In years past, teachers were seen as the authoritative, all-knowing figure who determined a student's success with their choices of literature, assignments, and tests.  As you might remember from your own school years, this type of power struggle didn't benefit all the students. If anything, many students became less engaged in classroom discussion and viewed […]

I'm thrilled to welcome  University of Oklahoma graduate, Dr. Christine Chapman, Ph.D to discuss some important steps to building trust in the classroom. This topic is especially important to me as a White woman serving diverse communities. I know this topic is important outside of my context since 80 percent of public school teachers are […]

How do you feel about using ChatGPT in English classes? I know, that's a loaded question with lots of teacher reactions running the gamut from loving the idea of learning something new to dreading the day students will use this tool to cheat on their writing assignments.  Even if you had a middle-of-the-road reaction, I invite […]

The idea of "going gradeless" in today's traditional schools is a new concept to parents but one that will ensure their children learn instead of simply learning for the sake of passing a test. My guest is Deanna Lough who has taught for the better part of two decades, at both middle and high school levels. […]

How often do you think about the culture of your school, or even your classroom? Is it a place where different opinions are welcome? Or do your students feel like they need to tailor their assignments to please your viewpoint? Andre Daughty has spent many years of his career teaching teachers and administrators about how important […]

Sticking to your "tried and true" writing prompts can make your workflow easier, but when it comes to adolescent writing motivation, sometimes a change of pace is necessary.  Just because last year's class loved what you presented doesn't mean that this year's class will find the same motivation to share their stories. In today's episode, I […]

Note: Scroll down to access the podcast player. As wonderful as the internet is in today's modern world, it also provides a host of threats that students don't understand or don't want to believe can affect them. Online safety training is one area of knowledge that seems to fall upon ELA teachers to dispense, simply […]

Note: Scroll down to access the podcast player. I’m pleased to be joined by a repeat guest today, Dr. Jennie Hanna. You might remember she was a guest on Episode 16 where we talked about how to make military children feel safe and seen in the classroom when so many feel they should recede into […]

Note: Scroll down to access the podcast player.When it comes to inspiring kids to write, it's one thing for a teacher to praise students for their skills and creativity but it's another thing entirely to SHOW them that they can become a published author. And that's exactly what Project VOICE aims to do. Jamie Hinds and […]

A large part of gaining the trust of a classroom full of students is to get to know them on a personal basis. Yes, it's difficult when you have a hundred or so students parading through your classroom on a daily basis; however, taking an interest in their lives leads to real, authentic learning. So, let […]