Literary elements refers to the concepts that make up a story. There are five main literary elements that students should know: plot, setting, conflict, character, and theme. These five elements are essential to a students understanding of a story beyond comprehending the narrative.
The first week of school is so exciting! And if you are anything like me, you start thinking about what fun activities for the first week of school you can try out with your new students.
Maker spaces in the high school English classroom lead to students that are more engaged and active in their learning process
The end of the school year is one of the most exciting times for teachers and students. It is a time of transition and reflection. Best of all it is a time of celebration. Keep students engaged with these six creative and fun end of school year activities for high school.
Interviewing for a new English teaching position can be equal parts scary and exciting. In this blog post, I go over how I prepare for interviews.
Philosophical chairs are an activity that gets students to take a stance on a blanket statement and try to convince their peers to move to their side. For example, a topic might be “Water is wet” and students must decide if yes, water is wet, or no, water is not wet. They use argumentation and reasoning skills to sway their peers.
Don’t, and I mean DON’T, just buy all the books for your classroom library at full retail value. I know…
When I was in school, I knew the first few days of school would always be reading from the syllabus. It was mind-numbingly dull, did nothing to keep me awake, and was serious motivation to doodle and daydream. Years later, as a teacher, I would figure out that the first day of school didn’t have to be boring. Here are some ideas on fun things to do:
Okay, I know. Using really old texts by white guys seems like a recipe for poor classroom engagement. But it…
These activities are reflective and fun. Students get to demonstrate their creativity in these end of year activities with things like comics and collages, while looking back at their year. As teachers, we know how important it is to reflect on lessons, classroom management, and the year overall. And it is important to impart this skill on students as well.
