Many middle and high school English teachers are either reluctant to use picture books at all in their classrooms, OR they are interested but don’t know where to start. Grammar in particular is a great opportunity to include picture books, which can add color, imagery, and rhyming to enhance memory of rules. One way to get started would be to put these books around the room and let students rotate to them, taking notes on grammar rules or observations they take from each one! Chatting with me today is Christina Hanson, a picture book guru who blogs at Hanson Hallway (and who does the #ClassroomBookaDay routine with her middle schoolers)! Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. #1.  Twenty-Odd Ducks Sara : I love Twenty-Odd Ducks as a memorable way to teach hyphens and other punctuation marks (which is SO helpful if you’re a middle school teacher in particular, since some of the “fun” punctuation marks are in our Common Core standards). The whole book is built ......

What if we told you that a few careful clicks could help students turn in higher-quality work, and therefore save YOU some precious grading time?  The following technology hacks are short, doable skills that any English teacher can (or, perhaps, should?) teach. Even if you don’t have a strong background in technology, these are skills that students might not get elsewhere and definitely enhance outcomes in an ELA course. They’re a win-win! ...

Sara : It's not easy to surrender control and trust middle school students to make decisions that will impact your curriculum, classroom, or content.  But squeezing too tightly to your control can also choke their learning, especially in middle school, a time when students need to learn independent problem-solving.  Writing with me today is Darlene Anne ( the ELA Buffet ), a fellow middle school ELA teacher. ...

Consider your December lesson planning done! Christmas is a fun time for all involved, including teachers! If you're stumped for ideas on how you can bring the Christmas spirit into your English Language Arts class, here are a few ideas to help you get started. Fellow ELA teacher (and holiday guru) The Classroom Sparrow and I have compiled a list of of ideas to help you find the perfect match for your class. ...

So you’ve crafted the perfect discussion question about a chapter, but the room is full of crickets. Or, just as bad, you have to wrestle apart two students who have taken things personally and are now ready to rumble, Outsiders -style. How does an ELA teacher sneakily prevent literature discussions from going haywire, and what should we do in the heat of the moment when the drama begins? Chatting with me today are two AWESOME fellow teachers, Jonathan and Lisa from Created for Learning . ...

Determined to coach your students into a growth mindset? Want them to value learning, and not just grades, absorbing your feedback and persevering to the finish line? Well, as with most educational theories, fellow ELA teacher Mrs. Spangler in the Middle and I have found that there are some hurdles to getting middle school (and even high school) students into a growth mindset that actually sticks (and doesn't just sound good). The short answer: Encouraging a growth mindset in a vague way only helps to a point without addressing a student's underlying reason why he or she doesn't want to persevere . ...

This battle of wills is perhaps the most epic, universal, and notorious problem that English teachers face, even more than grading struggles: getting students to ACTUALLY read that book, short story, article, or poem. ...

The right guest speaker can get even the most grumpy teenagers to sit up straighter, lean in, and maybe put in a little more effort into your class. The best part? Many presenters will come to your class for free, will require low/ no prep on your part, and will lend their credibility to what you're currently teaching. Especially in the older grades, it's still important to invite any of these six types of speakers to your classroom, where they can add inspiration beyond what even the most talented teachers can do alone. Writing with me today is Danielle from Nouvelle ELA . ...

What do heavy backpacks, stuffed binders, and busy students all have in common? Information overload. Each school day, teens and tweens are being given worksheets, packets, readings, textbooks, and more… for six or more classes. Though not a cure-all, flip books are a great alternative to give students information or guide them through a sequence. Chatting with us today is Danielle Knight , a flip book guru and fellow English teacher! ...

One day, while tutoring, I asked a sophomore what he’d been doing in English class lately. To my horror, he replied, “Oh, we’re just doing a short story unit. But don’t worry, I don’t need your help with my homework for it… we’re just filling out some worksheets about each one .” Ouch. My English teacher heart was broken, because I’m pretty sure his English 10 teacher designed the unit with better objectives and intentions than just worksheets… but to the student, that’s all he was doing. That conversation has driven me to get more out of every text, short or long, and to make every story memorable through the skills, the experiences, or the factual knowledge gained. Teaming up with me to talk about this is Lauralee Moss from the Language Arts Classroom . ...

What is the second-hardest part of being an English teacher, after grading? For some of us, the answer is planning - specifically, how to design a curriculum that somehow “does it all” . We have to balance all the areas of ELA (literature, nonfiction, grammar, vocab, writing, and speaking), doing justice to each within the limited time constraints of the year (and the inevitable interruptions, snow days, or disasters that pop up…) And sometimes, that balance (even when well-intentioned) tips too far in one direction or another, leaving one of the six areas shortchanged. This task gets even harder if... 1. You teach a specialized English course (like British Lit, journalism, or speech), where you have a focus to honor but still have to meet a lot of unrelated standards 2. You also want to take on non-required, but important topics or skills (like note taking, technology, poetry, logic, etc.) 3. You don’t have a ton of guidance for your curriculum. (That freedom is......

Do you want (or need) to cut down on paper? Is there a paperless initiative at your school, a harsh photocopying limit, or new 1:1 technology in your classroom? (Or, are you simply tired of hauling 60+ journals to and from school?) Whether you’re already a digital native or are terrified of letting go of hard copies, here are 12 baby steps to start taking if you want to tiptoe (or cannonball) into a paperless classroom. Joining me today is Christina, who blogs at The Daring English Teacher . ...

There are three kinds of teacher-decorators: those who were born for Pinterest , those who can’t , and all the ones in between (such as the broke , the tired , and the I-have-no-time-to-decorate ). However, making a classroom appeal to middle and high school students doesn’t HAVE to involve serious crafting or expensive, time-intensive projects. Check out these tips from me and Bonnie from Presto Plans as you prepare your classroom for the fall (or at any time of year that you want to give it a boost!) You might also like Sara's more recent blog post, Inside My Farmhouse Classroom Makeover . ...

Congrats! You found out you've been assigned (or “voluntold”) to teach an elective. Maybe it's a course taught during the school day, or perhaps it’s an after-school extracurricular. ...but, what happens when that elective isn't something YOU did as a student, or your college degree(s) didn't really prepare you to teach it? How does one survive and thrive in an elective class that you have the passion, but perhaps not the training, to start? Below are some tips to help you begin. Sara has taught speech/debate before and coaches an award-winning creative writing team. Julie Faulkner has taught journalism and yearbook for 10 years! ...