10 reasons to teach Douglass plus the unit plan As I promised last week in my post about Frederick Douglass graphic essays, I’m providing a link below so you can purchase a PDF of my unit of instruction for The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. Although this unit was designed for regular, in-personContinue reading “Frederick Douglass Unit Plan, Resources, and Handouts”
Tag Archives: Education
Headline poetry: At a loss for words? Let the words find you
Ever feel that words don’t exist to describe summer 2020? Ever feel as if words simply don’t exist to describe the summer of 2020? Here’s an idea: search through magazines, newspapers, mail, anything, and… let the words find you. I started this headline poem last night. I’m on step 1… searching and clipping. I haveContinue reading “Headline poetry: At a loss for words? Let the words find you”
When class discussions get controversial (and unfair)
I need this plan for better discussions in my classroom Because I am a writer first, and a speaker second, teaching via whole-class discussions does not come easily to me. When those class discussions involve racially-charged, controversial topics, it’s even more difficult. This difficulty can be blamed on two things: I teach at a nearlyContinue reading “When class discussions get controversial (and unfair)”
White Teacher Question: Are these race and social justice books enough?
Send me your contemporary social justice book suggestions I ordered these books for fall 2020 because I’m focusing on the power of literature to effect social change. Of course, recent events in response to the killing of Minneapolis resident George Floyd make me wonder if there are more topical books I should have ordered insteadContinue reading “White Teacher Question: Are these race and social justice books enough?”
“Where I’m From” Poems: download these mentor texts written by students
This post shares Where I’m From poem mentor texts written by students.
Corona Virus Acrostic Poems Perk Up Distance Learning (updated 2021)
Students create acrostic poems to document Covid-19 My students learned at home from March 17 through May 14, 2020 when the school year officially ended. As part of their distance learning back then, I asked students to write a couple of paragraphs every other day or so for a “Life in the Time of Corona”Continue reading “Corona Virus Acrostic Poems Perk Up Distance Learning (updated 2021)”
Use Article of the Week assignments to build relevant mini-lessons
The AOW can help you design targeted instruction in specific problem areas of writing Don’t you love it when a classroom activity teaches something not only to your students, but to you as well? That’s the case with my most effective writing assignment, the Article of the Week (AOW). Not only do Article of theContinue reading “Use Article of the Week assignments to build relevant mini-lessons”
Mini-lesson idea: Avoiding first-person point of view in academic essays
For the most part, it’s an easy fix. It’s nice when a common issue you know your students have with writing can be easily remedied. This is one of them: avoiding unintentional and unnecessary first-person point of view in academic writing. For the most part, the first-person words can simply be removed with… wait forContinue reading “Mini-lesson idea: Avoiding first-person point of view in academic essays”
Corona virus journals foster creativity
A reminder that students can still thrive in uncertain times Don’t underestimate your students when it comes to distance learning. Some of them might surprise you and take your assignment to new heights, as my senior student Savannah B. did with her journal (shown in photos). Savannah took my Life in the Time of CoronaContinue reading “Corona virus journals foster creativity”
Check Out The Hero’s Journey Podcast
A great supplement to teaching the hero’s journey Have you discovered “The Hero’s Journey” podcast? Subtitled “Books & Films Through a Mythical Lens,” this is a fantastically interesting podcast I used in February to supplement my hero’s journey lessons. Use the monthly show to introduce students to Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey in popular movies, someContinue reading “Check Out The Hero’s Journey Podcast”