Mentor Text: The Poem Where I Lie About Everything by Rudy Francisco Techniques: Lying Making Your Audience Think Reflection Background – Let me start with a confession. December kicked my butt. We came into on the heels of report cards, and a heightened set of protocols in reaction to a second wave with record setting COVID […]
Mentor Text: Geek Wisdom edited by Stephen H. Segal (excerpts) Techniques: Using quotations Writing an Introduction Background – This year has presented many challenges hasn’t it? In the midst of it all, the work goes on, doesn’t it? I’ve actually found myself in a weird balance of developing new lessons and leaning on past planning, […]
Mentor Text: The Connect podcast featuring Jason Concepcion and Shea Serrano Techniques: Summary Introduction Highlighting Resonant Elements of a Text Criticism of a Text Exploring Connections Brainstorming Peer Conferencing Background – Like many of us, spring brought about a shift to remote learning. A regular habit of mine became looking for the silver lining in […]
Mentor Text – Bono’s Mash Notes to Songs He Loves Techniques: Expressing appreciation Audience Drafting Background – I’ve been using the phrase silver lining a lot lately. Mostly as a way to explain the moments I’ve enjoyed and appreciated as I figure out what it means to teach remotely during a pandemic. (To say nothing of […]
Mentor Text – The Unique Sadness of Mourning the Musicians Who Helped us Grieve by Hanif Abdurraqib Techniques: Personal Essay Background – In the last few years, the work and words of Hanif Abdurraqib have come to mean a lot to me. He’s a writer who writes from a place where he belongs, but writes […]
Mentor Texts: ‘The Afternoon The World Health Organization Declared the Pandemic’ by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer Techniques: Using Poetry to Write About the Tough Stuff Background – One of my favourite things about poetry is how it can be used to put complicated feelings into words. The poetry of protest is powerful, as are poems that are […]
Mentor Texts: ‘How To Play Night Baseball’ by Jonathan Holden Techniques: Imagery Writing Poetry Adding Flavour Background – So, often, I use this column as a chance to plan a lesson. Sometimes, I’m planning a lesson using a mentor text I know I’ll be using somewhere down the road, and other times, I’ve found a […]
Mentor Texts: “All of the Little Things That Made the Original ‘Lion King’ so Great” by Shea Serrano “The effanineeffable, deep and inscrutable, singular Cats” by Alissa Wilkinson Techniques: Developing an argument Pre-writing Writing Introductions Writing Listicles Background – I’ve been thinking, for a long time, about the listicle form. We all know that it’s a […]
Today’s Mentor Text Wednesday post is a guest post from Kristie Keener, a 9-12 teacher at Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua, New York! The lesson she shares today comes from a combined 11th and 12th grade course called Psychology in Literature. (How cool!) Do you have a mentor text that has worked well for […]
Today’s guest writer Emily Sommer walks us through a mentor text by one of our favorite pop culture writers, showing how it makes for a truly instructive piece for students learning the art of rhetorical analysis. Emily teaches AP English Language and Composition, AP Seminar, and Mythology at Stoney Creek High School in Rochester Hills, Michigan. […]
