Scaffolded High School English Resources
Blog posts pertaining to literature in the high school English classroom.
As English teachers, we know that what our students read shapes how they see the world. Yes, the canon hasn’t really changed. The same narrow reading list—one dominated by white male voices—seems to be on every...
Read MoreSo, you’re ready to dive into literature circles! Except there’s one thing stopping you: literacy circles roles, the worksheets they need, and all the prep that goes behind creating a comprehensive lit circle. That’s where...
Read MoreTeaching theme can feel like pulling teeth—especially when students confuse it with the main idea, a character arc, or even a summary of the plot. But with the right theme sentence examples as models, I promise...
Read MoreTrevor Noah’s memoir Born a Crime is hands-down one of my favorite modern books to incorporate into a high school curriculum. Between its laugh-out-loud moments and heartbreaking truths, Born a Crime gives young readers a deeply personal window into apartheid South Africa—and makes them...
Read MoreIf you’re an American teacher, you might be thinking about your fascism lesson plan a little differently these days. These connections to current events are just a little too on-the-nose. Your students might even be...
Read MoreIf you’re considering teaching Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist in your English Language Arts class, I’m about to make it as simple as possible! This blog post is going to dive into some ideas for designing your The Alchemist unit plan. I’ll also...
Read MoreUnderstanding intertextual connections requires more than just a ten-minute allusions worksheet. But in this post, I’m going to cover how you make an allusions worksheet part of a dynamic lesson! Teaching the concept of allusions can be...
Read MoreTeaching a World Literature class can be so overwhelming! Excuse me, I just need to teach a globe’s worth of literature?! No big task or anything… The first time you teach World Literature, you might feel a...
Read MoreJonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is a brilliant example of satire. It blends dark humor with sharp social criticism and makes me laugh out loud every time. Teaching “A Modest Proposal” can be fun for...
Read MoreMy first thought upon reviewing my school’s World Literature curriculum, frankly, was that it was a disaster. Did Shakespeare really need another unit? (Students would have read two other Shakespearian plays by the time they...
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