Dear Teachers, Today is the fourth blog in a four-part series called “Hitting on All-Cylinders” (HOAC). The series began with one of my colleagues asking me how to get everything done in a given year. In other words, her Scope and Sequence (S&S) …
Dear Teachers, As you know, we are working through a four-part series titled “Hitting on All Cylinders” which combines the core literature your students are reading with vocabulary, grammar, and paragraph writing. Before we move on to Part III about …
Dear Teachers, This series of four blogs started with one of my colleagues asking me how to get everything done in a given year. In other words, her Scope and Sequence (S&S) was so packed, she felt she had …
Dear Teachers, Let me start out by letting you know that this system was created by Nancy Sharma and me. We combined our knowledge and experience and created a practical and effective approach to teaching vocabulary as it correlates to our …
Dear Dr. D’, “Our Scope and Sequence is huge, and I do not know how to get everything done and include the Jane Schaffer Writing Program, too. Help!! I’m drowning!” Lisa Dear Lisa, Most teachers feel the same as …
I like to begin teaching archetypes with the fairy tale. One of my favorite fairy tales is “Sleeping Beauty.” At the beginning of this popular fairy tale, the reader is introduced to the King and the Queen. To begin, a teacher …
Getting to know your students is paramount in your year being a successful one. That’s one of the reasons why the Diagnostic Essay is important that first week. Pretty soon, you’ll discover who your kids “really” are, and some or …
Dear Dr. D’, My 10th grade American Literature students just don’t get it. I mean, when they are reading a fictional piece or a non-fictional piece, they don’t know how to infer. They don’t know how to look deeper into …
Dear Dr. D’, Our district is considering summer reading. What is your opinion? Delainey Dear Delainey: One answer: the best of times; the worst of times. I say that because summer reading can be a wonderful experience for the students, …