Literature circles can transform reading from a quiet, independent activity into a meaningful conversation among students. When they are implemented effectively, literature circles give students opportunities to choose books, discuss ideas, support their thinking with evidence, and take greater responsibility for their learning. However, literature circles require more than placing students in groups and telling …
Have you ever told students to annotate a text only to watch them highlight nearly every sentence on the page? Maybe they circle random words, underline entire paragraphs, or write comments like “interesting” in the margins without explaining what they found interesting. Students are not born knowing how to annotate. Annotation is a skill that …
In 2024 I left the classroom at the end of my contract. My son moved me in February of that year into another county 3 counties over. The commute to finish out my contract was brutal some days. Leaving early to get to work. Getting home late due to traffic in the afternoon. Some days …
Writing conferences can be one of the most effective ways to help students become stronger, more confident writers. A few focused minutes with a student can reveal what they understand, where they are struggling, and what they need to do next. However, writing conferences can also feel overwhelming. Teachers may wonder what questions to ask, …
Teaching students to use text evidence can sometimes feel like teaching the same lesson over and over again. You ask students to support their answers, but they respond with: Middle school students often understand what they have read, but they do not always know how to prove their thinking. The problem is not necessarily reading …
Getting every student to participate in a middle school ELA discussion can be challenging. A few confident students may answer every question, while others avoid eye contact and hope they are not called on. Even students who understand the lesson may hesitate to share their ideas in front of the entire class. Turn-and-talk is a …
One of the biggest reasons students miss questions is not because they do not know the answer. It is because they do not fully understand what the question is asking. This is especially true in middle school ELA. Students may read a passage carefully, recognize the topic, and even understand the general meaning of the …
Teaching writing can feel overwhelming because students are often expected to create strong pieces of writing before they fully understand what strong writing looks like. That is where mentor texts come in. A mentor text is a piece of writing used as a model for students. It gives them something concrete to study, discuss, and …
Graphic organizers are one of the simplest and most effective tools teachers can use to support reading comprehension. Whether students are reading a short story, article, poem, novel excerpt, or nonfiction passage, graphic organizers help them slow down, organize their thinking, and make sense of what they read. For middle school students especially, reading can …
Middle school students are funny, creative, emotional, unpredictable, and full of opinions. That is exactly what makes teaching middle school ELA both rewarding and challenging. One minute, students are deeply discussing a character’s motivation, and the next minute, someone is arguing over a pencil, making sound effects, or asking to go to the bathroom for …
