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If you had asked me earlier in my career whether I wanted my students to use a tool to correct their grammar, such as Grammarly, my answer would have been heck no. However, after a few years, I have seen the benefits of Grammarly as an excellent tool for students in my high school English …
Keeping writing fresh in high school can be a real challenge. We all have a variety of tips and tricks for teaching writing; in fact, we’ve written a bunch of them on this very site! But what about how to take writing to a next level? There are additional aspects of style and rhetorical elements …
Writing is hard. Teaching writing is even harder. For some, it comes naturally. For others, it is quite a struggle. My favorite writing strategy is using a joint construct to help students understand what I am expecting in their writing. What is a joint construct? Let’s start from the beginning. A joint construct is when …
We have all entered a professional development session thinking about the never-ending to-do list we have as teachers. Add the additional steps for English teachers to grade the piles of paragraphs, essays, and presentations. I end up feeling disgruntled sitting in a meeting that feels like it could have been an email or filled with …
Engaging middle school students in the creative writing process can be a challenge. Often, emphasis is placed on non fiction and essay writing skills. Because of this, creative writing is often pushed to the wayside. However, providing students opportunities to practice creative writing strategies is crucially important. In Writing: Teachers and Children at Work, Donald …
As teachers we all know that giving students the opportunity to write regularly is key to improving their writing ability and stamina. With shorter class periods and so many standards to cover, how can it be done without creating more grading on your part and still be effective? I knew it wasn’t enough for students …
I love using picture books. Anytime I can, I do. I find that they engage and excite my students instantly. As teachers, we have the students who love writing and the ones who would rather be doing anything else. This year, my class is filled with students who despise writing. I am constantly trying to …
Teaching students to write opinion pieces can be challenging for a number of reasons. For starters, students may not like having to be vulnerable by taking a stance on an issue, and even once they choose a stance, many will teeter between both sides of the argument, making their writing less impactful. Without the proper …
The very idea of grammar has students immediately turned off, right? There’s something about it that is dull and difficult and students don’t often see the importance or the benefit to understanding how a sentence works. We know as language-lovers that it’s crucial to correctly word a sentence in order to build better and more …
Writing instruction can be difficult under the best of circumstances. Among the challenges 2020 has ushered in has been teaching writing in a variety of formats. Whether you are teaching face-to-face, hybrid, or fully virtual, writing instruction has needed a serious upgrade to keep up with the obstacles this year has presented. Below are five …
