#2ndaryELA is a group of middle and high school English Language Arts teachers looking to share ideas and best practices. We chat every Tuesday night at 8 pm EST using #2ndaryELA. We'd love for you to join us!
Hi! I’m Hillary. I teach 8th grade in Indiana! I don’t have a blog, but yesterday my @DonorsChoose project to get a class set of Dear Martin launched. I’d love for you to look at my project or just simply retweet! https://t.co/YsRrdx8YKI#2ndaryELA
Hi Brynn! I'm the new Community & Development Mgr for Write the World, a global platform for writers 13-18. I'm also a long time educator. I'm really interested to learn more about what ELA teachers want so that I can better support them! Glad to be here! Jen #2ndaryELA
A1 - I teach a specific poetry unit. The timing really depends - this year I taught it in 3 weeks before winter break! Perfect for engaging kids when all they want is to be out of school 😅 #2ndaryELA
A1 - in years past I’ve taught the unit after our state testing or during the last month of school. My timing/units changes a lot so I can keep the kids on their toes and so I can switch it up for myself too #2ndaryELA
A1 We used to do an entire unit on poetry, but modified our curriculum this year. Q2 was more poetry writing heavy, but we have been incorporating poems all year long for text elements. #2ndaryela
A2 - figurative language! It’s amazing what kids forget 😅 we focus on defining the terms, creating examples of them, and identifying them in poems and songs #2ndaryELA
A2 My kiddos still struggle with structure. We focus on the structures of different poetry styles and rhyme schemes. I also usually use poems to emphasize figurative language. #2ndaryela
A3 - we compare and contrast “Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes with the song “Dear Mama” by Tupac - really engages even the most reluctant kids! #2ndaryELA
Q3 I love teaching Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou. My students get tickled when they watch MA read Still I Rise. I also use Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein for rhythm and rhyme #2ndaryela
A3 - in the past I’ve also done “O Me, O Life” by Whitman and connected it back to Apple products w/ the commercial for the iPad Air w/ Robin Williams’ voice/lines from Dead Poets Society. Also a great activity for imagery! #2ndaryELA
A3: William Earnest Henley's Invictus, Warsan Shire's Home, Maya Angelou's Woman Work, Still I Rise and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Shakespeare's Sonnets 18 and 130. I have lots of favorites. #2ndaryELA
A4 - kids listened to the song “Wake Me Up” by Aviici and then connected the message to YOLO and talked about if YOLO was a good life motto or if Carpe Diem was better #2ndaryELA
A4: We have friendly competitions where students anonymously create poems and the class votes on the best poem. We also have timed station activities with different poetry creation challenges. Kids love it. #2ndaryELA
A5 - I always show a video the first day about Kionni Marshall, a poetry prodigy from NYC. The video is relatable for the kids bc they’re the same age. I have them think about if her poetry matches up with their “idea” of poetry or how they’ve thought of it before #2ndaryELA
A5 I like to use songs to model rhythm and rhyme. I chopse songs that the kids enjoy or are currently into. I also use poetry slam examples for devices such as repetition and to show word choice #2ndaryela
A5: I ask students bring in their favorite (school appropriate) songs to practice using TPCASTT with something that’s a little more familiar and entertaining #2ndaryELA
A5 - I’ve also used spoken word poetry in the past - a crowd favorite is always “Why Most People Die Before the Age of 25” - I believe that’s what it’s called. It’s on YouTube 😅 #2ndaryELA
