Catch up on the whole mini-mentors series! Mini-Mentors for Review Writing, Prompt-Based Writing, and Revision! In the previous iterations of this series, I’ve suggested some ways you might use these mini-mentors in your own classroom: as sentence study warm-ups, as whole-class lessons, in small-group and individual writing conferences. But, you’ll notice something different and special […]
Often, the what of holding writing conferences isn’t the problem… it’s the how. How to you manage the rest of the class while conferring one on one? How do you find the physical space in a packed classroom? How do you record writing conferences in a meaningful way that will help you and students down […]
By now, you’ve met Sam. Isn’t she a delight? I continue to win the co-worker lottery. I used to teach next door to Allison. Now, Sam teaches directly across the hall from me + stuns me with her brilliance and insight on a daily basis. Last year, at the height of COVID school and the […]
In almost two decades (!!!) of teaching, I’ve taught every grade 7-12. And whether I’m teaching 12-year olds or 19-year olds, run-ons and comma splices abound. I’m not going to spend time here theorizing about why this is true. I suspect that if I interviewed my high school English teachers, they’d say it was prevalent […]
A Portrait of an English Department’s Racial Reckoning: Using Reading Responses with Critical Race Theory K. Keener (www.kakeener.com) has taught English in a variety of contexts across four continents and all levels for 21 years in total. She began as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zimbabwe and most recently taught at Horace Greeley High School […]
This is a love story. In 2012, Allison and I applied for the same job at a local high school. One position. Two of us. We had never met and were not remotely aware of one another’s existence even though we had shared a couple years at the same university. On a Monday, I got […]
But wait! There’s more! Last week, we announced two brand new professional development experiences — an on-demand course to help you develop curiosity about words and phrases in your students and an upcoming live webinar focused on environmental writing and helping students become climate stewards through writing experiences. But that’s not all! We’re rounding out […]
Now that we’re into the real throes of the school year, the Moving Writers staff is ready for some professional learning! Here are two upcoming opportunities! NEW! On-Demand Webinar Available NOW! In order for students to learn new words, they need to be curious about words. But that doesn’t always come naturally. In this 45-minute […]
Today’s guest post is from K. Keener. K. Keener (www.kakeener.com) has taught English in a variety of contexts across four continents and all levels for 21 years in total. She began as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zimbabwe and most recently taught at Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua, New York. Currently, she is taking […]
Catch up on my series this fall. Last month I shared mini-mentors for review writing! Sadly, some students only write in response to prompts in English class. Whether it’s daily journaling prompts or larger essay prompts, these students miss out on one of the toughest parts of an authentic writing practice: developing ideas. Still, both […]
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