How to Teach Literary Techniques
Literary techniques make literature, literature. Without them, we’d be left with words and facts...
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- Aug 12
- 2 min
5 Poems to Start the Year
I love to start the year with a month of poetry. The unit gives students the time to read the first novel independently and it functions ..
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- Jun 16
- 2 min
Free Literacy Blocks
I’ve been thinking a lot about all the challenges of this past year, but also trying to learn from it. I tried book clubs for the first time
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- Jun 1
- 2 min
The Creative Classroom
I start the school year talking about how language is all around us.
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- Jan 24
- 4 min
Filmmaking Made Easy: 10 Tips
After I taught the elective Filmmaking for the first time a few years ago, I realized how easy it is for students to quickly create a ...
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- Sep 16, 2021
- 2 min
Voice to Text: The Keys to Great Storytelling
What makes a great personal narrative? In the beginning of every year, I ask my students to write a story that communicates something...
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- Aug 17, 2021
- 3 min
5 Ways to Have a Drama-Filled Classroom
No, not that kind of drama. Performance. Few people know how to act, but everyone knows what a good performance looks like. The words...
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- Apr 8, 2021
- 4 min
One Year Later: Reflection
Sometimes I like to complete the essay that I assign my students. In this case, I assigned a reflection on the last year. I also wanted...
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- Mar 29, 2021
- 2 min
The Magic of Storytelling: Real and Fictional
I recently listened to the podcast “The Story of Your Life” on Hidden Brain by Shankar Vedantam. I felt like I was listening to ...
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- Feb 19, 2021
- 3 min
Magical Realism: Interpretation and Creation
Magical realism goes beyond the place that a metaphor takes us. It goes beyond the realm of comparison.
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- Dec 23, 2020
- 6 min
10 Creative Projects for Remote Learning
My colleagues and I recently had a conversation about the rest of the year and what we could do to keep our students engaged....
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- Jun 27, 2020
- 3 min
How to Write or Teach the College Application Essay or Personal Narrative
I talk to my students about what I call "The 4 T's" of the college essay - topic, tone, theme, and time.
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- Jan 30, 2020
- 3 min
Demonstrating Understanding with Creativity
There’s something amazing that happens in a class when you ask students to write creatively.
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