Crossing over

The first week back to school after winter break is usually a tough one. Take for instance, my homeroom. One would have thought they had walked into a busy 20-something bar (minus the alcohol), with all the varying conversations, yelling over each other, and water bottles flipping so hard that they resembled hard-core bass being spun by a stocking-hat wearing D.J.

I was never a fan clubs in my 20s. In my mid-thirties, I have less patience for noise, especially at 7:55 a.m. on a Tuesday. But, I get it. Students needed to hug their friends, gossip about all that had happened in the 10 days since they last saw each other, and generally, be a kid. So, for 25 minutes, Club322 was open for business, that is until breakfast was over and we reverted back to Room 322, Literacy Class.

Engaging students after a break can, flip or flop (HGTV fans, get it?!). My goal – flip students from their vacation brains back to their engaged, critical-thinking school brains. Easy, right?!

Of course, nothing is easy when it comes to middle school students! I knew I had to “hook” them and I had just the tool – Kwame Alexander‘s fantastic novel, The Crossover. Seriously, if you have not read this one, I encourage beg you to do so.

Reasons why I love The Crossover (and why your students will too!)

• It’s written in poems. Most students (and some teachers, including myself) struggle with writing poetry. Thus, teaching it usually makes me utter things like, “Ughhhhhhhh” – let me just say, the struggle has always been real. Until now.  The Crossover allows students the opportunity to read various types of poems, which obviously lends itself to teaching poetry – it’s a win-win for teachers! My students are so engaged in this book and I’m even learning that my spoken word is pretty on point (a student told me this, so it’s clearly true). I mean, just look at this poem and tell me you’re not dying to read more…
• Sports. If you’re a middle schooler, chances are, you’re hype about some kind of sport. If you’re a middle school boy, that sport is probably basketball. The Crossover is about basketball, which will already appeal to many students. But of course, there are those who sit at their desks and glare at me, thinking, I hate sports, therefore I will hate this book. This is where I say, “Not so fast, because aside from basketball, this book also has…”
• Drama!!!! Lots of drama. Back-stabbing friend/family drama. Girl/boy drama. Sports drama. Rivalry. Okay, now most (if not all) of my students are engaged.
• Creative opportunities. I assigned a Poetry Book as an ongoing assignment while we read the novel. Alexander does a great job incorporating a variety of poems in this book, so why not use it as a teaching tool?! 
• Annotating text. My students have annotated and close read text this year, so poetry is a great way for them to practice utilizing those skills. I’m sure they’ll come in handy on some state-wide assessment later this spring, so this is my way of “teaching to the test” without “teaching to the test.”

I’m using Socratic Seminars with this novel – more about that in another blog post. So far, I’m pleased with how engaged my students are and I’m even more excited that my school got me a class set of Alexander’s novel, Booked! Some of my students spied this in the back of my room and can’t wait to get their hands on it. Now that’s what I call motivation!

How do you engage students after a long break?

 

 

 

Reflecting

Perhaps the most important aspect of teaching is reflecting. There is no “perfect” teacher, which is probably why I spend most of my sleepless nights thinking of ways to improve my craft. It’s not surprising that I am unable to catch a few zzz’s because my brain is forever on teacher mode. Thankfully, I’ve discovered melatonin works wonders when I actually do want to get some sleep!

Even though I’ve been teaching middle school for over a decade, I still lament on what I can change to make the educational experience my students receive the best one I can give them. I knew this school year would be special, in that my sixth graders will be the first ones to graduate eighth grade from my school. Also, I could potentially be their teacher for three years. Looping with students is a great way for teachers to see just how much impact they have made with individuals and while I’m excited to see my students grow, I’m also proud of the growing I have done as an educator.

Some things that worked in 2016:

• Classroom Library Fixer-Upper: As a literacy teacher, a library is perhaps the most important space in the classroom. However, for years, my library lacked books, character, seating and was what the kids would call a “Hot Mess.” So, I began the task of sprucing up and organizing my library and I hoped it would cultivate a classroom full of readers. And…it worked! I even made it look appealing, which makes all the difference to a classroom of pre-teens. My students are book-crazy, which makes me enjoy purchasing books for them. Over the break, I bought all the Twilight books because many of them read the Twilight graphic novel I bought and requested the print books 🙂
• Tracking Reading Progress: I began using this reading log as a way for students to track their progress with books. Not only were students excited about creating (and achieving) their reading goals, they were reflecting on their reading. With a hearty curriculum that doesn’t always lend itself to specific writing instruction, the reading logs ensure that my students are writing every day.
• Assigning Homework: I used to assign homework every night. Then, I would spend my entire planning period the next day checking homework and writing homework notices for students who did not do the homework. I would then spend a good portion of class reviewing the homework. Sound exhausting? It was. So I stopped. I now only assign homework a few nights a week. I’m still trying to step away from worksheet-type homework and only use it when it reinforces a skill from class. My goal for 2017 is to have students write more for homework and do so on Google classroom, where it’s easy for me to give the instant feedback they crave.

Some things I’m excited to try in 2017:

• Mentor Sentences: I read this blog post and realized that mentor sentences could definitely fit into my practice, especially since my students do not have a designated writing class or grammar curriculum. I have always struggled with teaching grammar because grammar is rarely in anyone’s curriculum anymore. Some teachers graze over it, some teach it in-depth, and some avoid it. Thus, by the time students get to me in middle school, their grammar knowledge is all over the place.
• Reading Workshop: I have typically taught whole-class books (although every section does not necessarily read the same book). However, while whole-class novels can be a great way to engage readers at the beginning of the year, the whole-class novels are difficult to sustain. I always have students who finish the book early, those who never finish it and those who actually follow the assigned reading. With reading workshop, I could do more literature circle activities with small groups of students and still do a whole-class read-aloud. While I have implemented literature circles in the past, reading workshop also allows space for guided reading groups. This semester, I will have a student teacher, a special education support teacher (and her student teacher) and possibly a reading specialist. With all of these adults in the room, I’m more confident that reading workshop will be a success!

Overall, the longer I teach, the more I learn that it’s okay not to be perfect. I’ve learned to slow down and not rush through materials just because the state or school says I have to. I take time to reflect and I give that same consideration and time to my students. Because in the end, I learn just as much from them as they do from me. Here’s to 2017 and all of the learning and reflecting that will come along the way!

 

What my students are reading

One thing I’m super proud about this year is my classroom library and the fact that I allow students to read whatever they want from my library. Student choice is super important, especially for pre-teens.

I recently ordered some more books for my library and during book talks one day, I mentioned this to my students. They immediately began calling “dibs” on specific books. Each morning, they came in asking if the books had arrived. When the books finally did arrive one day after school, I walked into a colleague’s classroom (which is also used to house homework detention), Amazon box in hand. “Are those the books?!” a student shouted excitedly. I opened the box more quickly than a kid unwrapping Christmas presents. My students looked on with suspense and amazement and launched themselves at the box’s contents. Usually, I do not allow books to leave my classroom. However, I made an exception for these few detention-goers who wanted to read during detention. I didn’t think the detention monitor would mind (and I was over-the-moon thinking to myself, This is the reading culture I have created!)

So what are my students so excited about reading these days?

1.) The Baby-Sitters Club Graphics I recently bought numbers 3&4 to complete my Baby-Sitters Club graphic collection (they only make 1-4 in graphics). My students are now begging me to get the “original” books because after reading the graphic novels, they want to know what happens next! While many teachers have qualms about graphic novels, I see them as a gateway to more difficult texts.

2.) Dork Diaries I only have books 1-3 (just ordered 4), and my students (especially girls) LOVE these books. I think the content really speaks students about life as a pre-teen.

3.) Mike Lupica My boys especially enjoy Lupica’s books, which have themes centered around sports, friendships and difficult decisions teens face.

Recently, I made a “Book Wish List” on my whiteboard. Students add books they want me to get for the classroom. Aside from the ones listed above, a student wrote “More LGBT books.” At the beginning of the school year, many students did not know what LGBT was. Now, they want to read more stories with protagonists who are LGBT.

This year, my students are curious and excited about reading. No matter what state test data says, this is a win in my book.

 

Lumping it together with Humanities

When I obtained my first job as a ninth grade teacher, I signed on to teach a class called “Humanities,” which weaves together literature, social studies and writing. In theory, this seems like a great idea. After all, most history lends itself to literature. And writing? Well, you can infuse writing into anything!

I wish I could tell you that my year teaching Humanities was a success. The harsh reality was that it was a hot mess. I felt overwhelmed with content. I was the jack of all trades and the master of none.

Luckily, the school scratched Humanities the following year and replaced it with separate writing, literature and history classes. From that point forward, I was able to focus solely on my literature and writing sections. Students were gaining more meaning from texts and learning the principles of writing.

Recently, I learned that my current school is moving to a Humanities model for middle school students. I tried thinking of this is a positive light and came up with the following:

• Modules that lend themselves to project-based learning are readily available for use. I’ve used these modules before and they are jam-packed with great lessons, handouts, texts, etc. This saves a lot of planning time creating lessons. However, they obviously need to be tweaked depending on each class, which can add to planning time.
• The history portion lends itself to a lot of place-based writing opportunities. I facilitate a summer writing program where place-based writing is the focal point. I strongly believe that students take away more from experiences if they are immersed in them.

While Humanities classes offer some valuable learning opportunities, I still have concerns:

• Where does formal writing instruction fit in? Writing is an area where my students need explicit instruction on the basics (how to write a sentence, sentence structure/variety, etc.) In a humanities curriculum, it is very difficult to teach the basics alongside everything else that comes along with “Humanities.”
• Book choices are limited. I love choosing class novels based on student interest. However, now all of my novels have to contain a history component. This leaves little room for high-interest novels.
• I’m not SuperTeacher. I can’t do it all – rolling three subjects into one and giving me a module with all the materials you think I need is not only demeaning my expertise, but it’s a disservice to my students.

As it stands, my cry for a separate writing course will likely not come to fruition for my current students in years to come thanks to budget woes. I have considered scrapping reading instruction for the rest of this year and only focusing on writing. I want them to be prepared for whatever next year brings and I’m willing to make difficult sacrifices.

My students struggle with writing. I can’t do it all, but I can give them what I know they need.

Do you teach a Humanities course? If so, I’d love your input!

 

Critical thinking with a character analysis

Part of my job is to get students to think critically. This involves students diving deeper into texts we read instead of just answering basic recall and surface questions. I want students asking questions of the text.

This sounds easy. However, in a test-taking culture, where students are trained to locate the correct answer, asking them to justify their responses is harder than it looks. I have found that students are wary of being wrong. They struggle to express they “why” of their answers. They are scared of being incorrect. They think there is only one correct answer.

My job is to get them to view literature and writing as a way of proving themselves. I relate justifying answers to being a detective on Law & Order – you have to find evidence in a case in order to prove a person’s guilt or innocence. My students really relate to this comparison (clearly, Law & Order marathons are not just for adults!).

I start by taking a concept they are familiar with (character traits) and have them justify character traits by locating a quote in the text as support. Once students are able to locate evidence, I walk them through the process of analyzing the trait. This is the critical thinking aspect and it usually requires lots of modeling and re-teaching. I find that students often give surface information as their analysis.

After reviewing student work, such as the example above, I had to re-teach how to analyze a character’s actions. With this particular example, I would put it under my document camera and walk students through the process. I might say, “Max is yelling for help because Kevin can’t breathe – what does this tell you about who Max is as a person?”

After a few teacher-led examples, I hand brainstorm sheets back to students and have them re-work their analysis. Students who still struggle work with me in small groups.

My hope is that the more I allow students to justify and explain themselves, the better equip they will be for life. Also, most of the math on state assessments these days asks students to explain their answer, so essentially I am preparing them for “the test.” They don’t need to know that though 😉

What are some strategies you use to help your students think critically?

Sharing Writing Publicly

Perhaps the most important aspect of writing is when your work is shared publicly. I’m most proud of my writing pieces that have been published in print and online, mostly because it means people besides myself have access to it. Students get the same excitement and pride when their work is shared publicly.

Making time and space for students to share their work is just as important as the work itself. Teaching students how to critique work and how to accept criticism is a life skill they will certainly utilize as they transform into adulthood. In middle school, a time when character development is critical, it is especially meaningful when teachers offer guidance and activities that allow students to become well-rounded individuals.

I’ve used Linda Christensen’s “Read-Around” activity for years (from this book, which is like my teaching bible) and it’s always proven to be a success with students. While I tailor it to my students’ needs each year, I find that with consistent implementation, students, 1.) Find more pleasure in writing; 2.) Learn how to give meaningful feedback; 3.) Learn how to accept feedback that is critical of their work.

A student reading her work during a read-around

My current class had their first read-around last week. I always have students move the desks and put chairs in a circle. This promotes positive classroom community and also ensures that the speaker and audience can see/hear everyone.

I create a rubric so that students are able to critique their peers’ work. It also holds them accountable for actively participating and listening. Since this was our first read-around, the rubric was rather basic, asking students to list one “glow” (something the author did well) and one “grow” (something the author could improve).

Students give feedback on a rubric

Prior to the read-around, we discussed examples of exemplar and non-exemplar “glows” and “grows.” For instance, saying a paper is “good” is not very helpful to the writer; saying their use of statistics helps to persuade readers is a better and more specific “glow.”

Since this was our first read-around, I had students volunteer to read their essays – no pressure! I tell students that my expectation is that everyone reads out loud in a read-around this year. I realize that for some students, public speaking is scary, so I never force them to read aloud at a given time, but I continue to enforce my expectation that they do it at least once and they always rise to meet it. What I’ve found is that with consistent implementation of read-arounds, these students will eventually become comfortable and feel that the space is safe enough for them to face their fear without pressure.

How do you allow students to share their work?

The Power of Peer Editing

“Yessssss!!! OMG, I’ve been waiting for this!”

Comments like the ones above are what I heard when I announced that we were at the peer editing station where students check for conventions. Red pens in hand, they could not wait to tear apart edit their peer’s paper.

It’s natural to get some (tiny) enjoyment out of correcting others’ mistakes, and if you’re a tweenager, the high is likely 100x greater than if you’re a teacher who corrects grammar for a living.

While students generally enjoy the act of peer editing, I have yet to find a flawless way to go about the process. Although this year, I think I am very close.

I had been thinking about using peer station activities and purchased this one from TpT. However, after looking it over, I realized that it may need to be scaffolded for my students. Luckily, my co-teacher shared a peer editing station she used in the past. With a few tweaks, it ended up being a great introduction to peer editing!

 

Peer editing in action!

Of course, being the first time I used stations for peer editing, there were some kinks that need to be ironed out for next time.

• Rotating. I had students (not papers) rotate and we all did the same station at the same time. In the future, I hope to have different tables be different stations, but for the sake of going over criteria and setting norms, it worked quite well, although it appeared messy.
• Skill/Knowledge Level: Some students were confused about thesis statements. They didn’t know what to look for. This let me know that in our next piece of writing, I need to make thesis statements a focus.

What worked well?

• Green/Red pens. I had students use green pens to fix errors in capitalization, since that was a skill we had just studied. Red pens were used for other grammar errors. Next time, I will provide a list of editing symbols because even though we do a Daily Edit using the symbols each day, some students were a bit fuzzy on the symbols.
• Reading different papers. In the past, students read one paper. With stations, they were able to read five different papers, which allowed them to see many writing styles, which will (hopefully) help them in the future!

How does peer editing work in your classroom? Let me know in the comments!

To (Exit) Ticket or Not to (Exit) Ticket

Exit tickets. In some ways, this method of checking for understanding is a no-brainer. As teachers, we obviously want to know if our students have mastered the skills in the day’s lesson. A short informal assessment, or exit ticket, at the end of class often lets teachers know who mastered the objective and who needs further instruction.

HOWEVER…

I’ve struggled (for years) to fit exit tickets into my ELA lesson plan. Sure, some days it works, especially if we are focused on one skill (main idea, for instance). However, in literature, we are often discussing many skills at once. Sometimes we are engaged in literature circle and class discussions where many inquiries are taking place. Still, I’m supposed to choose one skill for my students to “master?!”

In my opinion, the discussion of literature cannot be “mastered.” Discussions about text, characters, motivations, and the like should be organic, especially when the students are middle-school age and older and discussing novels. While there is often a great deal of scaffolding during these discussions, oftentimes, the outcomes are not what I anticipated, as students will often bring up points that are not necessarily connected to the day’s objective. Instead of discouraging their discussion and swaying it in the direction of the day’s objective, I let it flow organically. Wouldn’t you dislike it if someone tried to moderate your discussion of books?!

Despite my love/hate relationship with exit tickets, I have found some unique, open-ended ways to incorporate them into my ELA class. One such way is through the use of Twitter posts. I found this gem in one of my weekend Pinterest binges and the students love it. There are sentence starters about the day’s lesson, such as:

• Something I learned today…
• I didn’t know…
• A question I have is…

I display these “tweets” on a bulletin board for all students to see. It also gives me easy access to answer student questions about the lessons!

Do I do this every day with every class? Nope! Honestly, it takes a good portion of time to do, so doing it every day is not feasible. However, I try to do it a couple of times a week with different classes. Already, one student asked when his class was going to “tweet” after seeing the board of tweets!

Other versions of this could be to have all students write responses to a question or finish a sentence starter on a post-it, then have them post their notes to a designated space.

How do exit tickets work in your classroom?

How did I live without TpT?

TeachrsPayTeachers is perhaps the most brilliant idea ever. Until I discovered this gem, I constantly re-invented the wheel each year. I created all of my own handouts. I worked furiously from the time I arrived home from school until about 10:00pm getting lessons prepared for the next day.

Obviously, this cycle led to burn-out come November and the bulk of my paycheck going toward nightly purchases of wine (because lesson planning without wine is just absurd).

Because I value my work-life balance each more with every passing year, I end up spending a good amount of money on TpT. I also wonder how the teachers who create the items on TpT have time to do so…

When I first started using TpT, I felt like a cheater. Was I taking the easy way out, not making my own materials? Did this make me “less-than,” the fact that I just clicked “purchase” and had my next day’s lessons downloaded in an instant?

Clearly, I got over those feelings rather quickly. I also realized that while many of the items on TpT do not need to be modified, most do. So while I still spend a good portion of my time tweaking my purchases, it’s way less than the amount of time I used to spend. And that is everything.

Here are some of my favorite TpT purchases. What are yours?

1.) Peer Editing Stations and Rotations. I have tried a myriad of peer editing tools, most of which are confusing and mediocre at best. I love this station idea and I plan to use it this year.

2.) Writing No-Prep Printables. I use these as mini-lessons and then give quizzes over the skills. Since I teach reading, writing, vocabulary, etc., these practice and assess handouts correlate nicely with whatever writing piece students are working on. Also, I just love Lovin’ Lit’s TpT store – check it out!

3.) Back to School ToolKit. This download is filled with lots of great stuff. I use the classroom sign-out sheet all year and the textbook tracker is a great way to keep track of those class novels. Lots of great first week activities that the kids really get into!

Let me know your favorites in the comments!

 

Teaching the class novel

As a teacher of literacy, I have always enjoyed teaching whole-class novels. With novels, one can teach skills, vocabulary, writing, history – the list goes on and on! When the school year begins and students see the class novels lined up on my bookshelves, they ask me daily, “When are we going to get our books?” For me (and I would like to presume, many of my students) having a physical book to call their own is something magical; a feeling of ownership; a relationship with text.

However, choosing to teach the class novel brings up a myriad of questions for me:

• Is “teaching” even the correct word to use when using a whole-class text? Shouldn’t students read it organically and have rich discussions about the book’s themes, characters, etc.?
• How do I select books that everyone in the class will enjoy?
• When do I use novels as anchor texts or for close reading? 
• In a perfect world, each novel would correlate with a larger, interdisciplinary unit, but when will I have time to plan with my colleagues?

Thankfully, I am currently in a situation where I am able to create my own curriculum. I consider myself extremely lucky, especially because in the past, I have not had as much autonomy with what I teach.

Designing my own curriculum is fun – don’t get me wrong. I honestly enjoy it, especially since I can tweak it from year to year and class to class. However, I’m a perfectionist, so I’m constantly wondering how I can make things better.

One year, I used curriculum on Engage New York. Everything is laid out in modules and all of the resources are done for you. Day-by-day lessons are organized so all you have to do is review and print! The convenience of Engage NY is great, especially for new teachers. However, I often found that I was modifying the lessons extensively to meet the needs of my students. I also found that not all of the units were appealing to me or my students (The Lightning Thief is one of the novels used and this is quite a difficult text for nearly all of my sixth grade students).

There were pros and cons to Engage NY and I like that I can pull resources from there to supplement my teacher-created curriculum. (My students loved reading Steve Job’s commencement speech, which is a great resource for teaching students how to provide evidence to support claims.)

So will I teach novels this year? Definitely. However, the way in which I do so changes with every text and every class. I’ve had to scrap some of the novels I taught last year due to lack of student interest or reading levels.

Here’s a look at novels I used last year:

• The Outsiders
• Freak the Mighty
• Walk Two Moons
• Somewhere in the Darkness
• Loser
• The Giver; Tangerine; Stargirl (used in literature circles)
• Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl (play version also used)

Here’s a list of novels I am contemplating for this year:

• Freak the Mighty
• Holes
• Sold
• Number the Stars
• The Red Pencil
• The Crossover
• Unstoppable Octobia May
• Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl – play

Some of the books listed will be in literature circles, so students will have a choice as to what they prefer to read. I enjoy starting off the year with Freak the Mighty because it’s high interest (and there’s a movie!) This year, I want to offer more of a variety in the types of stories my students are reading. The Red Pencil, a story about a young Sudanese girl, Amira, who struggles with her village being attacked and the journey to a refugee camp, will hopefully lead to rich discussions about worldly events.

While I’m still in the planning stages of the upcoming school year, I like to think that each year is better and that through novels, my students not only learn skills (theme, character development, etc.), but I also hope that they come to appreciate the stories that are being told. And maybe, learn something about the world or themselves along the way.

What are your favorite novels to teach? Tell me in the comments!