What does workshop actually look like in a secondary classroom?
I get a lot of emails every week asking a wide range of questions. One question that seems to come up over and over again is, what does workshop actually look like in a...
Your First Mini Lesson of the School Year: How Workshop is Like Playing Fortnite Battle Royale
There are so many things we need to accomplish the first week of school. We need to get to the content but we also need to teach students about how our class will run...
Life Changing Podcasts and Books for Teachers
Teaching is such a demanding job that requires constant energy. And when school ends abruptly it can leave us feeling empty and looking for ways to fill the void. Here is a big lists of podcasts and books that can help!
Noise Levels in the Workshop Classroom: What They Are, How to Teach Them & How to Hold Students Accountable to Them
Kids love to talk to each other, they are human and humans are social! In a classroom of thirty plus secondary students how can we balance allowing that innate need to...
5 Common Distracting Student Behaviors During Writing Workshop & What to do About Them
Teaching writing is so hard! There are many reasons why, but one of the main reasons is distracting student behavior! With a plan in place, your ability to handle the...
13 Creative Assessment Ideas for Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening
English teachers often default to essays, quizzes and tests as assessments. Figuring out creative ways to assess beyond this can be challenging. So, I've teamed up with...
How to Write Your Own Mini Lessons
Teachers are busy and don’t have time to go looking for mini lessons. If you do have time, here are The Best Places to Find Mini Lessons Online. However, if you you don’t have time, like most teachers on planet Earth, then you’ll want to come up with your own mini lessons.
5 Exciting Ways to Introduce Your Writing Unit!
So you want to excite students about your upcoming writing unit? Before I wrote this post I asked some 7th and 8th grade students this question... What could teachers...
5 Fun Activities to do with Your Students the Day After Coming Back from a Long Break
Coming back to school after having two weeks off (or the summer off) can be really rough for students and teachers. The last thing anyone wants to do is get right back to work the first day back. It’s important for us to reconnect with our students, have some fun and listen to what they’ve been up to the last few weeks/months. Here are five activities that can help you do just that!
5 Super Fun, Simple Games to Play with Your Class…Whenever!
Sometimes we just need to have fun with our students and what better way than with simple classroom games? Having fun is important for many reasons some of which...
I’m More than an English Teacher
Don't have time to read? I received an email recently (I love receiving emails from teachers who read my blog!) asking me a really interesting question... Do you do...
The Beginner’s Guide to Writing Workshop
Many secondary teachers, like you, are beginning to realize the power of running their English classes using writing workshop. Maybe you keep seeing references to it on...
10 Ways to Make Grading Writing Easier
Don't have time to read this article? Listen here! Grading hundreds of papers is the bane of an English teacher's existence. Don't get me wrong. I love being able to...
Mentor Texts for Middle School by Genre+Summaries and Skills to Teach
Amanda Write Now · 29. Middle School Mentor Texts Every writing unit should start with mentor texts. Students need many examples of the type of writing we expect them...
We Need to Stop Neglecting Fiction
Don't Have Time to Read? Fiction writing is neglected in English classes everywhere for many reasons. We don't have enough time. Or we are afraid students...