High School English and TPT Seller Resources
Blog posts pertaining to literature in the high school English classroom.
One of my greatest accomplishments in the classroom was my independent reading program. For thirty minutes every week, you could hear a pin drop in my room as students read. Sure, not every kid turned into a voracious reader, but they all at least pretended to look like they were reading. In this post, I will walk you through the steps of creating your own independent reading program.
Read MoreWhen you think of rigorous teaching, you might not think of graphic novels right away. They seem too easy and too simplistic for any meaningful novel study, right? Well, actually, graphic novels have a lot to offer young students. In this post, I hope to share a few quick tips for teaching with graphic novels.
Read MoreI love designing units around essential questions, so when I began planning my The Hate U Give unit plan, that’s where I started. I’ve talked before about why I love teaching The Hate U Give, but in this post, I want to share exactly how I use essential questions to connect the novel with real life.
Read MoreThinking about teaching a social justice unit in your class? Whether you’re reading a social justice novel or just examining a societal injustice, these three activities will engage your students with the material.
Read MoreYou’ve established independent reading in your classroom. Congratulations! But now what? How do you make independent reading meaningful for students? Once students are actually reading, there are many independent reading activities you can do to...
Read MoreLet’s talk about the “F-word.” Feminism, that is! Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu is a fantastic YA novel about girl power and women’s rights. In this post, I hope to help you determine if Moxie deserves...
Read MoreI could not put We Are Not From Here down while reading it. This story about immigration, family, sacrifice, and the American Dream is full of adventure, hope, and heartbreak. If you’re looking for a young adult novel to add to your English class curriculum or classroom library, this is one you won’t want to miss.
Read MoreLately, everywhere I turn teachers are talking about literature circles--and for good reason! If you’re looking for a way to create rigor in your classroom and to cultivate authentic, real-life skills in your students, then literature circles may just be the activity your curriculum needs!
Read MoreAre you ready to teach a novel that students will love? Want to discuss complex ideas with the teenagers in your classroom? All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brenden Kiely is a novel that will allow you to do all that and more! While there is a multitude of reasons to incorporate it into your curriculum, this blog post will cover 3 reasons why you need to teach All American Boys.
Read MoreSo, you’re teaching horror stories, but you don’t want to do the same, boring unit that everyone else does? You want your students to be engaged, creative, but to also learn the foundational purpose and practices of the horror genre. In this blog post, I’ll cover 5 tips for teaching horror stories so that your unit will stand out!
Read More
