When I was the age of my students, you wouldn’t hear much from me in class. I was very quiet. I wish now it wasn’t the case, but if I could get in there and out of there ( the classroom) without talking to anyone, that was a good day for me. Now that I’m preparing for my upcoming fall semester, I’m trying to arrange non-threatening opportunities for my students to share their ideas in small groups.  I just read Clarice Lispector’s Hour of the Star. It gives voice to a poor young woman from Rio de Janiero know one knows or cares about. I hope sharing an excerpt or two from this book will help my students develop their empathy – put themselves in someone else’s shoes. That’s when reading becomes fun and rewarding. It sure makes things easier to talk about.