I first started teaching Annie John in the early 2000s, and it’s always been a surprise to me that it’s not more of a staple in high school English Classes.  With themes of growing up and coming of age, it’s such a classic choice for teens, and yet it doesn’t focus on white boys and their problems, and so it’s refreshing and compelling.  (Now that I think about it, maybe that’s the real reason why it isn’t taught more often….)

Just about every high school student will take American Literature at some point in their lives.  What I remember from my high school experience was reading a bunch of dead white males whose experiences and ideas really had no relevance to my life.  (Don’t get me wrong—I love a good description of a sinner hanging like a spider over the fires of hell, but there’s just so much more to explore!) I think that where teachers often go wrong is

How do you teach students to actually understand how figurative language or other literary elements function to create meaning in a text? In my experience, the higher the level of thinking you require from your students, the more they’ll benefit by a breaking down of the steps to get there.  Sure, every once in a while you’ll come across a kid who can just naturally and effortlessly analyze a literary text, but honestly that’s like one in a thousand.  

There is so much incredible art to explore from Harlem Renaissance, that it might seem overwhelming to do the movement justice.  I’ve spent a lot of time researching and reading and exploring to put together a complete unit on the Harlem Renaissance, and this is what I’ve learned about what is most important to include in yours. Here are my top 8 tips for teaching a great unit on the Harlem Renaissance. Ready to teach a unit that is based

Ready to integrate more Native voices into your curriculum this year?   While trickster tales, creation myths, and other traditional stories definitely have their place in an American literature curriculum, it’s important that your students don’t get the message that Indigenous literature is only something from the past or something to read about in their history books.  In fact, if you’re not intentionally integrating current writers in your plans, you might be inadvertently giving your classes the message that Native

If you have students over the age of 16, they’ll be eligible to vote in the next presidential election.  Will they have the information to make the best decisions for themselves and their country?  If they’re making their choices based on fake news—or misinformation and disinformation—the consequences of those choices could hurt us all. You know that you need to teach your students to be more savvy consumers of digital information who are equipped with the correct tools for evaluating

It’s the end of the school year—how can you possibly get your ELA students excited about learning when summer vacation beckons? One word: choice. If you’ve spent any time around teens, you know the ticket to success in their learning is giving them as much choice as you can.  When they choose what they will learn and the stories they will tell, they feel empowered and engaged.  And they know that you care about their interests.  Here are my top

I have come to admit that my students get more out of the books they choose to read on their own than almost anything I assign to them.  I also know that their lives don’t always allow them time to get lost in a book while they are surrounded by a quiet, calm atmosphere.  So when I can, I structure in some time for independent reading workshop including writing regular reading responses based on one of two different structures.   

I’m always on the lookout for a great new text that will impact my students and also be enjoyable to teach.  And when I do find that gem that has for some reason been hidden from me, I want other high school teachers to experience it as well.  I can get kind of excited about new discoveries, especially when they add diverse voices and views to my curriculum.  I created this unit on “Sweat”  and now I want everyone to