Eat Write Teach

It's the most wonderful time of the year! 🎮

A boring old multiple choice review activity becomes a lot more interesting when you add silent debate, cup towers, and thievery into the mix! Got this one from last summer!

2-Sentence Suspense Stories! 🎃

My freshmen are reading The Odyssey. This group is HIGHLY motivated by competition and social opportunities, so what better way to motivate them to work with this complex text than to gamify the unit?

If you haven't tried using a Bloom Ball as an alternative assessment, you should give it a go! I was really impressed with the thinking my seniors did with their teammates to create these for Beowulf! Swipe to see assignment guidelines.

I'm going to be a little vulnerable right now. I'm a 14th year teacher and I am drowning right now. Learning a new school environment is like being dropped off in the middle of a carnival and told to find the exit. Switching back to high school preps after a five year hiatus has been a challenge because high school changed A LOT in the five years I taught middle school.
My team members are incredible. They are kind, intelligent, professional women who are just a bit intimidating because of how much they kick ass. Their collective knowledge and resources have been so helpful in this adjustment. I also love my coach, who was my teacher when I was in school and is now my cheerleader as an adult. I have come into an environment that has strong systems in place and loads of support. Also, I LOVE my students!! Honestly, I am working with the most wonderful humans. 🖤💛

But... I'm still drowning. I'm going to learn how to swim in these new waters, and I've got the support I need to learn, but right now, I'm doing well to keep my face out of the water from time to time.

I share this because some of you might feel like you're drowning, and you might be wondering WHY you feel that way. I SHOULDN'T feel like this, right? I'm a good teacher. I'm an experienced teacher. But here I am. So if you're struggling, I see you. I feel for you. And I know if you're splashing, you're trying and you're learning. We will get this figured out. And then we'll start kicking ass too. 🖤✌🏻

2023/2024 is underway! New school, new room, same vibe. ✌🏻

When I found out I could theme my classroom however I wanted back in 2018, I knew I wanted to create the same vibe as a local coffee shop I frequent, including a bar made of dark wood with a countertop for students to sit at. My dad is quite the carpenter and he's always had a gift for making my visions a reality.
When I decided to switch schools, one of the first things he asked was if the bar would be staying behind. So I made this face 😁😁😁 and asked if he'd maybe help me move it to my new room.
Between my father and my husband, they were able to get this giant, heavy, gorgeous desk moved to its new home. It's perfect here.

Chapter 13 has come to a close with a plot twist. I will be returning to the world of high school English this fall. I packed up my middle school classroom (it only took 5 car loads 🫠) and I'm gradually turning a new classroom into a new home. There's just something about packing up a classroom, especially one where so many great memories were made, that really punches an already tender heart. I hope you'll stick around to see what I get myself into next. 🐾🖤💛

Hey friends it's been ages but I made you a TikTok about Google Forms forgive me 🙃
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRsbJSxg/

My students are working on argument writing. In the past, I've always had students choose a side of an issue from a list I've provided, and then the students have the option to either write a formal paper or participate in a formal debate with students who support the opposing side. This year though, I have noticed more than ever before that my students tend to be incredibly passionate about their opinions and extremely close-minded about the other side. There is this idea that, if they understand one side, they understand the whole issue. That's problematic.

This year, we began with this giant piece of yellow paper and a massive group brainstorm. Students walked around the paper and added debatable topics, position statements, questions, and ideas. They were encouraged to build branches off of each other's ideas and to contribute their own. I loved seeing my students' passion on paper like this, and the conversations they had were really wonderful.

Now, each student will select an issue. They can choose something they already have an opinion on, or they can choose an issue that they want to learn more about. They will write a formal paper that takes one position, but then they will create a multimedia project that takes the opposing position. It's my hope that they will learn the value of looking at an issue from multiple perspectives. Stay tuned!

I made a TikTok. Feeling pretty hip. 🆒
https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPdSAguDu/

Anybody else really enjoy giving feedback on student writing but really hate how time-consuming it is? Just me? 🫠

Teacher friends, take note!

This teacher is a national treasure.

Find a marigold. Don't be a walnut tree.
https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/marigolds/

Honestly, cleaning out cabinets and setting up for a new school year is very therapeutic for me. I love throwing junk away and organizing the remaining junk.