How to Teach Shakespeare
How to Teach Shakespeare Students find Shakespeare challenging for several reasons. It is possible to help students peel back the...
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Oct 193 min read
Reading Blocks for Secondary ELA
I recently encountered an article in the Atlantic titled “The Elite College Students Who Can’t Read Books.” It scared me a little ...
94 views
Sep 272 min read
Kids, Phones, and Class Participation
At the beginning of every school year, I quickly talk about grades. Since writing counts weighs the most, the class participation grade is
117 views
Aug 234 min read
The Best Contemporary Novels to Teach in High School
I have a love for most the literature I read in high school and college. I’m sure you’re familiar with the writers ...
439 views
Aug 14 min read
How to Decorate and Organize a Classroom
It can be hard to decorate a classroom if you have to share space with a few other teachers or pay out of pocket for supplies.
201 views
Jul 222 min read
3 Types of Interviews and Conversations in ELA
One of the most rewarding things about being a teacher is watching my students continue the conversation as they leave the classroom.
171 views
Jul 182 min read
Meaning-Making in ELA: 3 Ways to Get Students Invested
A classroom can be two places at the same time: a place to work hard and learn valuable skills and a place to have fun and make meaning from
211 views
May 102 min read
Teaching the Podcast Serial, Season 1, Episode 1 with Sarah Koenig
I’m always surprised when my students give their full attention to an hour-long podcast. What keeps kids locked into Serial is not ...
239 views
May 32 min read
How to Teach or Assign a Podcast
Podcasts promote a very simple, yet important life skill: listening. They also help students understand tone, the emotion behind the ...
143 views
Apr 192 min read
Close Reading Passages in Novels
There’s nothing like close reading. A bunch of colorful annotations on a poem is a beautiful thing. Close reading is a valuable skill and
218 views
Feb 293 min read
6 Engaging Activities to Analyze a Novel in ELA
Every day I think about how to keep students engaged when studying novels. Students will lose interest if they do the same thing every...
364 views
Feb 93 min read
Preventing the Use of AI in ELA: 6 Methods
There will always be new tools to help teachers combat the use of AI. A Chrome extension called Origin by GPTZero provides a writing ...
344 views
Jan 233 min read
Media and Genre-Based Units
Schools and teachers usually organize ELA curriculum by novel, theme, or genre, or some combination of those three.
258 views
Jan 102 min read
Creating Relevance in a Modern Classroom
Sometimes I find myself trying to think of ways to create connections between literature and the real world.
213 views
Dec 21, 20233 min read
5 Fun Ways Students Find Quotes
Teaching students the value of using quotes in an essay is more important now than ever ...
341 views
Dec 12, 20232 min read
Meaningful Project-Based Learning for High School English: 5 Objectives
I recently opened enrollment for a new online course, Meaningful Project-Based Learning for High School English. Enrollment closes Friday
373 views
Nov 29, 20232 min read
5 Ways to Handle the ELA Workload
There’s no doubt that English teachers have to manage a ton of work. Students have to practice writing frequently and gather as many quotes
352 views
Nov 17, 20232 min read
Character Study: A Whole-Novel Activity
Students love to think about how a character develops because they too, because they’re teenagers, experience a lot of change.
187 views
Nov 1, 20233 min read
10 Whole Class Discussion Strategies
With every passing year, it seems harder and harder to get students interested in whole class discussions. But there are creative ways ...
382 views
Oct 17, 20232 min read
The Purpose of Literary Devices and Techniques
It’s easy for students to get caught in the trap of simply identifying literary techniques without considering their purpose ...
419 views
Sep 12, 20233 min read
Storytelling and the Personal Narrative
Because I teach seniors, I start the year with a short unit on the personal narrative and college essay. It helps me get to know ...
194 views
Aug 2, 20232 min read
More Fun, Less Stress
July has come to an end and it’s that time when the thought of school starts to plan its seed in every teacher’s mind. What will this year
140 views
Jul 18, 20232 min read
Modern Learning with Free Literacy Blocks
There are many students that love literature for the world it creates, the brand-new world that exists only within the front and back cover
153 views
Jun 13, 20232 min read
Free Literacy Block Reflection
The end of the school year is the best time to get ideas for next year. All the successful and failed experiments are still fresh in my...
207 views
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