English II students this week are reading a short story called "Through The Tunnel," in which a boy attempts something very dangerous that he sees older boys doing. As a pre-reading activity today, we discussed things that we've attempted after seeing others do them. It was an interesting discussion, and there was a general theme to all of the examples the students and I shared. First, nearly every student had attempted something because someone else they knew had done or was doing it. Second, the vast majority of those who had made these attempts were hurt in the process.
At some point, we all have to learn, myself included, to ask some questions of ourselves before we make these attempts. Am I being brave or stupid? How can this go wrong?
