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

Halloween

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5 Must-Read Gothic Short Stories for High School Students

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5 Must-Read Gothic Short Stories for High School Students

As students read each Gothic text, they can begin to build a list of identifying traits and then create their own definitions of the Gothic genre. I like to have students create a definition essay as a culminating assignment for the unit; alternatively, students can construct a presentation and/or write their own original short stories using the traits they’ve observed from texts in the unit.

Here are five must-read Gothic short stories for high school students.

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High-interest Halloween Activities & Lessons for Secondary ELA

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High-interest Halloween Activities & Lessons for Secondary ELA

It’s that time of year when we get to tap into the high-interest season of Halloween and use it to our advantage as writing teachers! Halloween means Edgar Allan Poe, Gothic stories, mysteries, and all things secondary students LOVE!

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6 Spooky and Engaging Halloween Activities & Lessons for Secondary ELA

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6 Spooky and Engaging Halloween Activities & Lessons for Secondary ELA

Halloween is a season during the school year when we can really engage our students.  Secondary students love gothic, horror, and mystery, and Halloween gives us a reason to integrate these literary genres into our curriculums.  Halloween provides us an opportunity to target necessary skills with high-interest material.