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How to Use Music in an ELA Classroom
Music might be the easiest way to get students to appreciate literature. The voice of the singer often makes it easy to understand the...
May 93 min read
108 views


The Creative Nonfiction Essay
Literary analysis can be a fun way students learn how to interpret quotes and identify patterns in writing. However, most students prefer
Apr 22 min read
132 views


How Teachers Can Stay Focused and Avoid Taking Work Home
Teachers already have a stressful job while in school. They shouldn’t also bring that stress home and let it continue on their time off.
Mar 213 min read
121 views


How to Create a Positive Classroom Culture and Environment: 5 Methods
It can be difficult for a teacher to build relationships with students because, well, we’re older. We don’t live in their world, but we...
Mar 122 min read
65 views


Stories About Modern Media
If we are being honest, most students interact more with modern media than with literature.
Feb 132 min read
90 views


How to Use Freud and Psychoanalysis to Teach Literature
Freud had a lot of wild theories, but a simple understanding of the short essay “The Structure of the Unconscious” can help students easily
Jan 312 min read
86 views


A Spatial Approach to Literary Analysis: 6 Graphic Organizers
Graphic organizers help students that think logically like scientists and mathematicians.
Dec 4, 20243 min read
258 views


How to Teach Shakespeare
Students find Shakespeare challenging for several reasons. It is possible to help students peel back the layers of complexity, but it’s...
Nov 18, 20243 min read
225 views


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 ...
Oct 19, 20243 min read
130 views


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
Sep 27, 20242 min read
136 views


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 ...
Aug 23, 20244 min read
715 views


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.
Aug 1, 20244 min read
257 views


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.
Jul 22, 20242 min read
177 views


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
Jul 18, 20242 min read
225 views


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 ...
May 10, 20242 min read
361 views


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 ...
May 3, 20242 min read
154 views


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
Apr 19, 20242 min read
236 views


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...
Feb 29, 20243 min read
482 views


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 ...
Feb 9, 20243 min read
358 views


Media and Genre-Based Units
Schools and teachers usually organize ELA curriculum by novel, theme, or genre, or some combination of those three.
Jan 23, 20243 min read
296 views


Creating Relevance in a Modern Classroom
Sometimes I find myself trying to think of ways to create connections between literature and the real world.
Jan 10, 20242 min read
220 views


5 Fun Ways Students Find Quotes
Teaching students the value of using quotes in an essay is more important now than ever ...
Dec 21, 20233 min read
372 views


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
Dec 12, 20232 min read
525 views


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
Nov 29, 20232 min read
366 views
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