English teachers are, in my humble opinion, the hardest working people in public education. We have the unenviable task of trying to convince a generation of kids raised on electronic devices and nursed by spell check to slow down and write with purpose and precision. We see ourselves as the last line of defense against the continual erosion of the language, and we try to teach our kids to avoid all of the dreaded errors – the run-on, the forgotten apostrophe, the misplaced modifier – that threaten to reduce our language into an incomprehensible stew of unpunctuated gibberish filled with text-friendly abbreviations and inscrutable emojis. We admire our content-teaching colleagues, but we secretly envy their ability to simply ignore the numerous errors that litter essay responses as they grade for ideas and content knowledge.
writing
Why I Use the Article of the Week in My Elective Classes
(Note from Dave: Heidi Bonnema calls herself a “baby teacher,” but this is more a testament to her humility than it is to her skill level. I’m honored to call her, not just a colleague, but a friend. If you follow Teaching the Core’s article of the week list, you’ll have noticed that, lately, the articles […]
A Non-Freaked Out, Focused Approach to the Common Core — Part 6 — Write Like Crazy
One of the biggest bang-for-your-buck Common Core standards is W.CCR.10, which basically says, “Write frequently for many reasons.” And the amazing thing about writing is that it achieves so many things simultaneously. For example, in the “Writing to Read” meta-analysis report, researchers found positive effect sizes for all kinds of writing, ranging from the mundane […]
Discussions that Promote Societal Belonging
They are a recurring nightmare in the United States, a horrifying symptom of some dysfunction in our culture. In the past six months, victims have been theater-goers, Sikh worshipers, and now first graders. A big part of me hates writing this post, instead wanting simply to admire and affirm Jim Burke’s noble call to continue the […]
Common Core W.CCR.10 Explained
(Wiping sweat from brow.) All right, let’s finish these writing anchor standards. W.CCR.10 — that’s the 10th (and final!) College and Career Readiness anchor standard within the Writing strand of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for ELA/Literacy — reads as follows: Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time […]
