happy to see that some of them were smiling while writing (so, you are writing to your crush?), some were looking up to the ceiling conjuring up English words (me looking up at the ceiling and asking them what they see above) to translate what they wanted to say, some just gave up and started doodling on their paper after writing a few sentences.

So, finally after an hour, I told them to pass their papers.

I read their works (not checked or graded them) and was happy at the numbers of sentences  they have written, some even wrote multiple letters to many friends. I read some sample to the class, joked about who they were writing to. 

Did I grade their papers? Did I rank their outputs? Hell, no!

No, just told them it was all very good and they should enjoy writing whatever it is that comes into their heads no matter how incoherent and random the ideas.

When rules are imposed first, it distracts the writer and the creativity will be replaced by rigid conformity that would hamper their writing this early in their lives. 

Writing is learned by writing. Its similar to music, lots of people are lead to music theory because they can already sing or play music and musical terms are necessary to communicate, but very few, if any at all, were led to music by studying music theories first. So, encourage them to write, doodle first, unthinking of rules of grammar, accuracy of words, it could all start with one written word.

Interest is the best teacher.