Hamartia and the Modern Reader

An article written in 2008 by Lionel Shriver entitled “Missing the Mark” still rings true today.  Even though the article is largely about the dissappearance of quotation marks in dialogue, Shriver points out that the reason that the creation of new literary works are on the decline in the United States is simply because the

Analytical Thinking and the Modern High School Student

I am one month into springing my common core lesson plans on my 11th grade English students.  They seemed to be doing quite well with it, but today I said something to them that caused them to completely flatline. This all began with an essay I assigned last week.  They were given a poem (a

Common Core Posters That Teach Writing Skills

I have been teaching Advanced Placement Language and Composition and Literature for over 10 years.  If you have been teaching any form of Advanced Placement, I have news for you: You are already teaching to common core standards.  Many teachers this time of year are scrambling to decorate their classrooms to best utilize the learning

5 Things I Learned About Effective Schools

For the past two weeks, I attended a Gear Up conference which was designed to help us implement the Common Core Standards, but also help us create a high performance learning environment in our school.  Here are some things I learned: 1.  Schools Are Museums – Technology is advancing at an alarming rate.  It is

Grant Wiggins Tells the Truth About Pacing Guides

I read this blog post the other day and had to reblog it. The more people who read this article the better. Hopefully the powers that be will listen so that teachers will be spared more meaningless paperwork. Granted, and… “What do you think about district pacing guides?” I am asked this question a lot.

The Whole Novel Method: Teaching Students to Think

I have discovered a way to teach novels or literature while teaching writing that best balances the learning experience for English students and gives us the tools to succeed in keeping with the Common Core Standards (CCS).  I did not come up with this method on my own, but found out about it through a

Common Core Standards: Requiring Students to Think

  As an English teacher in Oklahoma, I have been under the failed No Child Left Behind rules for some time now.  Recently, NCLB was “forgiven” for my state by the president.  I guess this means that we are not to be held accountable by the federal government if a student is truly “left behind.”