10 Must-Teach Vocabulary Words
I’ve written a lot about how teaching vocabulary can be engaging as well as how to help students retain new word meanings. In this new post, I’m writing about specific…
ELA Class Structure: A How-to Guide
Structuring an ELA curriculum is similar to wardrobe shopping. We all have our personal preferences, our go-to pieces, and our timeless shirts, skirts, or pants. Yet, shopping with friends is…
Engaging Post-Reading Activities
Whether your students are engaged in whole-class texts, literature circles, book clubs, or independent reading, you’ll need to gauge their analytical thinking. There are traditional assessment tools, like summary writing,…
Lesson Planning Tips: The Anticipatory Set
And today, class, we will be talking about William Shakespeare and the Globe Theater. Please get out your notebooks and pens while I pull up the slide show. Are you…
Back to School Planning for Teachers
Preparing to go back to school? Whether you’re a veteran, a new teacher, or somewhere in between, heading back to the classroom can be overwhelming. In this post, you’ll find…
Creating a Reading Culture that Inspires Secondary Students
Creating an environment that encourages students to love reading and to want to grow in their comprehension and analysis skills is an undertaking. To get a pulse on your classroom’s…
Transition to High School: Executive Functioning Skills Secondary Students Need
Deer in the headlights. That’s kind of what it feels like to look out at a sea of freshmen who are just transitioning to high school. One of the first…
Best Books for English Teachers: Professional Development
Most teachers read professional development books over the summer months. Sometimes, groups of educators get together and tackle them as part of a school-wide or department-wide book study during the…
Reader’s Notebooks in Secondary ELA
Considering diving into reader’s notebooks with middle and high school students? You’ll have some decisions to make! Reader’s notebooks are not a new concept, but recently, I’ve had several discussions…
Classroom Setup Ideas for Secondary
Arranging your secondary classroom for the first time, or maybe just looking for ways to switch things up? In this post, you’ll find over 20 helpful ideas for everything from…
Reading Bulletin Boards: Bookish Culture Ideas for Middle and High School
You know the the feeling you get when you walk into a classroom in which there is a true love and appreciation for books? It’s palpable. I like to call…
Summer Learning Activities: How Teachers Can Support Parents
Looking for meaningful summer learning activities for teens? This post contains rewarding ideas for working with older students during the summer months. It’s the end of the year. You’ve made…
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