Yesterday I got a lot of Frost Place prep done, mostly while sitting outside in the cool-ish shadows of early morning. My big accomplishment was writing out the play-by-play for a brand-new revision workshop, which I hope will be a fun activity for participants as well as a new way to think about experiential learning. That is the most boring sentence ever, but honestly one of the biggest problems with teaching revision (both directly to students and to the teachers of students) is the hurdle of making it seem (1) fascinating in and of itself rather than a tacked-on chore and (2) like a way to tap into a student's power and agency rather than serve as pure teacher-pleaser ("what more can I discover"? versus "what do you want me to change?"). Revision lessons can also make teachers very anxious. They may hate the sensation of serving as judge and arbiter of someone else's personal revelation; they may doubt their own competence in poetry; they may feel torn between freedom and structure. Given this baggage, the revision workshop at the conference is always a bit fraught and hairy, so my goal this year is to open a new a few new shady corridors, for all of us.

If you are interested in joining us, it's not too late. I'd love to have you.

Today I'll be turning my attention to schedule tweaking, Zoom instructions, faculty bios, and other administrative nitpicking. The weather will be hot, a great day to hang sheets on the line, chain-drink ice tea, and make another batch of pineapple ice cream.

Wishing you shade and sweetness--