I was 20 years old and in undergrad when I first picked up Stephen Chbosky’s 1999 novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The book had been making the rounds among my friends for five years before I finally got… Read more ›
Every once in a while, a television show comes along that captures life so perfectly and beautifully that you savor every minute and can’t wait to get home and watch more. And when that show is over, you cry. And… Read more ›
As many of you know, I started a group for girls at my high school. The girls come in and we talk about all sorts of things that pertain just to them. This is completely volunteer on my part –… Read more ›
Image from wikipedia.org If you follow me on my various social networks, you probably know that I’ve started a club at the high school where I teach just for girls. We meet every week and talk about issues in our society… Read more ›
I fell in love with literature at a very young age. I loved books so much, I wanted to create them, because I wanted to give readers the same joy many authors had given me. Then, I grew up a… Read more ›
Apparently, an elite education has its disadvantages. Yet it is precisely that opportunity that an elite education takes away. How can I be a schoolteacher—wouldn’t that be a waste of my expensive education? Wouldn’t I be squandering the opportunities my… Read more ›
Today, I’m over at Gender Across Borders talking about going back to school and back to teaching feminism. It is officially August. Which means it is officially time to start thinking about going back to school. As a teacher, it… Read more ›
“Will you miss us?” At the end of every year, this is the question on the tip of all the students’ tongues. They want to know if you’ll miss them, if you’ll think about them over the summer, if you’ll… Read more ›
I’ve posted some posts here, but, let’s face it, I haven’t really blogged on here in almost a month. Many of you have asked what I’ve been up to, and have told me that you miss my blogging and feel… Read more ›
I knew I wanted to be a teacher ever since my senior year in high school. I was fortunate to have many amazing teachers throughout my high school experience, but there was one teacher whose passion for his students inspired… Read more ›
I knew I wanted to be a teacher ever since my senior year in high school. I was fortunate to have many amazing teachers throughout my high school experience, but there was one teacher whose passion for his students inspired… Read more ›
Well, I am. I’ve never been very good at it, actually. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because I don’t necessarily “believe” in grades. I believe in them enough that I really wanted to get A’s in high school and… Read more ›
Last night, the English department at my college treated the Masters students to dinner as a congratulations for finishing our thesis papers and the program. It was a really wonderful evening, and it really didn’t set it until last night… Read more ›
You know those days when everything just lines up perfectly and all your synapses start firing and things just connect? Yesterday was one of those days. It started with Adam’s thought-provoking post from yesterday and a conversation that keeps reoccurring… Read more ›
I have written before about The Laramie Project. Please take a few seconds to read that post – especially the comments – before reading this one. This Valentine’s Day, I was fortunate enough to see a former student in a… Read more ›
I stumbled upon this article from the New York Times today, via NCTE, and was a little surprised. I haven’t been teaching that long, but for as long as I have been teaching, there have been dual credit courses. Is… Read more ›