How to Scaffold Writing Instruction: 3 Pathways for Three Different Classrooms
Scaffolding is a complicated term in high school education. On the one hand, we’re told to scaffold: Vygotsky’s zone of…
Unit Planning
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Teaching Poetry: Helping Your Students Prepare for Discussion
Teaching poetry is simultaneously one of the most rewarding and most challenging things we do as English teachers. Its compactness means it is rich with literary devices, creating powerful effects that speak to significant human truths and experiences. However, this can also make it seem indecipherable upon first (and sometimes second) glance, which often leads students to dismiss it as boring because they aren’t getting the instant gratification of immediate understanding.
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During Reading Strategies: Helping Students Track Key Details Without Boring Worksheets
Hats off to any teachers out there who tackle the Russian authors with high school students. Steph read War and…
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Our Macbeth Unit Plan: Two Approaches That Actually Worked
“Double, double toil and trouble” may be the most famous line from Macbeth, but it’s far from our favorite. Is…
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Teaching Shakespeare to Struggling Readers
We followed a social media conversation the other day started by a teacher whose students flat out refused to participate…
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Intro to Teaching Poetry: It Doesn’t Have to Be Intimidating
Updated: September 08, 2026 “Poetry is a language that tells us, through a more or less emotional reaction, something that…
