I’m a tech-loving, high school English teacher whose mission is to help students rediscover their love of reading. Even after 26 years, I’m still passionate about the classroom–as both a teacher & a Lifelong Learner.
In many ways, teachers are like coaches. And because I’ve been with the franchise twenty-six seasons (even though I’m only 25 😬), I’ve learned so much along the way. Here are five of my key plays that inform how I approach writing in the classroom.
Before I can ask certain things from my students, I need to make some promises of my own. The first assignment every year begins with a pledge. I share my own list of commitments with the students, and then they publish their own pledge to me.
My writers struggle when threy receive feedback to “be more sophisticated” or “elevate your level of sophistication.” So, a few years ago, I began rethinking my approach to writing instruction—for my English classes and my Creative Writing ones. I decided to break Sophisticated Writing…
Six years ago, during Thanksgiving week, I began assigning what I lovingly call “The Gratitude Project.” Essentially, I forced my students–and myself–to reflect on the Good in our lives in the midst of all of the Bad. And it quickly became one of my…
Teachers are still leaving by the droves. Unless you’re on a media fast, you’ve heard all about it. But these aren’t newbies, 44% of whom typically quit within five years. (That’s pre-pandemic data, by the way.) No, these are seasoned teachers simply walking away…