Written by Sam Knight and published in The New Yorker (August 9, 2019), this article is one of my all-time favorite contemporary texts to include in my Beowulf unit.
Category Archives: Reading
A New Poem Activity for The Wanderer
While our study of The Wanderer included some note-taking, reading the poem aloud, and completing a close-reading activity, I wanted us to go one step further to get more out of this beautiful verse. So when I read about something called the “Ubi sunt” motif present in The Wanderer, I took notice… especially when I considered how it might be a way for students to better connect personally to this poem.
Three back-to-school ELA lesson ideas
Needing some fresh ideas for the first day back at school? Want to avoid the ubiquitous “What I Did On My Summer Vacation” drudgery?
New Great Gatsby Lesson Ideas and Resources
This week, I’m sharing links to all nine of my Gatsby posts I published this summer. Plan to see more this fall since I don’t see my crush ending any time soon!
A New Text Pairing for The Great Gatsby
Leslie Odom, Jr., self-improvement, and the American Dream Need an informational text to pair with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby? A text that offers real-life tips your students can apply to their lives? Earlier this month, I discovered a non-fiction book that adds contemporary relevance to Jay Gatsby’s Jazz Age motivations while also servingContinue reading “A New Text Pairing for The Great Gatsby”
A New Lesson for The Red Badge of Courage
I wanted to introduce my students to literary impressionism by noticing Stephen Crane’s use of color and by creating a collaborative visual representation of the The Red Badge of Courage.
“A Sea of Troubles” offers text pairings for greater relevance
A Sea of Troubles performs the task touted on the cover: it pairs texts for greater relevancy in contemporary times. However, its untouted task, fostering and teaching civility, is the cherry on top.
Create context for Gatsby with “Cosmopolis” documentary
Before you even mention to your students that they’ll be reading The Great Gatsby in your classes, know that they will have probably at least heard of it. But that’s about all. Use this @RicBurnsFilms video and viewing guide to build context.
Race, Class, and Music in The Great Gatsby
Originally posted on The Avid Listener:
Carrie Allen Tipton (Houston, TX) https://www.youtube.com/embed/ozkOhXmijtk Warner Brothers film trailer for Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby (2013), featuring multiple musical excerpts (starting off with André 3000 and Beyoncé performing “Back in Black”). The Great Gatsby turned ninety last year. What does its antihero—floating dead on a bloody mattress in…
Switch up sketchnotes to engage distracted students
I love sketchnotes. They’re engaging, colorful, and creative, and allow me to make illustrative connections while I listen to a book. But here’s the thing: I’m not a very good listener. I need to carefully concentrate on the words I’m hearing or my mind wanders to whatever’s going on in the hall, outside the window, or just inside my head. So even though I’m a huge fan of sketchnotes, sometimes I need a more passive kind of sketchnotes… sketchnotes that keep me engaged, but still able to focus on the text so I can create meaningful notes and doodles that will ultimately aid understanding and retention of the content.
