|Gratitude|

Cassidy Harris
Apr 4, 2021
5 min read

This week is my final week posting for this course, which is where this blog was assigned. While I plan to continue to post to this blog as an outlet and resource for myself and other teachers, I feel it best fitting to dedicate this “final” blog to the gratitude I have for so many aspects of my life to date. Gratitude is defined as, “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.” However, when I think of gratitude, I am reminded of the feeling I have when I see my family in the stands cheering me on during sporting events, graduations, or other milestones. I feel my puppies curled up under the covers when I am feeling ill or exhausted. I hear laughter in the Reich College of Education as my friends and I laugh about a joke made by one of our wonderful professors. I smell a new book as I begin to go on an adventure with its beloved characters. Gratitude is a word that is definitive of one’s experiences, much like “Happiness” as I discussed in a previous blog post. Gratitude is the theme of many of my personal writing entries, and I know there are so many ways in which students can relate gratitude to their writing territories as well.

Gratitude in the classroom

In a world where situations and experiences may seem unfair, overwhelming, or stressful, gratitude can easily be lost in the mix. However, being reminded of gratitude is, in my eyes, a beautiful way to be reminded of the gifts from the world around you despite the dullness it may present. One of my favorite quotes is from Anne Frank: “Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy.” Emotions and feelings should always be heard and validated for our students, and helping them to explore the beauty around them is a way to refresh perspectives.

1. Get ready. Get set. Write!

Read Thank U: Poems of Gratitude with students as you begin exploring a writing experience on gratitude.
After reading this text aloud to students, have them take out their writer’s notebooks and be prepared to make a list.
1. “Students-- using inspiration from our shared reading today, write a list of at least ten things you feel grateful for. Think about the world around you. Your gratitude can geared towards objects that are as small as the pencil you are writing with or as big as Earth! The paper is yours, make it your own!”
2. Students should be reminded that they will have to use this list for a writer’s notebook entry. Therefore, their list should include objects that can be explained in detail.
Provide students with at least three poetic form options presented in the Thank U text to choose from as they write their own entry. They should use one of the three forms to express something they are personally grateful for.

2. Get ready. Get set. Explore!

Read Thank U: Poems of Gratitude with students as you begin exploring a writing experience on gratitude.
After reading this text aloud to students, prepare to take the class on a field trip around the school grounds.
1. “Students-- as we go around our campus, I want you to make a list of at least five things you are grateful for. Think about the beauty in the world around you. Your gratitude can geared towards objects that are as small as the door that we walk through or the huge trees that line the parking lot! The paper is yours, make it your own!”
2. Students should be reminded that they will have to use this list for a writer’s notebook entry. Therefore, their list should include objects that can be explained in detail.
Provide students with at least three poetic form options presented in the Thank U text to choose from as they write their own entry. They should use one of the three forms to express something they are personally grateful for.

Provided are formats in the mentor text that you may give students choice in using.

Gratitude in my writer’s notebook

I would say that gratitude is one of the greatest themes in my personal writer’s notebook. This gratitude often comes from memories of my family, friends, and other experiences. In my own writing, I find that when I write about topics that may feel sad, I find the gratitude I have within. One instance of this is when I write about my great grandfather, who passed away in July 2020. While it seems surreal that, when I write, it will always consist of memories of the past when about him, I am reminded of the gratitude I have for the ability to write down our memories in such a creative, personal way.

A few things I am grateful for

I am going to share some of my creative outlets for describing ways in which I am grateful. I hope you use these examples as inspiration for your own writing. Take it and run, I love the idea of someone using my work as inspiration for their own.

Inspired from entries in Thank U: Poems of Gratitude, I wrote a poem dedicated to my beautiful mother. This week my family and I are in Tuscaloosa, Alabama visiting my brother who attends the University of Alabama (Roll Tide!). My mom made this entire trip happen, and even made sure I flew on a plane here rather than having to take a car here (car rides make me extremely anxious… yes, I hate that I miss out on the cool aesthetic of someone who loves road trips…). Thinking of how much she sacrifices daily for my family is something that inspired me to write a poem of gratitude for her.

“Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros is a song that provides me with pure euphoria. The song is a continuous inspiration for my writing and was the foundation of a multi genre paper I wrote during undergrad. While I am not going to share the paper here, I want to share the remix of the paper that I wrote in my notebook. I am so grateful for a family that has made me a home: yesterday, today, tomorrow, and beyond.

Amy Krouse Rosenthal inspired me to write a Final Review of my time at Appalachian State University. I am graduating in May of this year and am absolutely, positively confused out of my mind as to how it is the end of an era as my time as a student. I thought it was fitting that her final review was presented in the form of multiple choice because of my leaving Appalachian to become an educator. I am so grateful for what the high country gave me: lifelong friendships, professors that will become lifelong friends, professional development, personal development, laughter, tears, strength, and so much more. I am still not sure where time went, but I sure wish it would slow down. However, my gratitude is that much stronger for it.

I am grateful for:

Where I’m going and where I have been

Those who have led me to where I am today

The beach

The mountains

My family and friends

Willow and Magnolia

Boone, North Carolina

Education

Life

Art

Literature

And a world that I know will provide me with so much more to add to my ever growing list of gratitude.

Thank you for coming with me on this journey through my final semester with this blog!

Many, so many, thanks. And talk soon.

Tik Tok

I think using the app Tik Tok is a wonderful way to make poems come to life. I am going to provide a video I made through the app that expresses my gratitude towards my Step Dad, Dean.