This morning I took my American Lit students for a walk over to the amphitheater next to the library so we could discuss A.R. Ammons outdoors. Students had read "A Poem is a Walk," so it seemed appropriate to take a walk before discussing the connection between poetry and walking. They had also read "Garbage," so a field trip to a landfill would have been appropriate but we decided against that. "If you want a garbage-related field trip, go sniff a dumpster," I suggested. Maybe they will.
I've seen some colleagues teaching classes in the amphitheater but this was the first time I've tried it myself. The weather was perfect: hot but not too hot, just nicely warm with a cooling breeze. One year I took a class out to the large green behind the building where we sat on the ground and learned things...until the mowers arrived and started circling our space. Fortunately, there were no mowers out this morning, nor did the sprinklers suddenly come on in the middle of class. Students were attentive and engaged in the discussion, and it felt so good out there that I didn't even mind having sun in my eyes.
Today's class was a walk just as a poem is a walk, which would suggest that the class is also a poem. Is someone taking notes? You're going to be tested on this!
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