Fellow English teacher Heather recently asked, “How do you do grades?” With her permission, I’m posting our email conversation in a Q&A format. Maybe you’re new to the classroom or, like Heather, just looking for a new approach. Either way, here’s a look at how I keep scores. Continue reading
Confession time: I’m Facebook dumb. I’ve never really understood social media. All that liking and tagging and following leaves me as confused as my grandpa at Starbucks.
All I want is a black cup of coffee. I mean, all I want is share cool ideas and resources with my English teacher friends. Continue reading
I hate name games. Painfully awkward, these games have never magically connected me to people just because they’ve repeated, “Her name’s Laura and she likes llamas.” Nope. Not happening around here, people. For the first day of school, I usually start with a one-minute welcome and intro. of my background, have students make name cards they […]
Do yourself a favor and allow this master storyteller to tell you about his senior prom. Hasan Minhaj, you may know him from The Daily Show, takes us back to 2003, when he was a Muslim teen growing up in mostly white Davis, California. No spoilers here, but I promise his story is one that’ll get your kids talking. Continue reading
Inspired by a meme in The Teacher Next Door’s awesome Facebook feed (you follow her page, right?), here are three new posters to help with back-to-school decorating. Pick your favorite or post ‘em all! Continue reading
If you want to use TEDTalks in your classroom but aren’t sure how to make them work, help has arrived! Continue reading
Last weekend, I received an email from Sarah, a freshly minted teacher looking for some help. With her permission, I’m posting our conversation in the hopes that it’ll answer questions other recent grads might be having, too Continue reading
