Looking Forward - Weekend

I am very excited that today I am going to Rochester, New York for a seminar on 19th century U.S. history, and more specifically the experience of former slaves in the northern United States. My flight left at 7 AM, so unfortunately I had to get up even earlier than a normal school day. But it will be well worth it when I get to Rochester later today (Sorry students, I'll miss you!).

Here are Three Good Things I'm looking forward to this weekend:

1. Touring the homes of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman
I am so excited to visit the homes of two important and influential Americans. Since reading My Bondage and My Freedom in high school, I've had a deep respect for Frederick Douglass and his contributions to the political discourse of the ante- and post-bellum United States. His speech at the unveiling of the Freedmen's Monument for Lincoln in Washington D.C. is one of my favorites, because it brilliantly captures the evolving images and memories of Abraham Lincoln's views on slavery.

2. Talking about history. All. Weekend. Long
Gosh, I'm such a nerd! But I really enjoy reading historical documents and primary sources. And even more than reading documents, I love talking about them. Our course packet for the weekend is several hundred pages of reading (most of my students audibly groaned when I informed them of this), and I am excited to better "digest" what I've read and work through my questions via conversation.

3. Being around other history teachers.
When I went to my first weekend seminar in Springfield this September, I was so nervous-- nervous about being the youngest teacher there, nervous about whether it would be fun, whether I was prepared enough, I could go on and on. But it turned out to be one of the most fun and energizing weekends of my life because of the people with whom I spent it. I left the weekend excited to teach, excited to learn, and excited to go to more seminars in the future. I'm sure that this weekend will be no different, and I'm really looking forward to it. Spending so much time with passionate and dedicated historians and teachers who taught me so much is something I now cherish.