Tag Archives: Teachers

Make Better Poetry Chapbooks with This App

I made my own book using the app. Here it is. Now that National Poetry Month is half over — and with the school year winding down, too — it’s a good time to think about ways to publish your students’ poems. Did you know students can make a professional book for around $8 usingContinue reading “Make Better Poetry Chapbooks with This App”

Checked Out: Student Disengagement in the High School Classroom

Is thinking deeply a thing of the past? As I mentioned in my 2022 year-end post, I’ll be spending 2023 reading and researching on the loss of focus (and the disengagement it fosters) that we are witnessing in students today. To that end, I’m on a personal quest to read more about the phenomena thatContinue reading “Checked Out: Student Disengagement in the High School Classroom”

On Tap for 2023: Gatsby, Inspiration & Insights into Student Focus

Plus: my top ten posts of 2022 I savor these last moments of the holidays. They’re the perfect time to reflect, rethink, and redirect my site’s content to better serve you, my dear readers, in the coming year. In doing so, it’s always interesting to learn which posts resonated most strongly with readers throughout theContinue reading “On Tap for 2023: Gatsby, Inspiration & Insights into Student Focus”

Five Bell-Ringers for Middle Grades and High School

A Week’s Worth of Bell-Ringers Bell-ringer activities are a great way to start class, get kids settled in, and ready to learn. And I should probably clarify that perhaps I’m not using the term “bell-ringer” accurately. While these five activities could be used as true bell-ringers, with students starting them independently as soon as theyContinue reading “Five Bell-Ringers for Middle Grades and High School”

How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 5 of 5)

Indulge in literary travel Note: This is the last of five daily posts on how to spark, reignite, and maintain your passion for ELA. Click here for yesterday’s post: Reignite Your Passion for ELA Part 4 of 5: Transcribe a Movie. Other than my first year of teaching, the 2021-2022 school year was my mostContinue reading “How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 5 of 5)”

How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 4 of 5)

Transcribe a movie Note: This is the fourth of five daily posts on how to spark, reignite, and maintain your passion for ELA. Click here for yesterday’s post: Reignite Your Passion for ELA Part 3 of 5: Learn Something New. Other than my first year of teaching, the 2021-2022 school year was my most challenging.Continue reading “How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 4 of 5)”

How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 2 of 5)

Wear your reading passion Note: This is the second of five daily posts on how to spark, reignite, and maintain your passion for ELA. Click here for yesterday’s post, Reignite Your Passion for ELA Part 1 of 5: Memorize and Recite Poetry. Other than my first year of teaching, the 2021-2022 school year was myContinue reading “How to Reignite Your Passion for ELA (Part 2 of 5)”

The Great Gatsby: A Critical Thinking Reader’s Guide

The Jazz Age Journal The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is such a multilayered and evergreen text! I’ve read it myriad times, and — I’m sure you can relate — I discover a new idea or noticing every time I revisit it. It’s no wonder that this book is such a popular read forContinue reading “The Great Gatsby: A Critical Thinking Reader’s Guide”