Assessments, Best Practices, Reflections on Pedagogy, Teacher Tips, Technology Tips
Meredith Dobbs
Beyond the Test: 10 Innovative Ways to Assess ...

Are your students moaning and groaning over taking another test or writing another essay? While these are tried and true methods for assessing many skills, I have been on a mission to find more innovative, unique ways of assessing student growth and learning.

Beyond the Test: 10 Innovative Ways to Assess Secondary Students
Best Practices, Close Reading, Essay Writing, Lists, Writer's Notebook
Meredith Dobbs
20 Great Quotes to use as Mentor Sentences in ...

One of the best ways to teach students how to integrate literary and rhetorical devices into their writing is to imitate the style of great writers. Here are 20 Great Literary Quotes to use as Mentor Sentences in Secondary ELA...

20 Great Quotes to use as Mentor Sentences in Secondary ELA
Best Practices, Essay Writing, Literature Articles, Reflections on Pedagogy, Writer's Notebook, Freebies
Meredith Dobbs
The Writer's Notebook in Secondary ELA: ...

The Writer’s Notebook is the heart of the English classroom. It is the place that holds a student’s reflections on literature and life...

The Writer's Notebook in Secondary ELA: Introduction & FREE Guide
Bundles & Units, Close Reading, Lesson Planning, Literature Articles, Poetry, Writer's Notebook
Meredith Dobbs
The Romantics vs. the Imagists: A Comparison ...

Contrasting literary movements as a pedagogical approach to teaching literature is a debatable method, but I have found that juxtaposing literary movements...

The Romantics vs. the Imagists: A Comparison of Two Different Styles
Lesson Planning, Writer's Notebook, Holidays, Close Reading, Poetry, Bundles & Units, Best Practices
Meredith Dobbs
The Complex Themes of Winter Poetry: Creating ...

This winter season, I found myself missing the snow for the first time in my life because we made a big move from a cold climate where we have lived for the past six years to a warm climate where there is no snow.  I never fully realized... 

The Complex Themes of Winter Poetry: Creating a Winter Poetry Unit for Secondary ELA

Projects

, , , , , ,

The Junk Journal Novel Project for Secondary ELA

, , , , , ,
The Junk Journal Novel Project for Secondary ELA

While junk journals can vary from person to person, they generally share one primary characteristic: the journal is made with mostly a mix of found and recycled materials.

, , , , , ,

5 Things You can do with Google Slides in Secondary ELA

, , , , , ,
5 Things You can do with Google Slides in Secondary ELA

Google Slides has become my go-to platform for any type of distance learning or even for class activities. It’s a user-friendly platform that can be used for so many different purposes and lesson plans— from assessment to writing workshop!

, , , ,

Engaging Secondary Students with Crime Stories

, , , ,
Engaging Secondary Students with Crime Stories

There is a reason why crime stories dominate tv and film. People love them! They are equal parts mysterious, suspenseful, horrifying, gruesome, and terrifying. These are the exact traits that draw us in as viewers, and these are the exact same reasons why crime stories are an excellent way to engage secondary students.

, , , , , , ,

5 Innovative Activities & Projects for Any Novel Unit

, , , , , , ,
5 Innovative Activities & Projects for Any Novel Unit

As secondary ELA teachers, there are certain traditional activities that we tend to give our students during a novel study. These activities range from body maps to dialectical journals.

, , , , , , , , , ,

The Art of the One-Pager

, , , , , , , , , ,
The Art of the One-Pager

One-pagers are all the rage these days. When students process their learning in this fun visual style, the results are powerful.

, , , , , ,

National Poetry Month: A WHOLE MONTH of Poetry Activities for Secondary ELA

, , , , , ,
National Poetry Month: A WHOLE MONTH of Poetry Activities for Secondary ELA

Love it or hate it, poetry is unavoidable in the secondary ELA classroom.  I, for one, am a HUGE lover of poetry but fully acknowledge that it can be annoyingly cryptic at times.  Reading poetry reminds us that not all texts are meant to be beat "with a hose to find out what [they] really mean" like in the Billy Collins poem "Introduction to Poetry." 

, , , , ,

Screenwriting: A Creative Approach to Targeting the Common Core

, , , , ,
Screenwriting: A Creative Approach to Targeting the Common Core

Screenplay writing is a type of writing that we don't really address in secondary English Language Arts.  The closest students get to this type of writing is through reading drama.  But why is this the case in the 21st century classroom?