Shadow a Student Day: Back to Grade 10

A reflection by Kevin Held, Robert Edmund Jones Chair in Technical Theater 

Today, I went back to Grade 10 to shadow a student from my advisory. Even though it was a late-start day with only 60-minute shortened classes, the schedule was packed. Moving through it gave me a sharper sense of the fast-paced life of high school students at TAS and the countless stairs up and down to reach all parts of this campus.  

The first period threw me straight into the deep end: an Honors Algebra Two unit test on polynomials. It was one full hour of quiet intensity, a real challenge for me. The teacher kindly lent me a calculator, but I still don’t really know how to use a TI-84, even if it resembles the TI-82 I had way back in 1992 when I last took this Math class. Before the test, students compared notes and reassured one another while the teacher circulated, answering last-minute questions. Once the test began, you could hear a pin drop. A large digital clock tracked the minutes, punctuated by calm reminders about the time remaining.  

The second period was a welcome shift, Honors Wind Ensemble, with more than 30 students making music together. Their concert is coming up soon, and they already sound wonderful. I, unfortunately, possess no musical talent, but my advisee certainly does: she’s an excellent clarinet player. The class opened with “Jubilate! A Fanfare for Joy,” followed by “To Light,” a piece rich with tonal painting that traces an emotional arc from loss to renewal. The teacher’s joking description of the “flippy, floppy, wet” snare drum made me snicker and showed his good sense of rapport with the student ensemble.  

Using “A Time to Dance,” the music teacher also gave a good-natured plug for the dance production opening tomorrow, which prompted a smile from the student stage manager, who was still holding her oboe. After sectional rehearsals, the brass students launched into one of my favorite works: Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man.” According to NPR, Copland was inspired by a speech in which Vice President Henry A. Wallace urged Americans to stand against imperialism. This is one of my favorite pieces of music from the American canon. After listening to the rehearsal, I’m already excited about the December concerts.  

Lunch followed. I walked with my advisee to the cafeteria before giving her space to enjoy time with her friends. We met again after lunch for AP Music Theory. The class opened with singing and piano exercises before moving into rhythmic motif work and sequence training. I was impressed by how well the teacher was able to push each student based on their skills and abilities – differentiated learning in full display!  

I stayed with my advisee during free flex time as she chatted with friends, and she was passed a slice of birthday cake in the cafeteria. Throughout the day, I was struck by how much of the hallway banter and side chatter was in Mandarin, and even more by the fact that I could understand almost half of it. Students were all open to conversation, and they often asked me what subject I teach, which has a somewhat complicated answer, straddling departments and divisions.    

AP Modern World History was the final class of the day. The Enlightenment, natural rights, the social contract, and revolutions in Latin America were all on the agenda. I joined a group analyzing the similarities and differences between the American and Latin American revolutions, contributing to a Venn diagram poster that the class later shared. I was impressed by how the teacher facilitated the flow of the class and by the revelation that the other class had completed the same diagrams earlier.  

Shadowing a student for the day was both humbling and energizing. I stepped into classes where I was decidedly out of my depth and experienced the rhythm of a school day from a new vantage point. What struck me most was the vulnerability and openness of my colleagues who opened their classrooms to me. Teaching is deeply personal work, and every teacher I encountered was gracious, transparent, and willing to let me see the real, unscripted moments of their daily classroom routines. Their openness reminded me of the care that goes into every interaction with all students. I hope my advisee enjoyed having me along as much as I enjoyed walking beside her. The student experience, expressed in their curiosity, their engagement, and their energy, is the heartbeat of any school, and today I was lucky enough to see it through a new, more intimate lens.