“It's Like a Burst, a Burst of Fire”

I load the tape into the VCR, which hangs from the ceiling in the corner of Laura’s classroom, and sit down next to Jay. I want to try to understand his interpretation of the guided inquiry interactions. How does Jay perceive what I view as the lack of uptake of his contributions by his peers and Laura, despite his repeated attempts to extend the conversation in substantive ways? What is his interpretation of the discursive moves that I see as contributing to his cognitive and social exclusion from the classroom community? ¹