Last year, I taught The Princess Bride in my classroom, which is a fairy tale satire. To make sure my students understood what, exactly, William Golding was making fun of, we spent about six days taking a deep look at fairy tales. I was amazed at the conversations we had. Students were struck by how the place […]
High School
Posted inSocial Studies
Why September 11, 2001 Needs To Be Mandated Curriculum
Many of my current sophomores were not alive on the day the world stopped turning. Most of my students are fifteen-years-old — these adolescents are the post-911 generation. They know no other reality than the war on terror. And yet, they know so little about the events of that tragic day. For example, when asked, […]
Posted inHigh School
The Great American School Shuffle
I am a bit of an eavesdropper. When I hear the word school uttered in a conversation near me, I perk up. Like a prairie dog popping out of its hole, my neck lengthens, and I turn my head towards the speaker. My nosey nature concerning talk of education has led me to two observations: A majority […]
Posted inBack to School
Digging Into Learning: Using Archaeology in the Classroom
There are some subjects that fascinate us. Archaeology is one such subject. Archaeology can take us to Egypt and the tombs of the Pharaohs, or unravel the mysteries in our own backyards. Many people go through an archaeology phase, though few become archaeologists. Plus, everyone likes digging in the dirt. The Society for American Archaeology […]
Posted inInstructional Strategies
Getting Students to Write (Part 1)
Getting students to write can be difficult. For students who don’t like writing, being confronted with a lengthy writing task will turn down the will and up the resistance quick. Think about it: they are uncomfortable for a reason. Who knows why: unsure of their skills, confused by the task, maybe just uninterested in that […]
Posted inFine Arts
Toni Morrison: Spilling over the Corners of Text
The developers of the Common Core, famed for limiting student readers to the “four corners of the text,” may not have selected to teach Toni Morrison novels to high school juniors or seniors. How could those admirers of New Criticism who believe that the student should not stray from a “painstakingly crafted text” ever negotiate […]
Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, High School, History
The Summer School Diaries
Six in the morning is early for any faculty meeting, especially on the Monday after the July 4th holiday, but I was told to report to the library in a large high school I have only driven past. Hired over the phone, I wonder what kind of Gong Show I am attending. Is my employment […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Alternative Seating: Another Support
When most of us think of a classroom, we think of the traditional setup: several rows of desks all facing a blackboard, projector, or whiteboard. If we’re really being daring, those desks might be in pods, or in stadium-style rows. Sometimes, we have…tables! But there is a new trend that has come back around recently, […]