This post originally appeared two years ago in the newsletter of the school where I work.
In a recent 5th grade literature class period, the students and I were writing notes together about the various catchphrases of our favorite characters in Anne of Green Gables. When I first introduced the topic for discussion, nearly every student in the class shot their hand into the air—with a chuckle—eagerly hoping to volunteer a favorite catchphrase.
We started with the strict and serious Marilla Cuthbert, and her most common catchphrase: “fiddlesticks.” Marilla throws this word around freely when faced with Anne’s “romantic stuff and nonsense.” When Anne objects to Marilla’s suggestion on the basis that it is “unromantic,” “Unromantic, fiddlesticks,” that good lady responds. When Anne objects to dresses Marilla makes for her on the grounds that they are “unbecoming,” Marilla’s rejoinder is, “Unbecoming, fiddlesticks!” And so on. We organized our thoughts about this topic, took down each character’s catchphrases in writing, and began to discuss what each catchphrase said about each character.
Mrs. Rachel Lynde’s “That’s what” after every assertion she makes lets us know that she is assertive and eager to express her own opinion. In stark contrast, shy Matthew Cuthbert’s catchphrase is, “Well, now, I dunno…” which lets us know that he is, in the words of a fifth grader, “Mrs. Rachel Lynde’s total opposite.”
An ordinary observer in the 5th grade that day might justly wonder what in the world we were doing in class talking about such a thing, and why we had to laugh so much about it. They might wonder why I bother to grade assignments that appear to be steeped in such frivolity. (Especially if that observer’s name was Marilla Cuthbert!)
So far, the ordinary observer. An extraordinary observer might have seen the way the students were learning to organize conclusions based on concrete evidence, that they were learning to capture the most essential aspects of these characters, and most importantly, that they were finding immense joy in beautiful literature.
On a practical level, the students gain a lot from note-taking and from discussion of literature. Our ordinary observer would be the first to point that out. They get practice with penmanship, grammar, vocabulary, public speaking, and much more.
But, what goes unnoticed at many other schools, and in a lot of discussions about education, is the boundless value children gain on a spiritual level when they read great literature. You cannot quantify this value—but you can see it in their eyes when they light up over a book they're reading, when they quote a line from poetry in an everyday conversation, and when they feel as though they have had a new, personal experience after finishing a great novel.
The way to cultivate that spiritual engagement with literature? It’s through joy.
That’s what.
