Open Doors

by Leslie Lucas, Hoggard HS

I’m so comfortable cloistered in Room 228, venturing out only when necessary.  But when I read the recent blog post by Xan Mays & Taylor Thomas entitled Making Space for Today's Poets: The Role of The Beatles, Beyonce, & Bruno in the ELA Classroom about engaging students with song lyrics, a visit to Xan’s room became necessary.  Two days later she and Florence and the Machine were shaking up my classroom.   

Students whose voices I’d never heard discussed how a buried horse symbolizes letting go of the past and how the author’s tone evolves from overwhelmed and rebellious to optimistic.  After the lesson, students volunteered to help me find song lyrics rich with imagery, metaphors, parallelism, personification, tone, and symbols that help convey the theme(s). Later, I’ll gravitate to my choices (Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, Jackson Brown), but Xan showed me that I need to meet my students where they are.  And if that means I have to listen to Taylor Swift, well, I’ll make the sacrifice.  

Making Space for Today’s Poets: The Role of The Beatles, Beyonce and Bruno in the ELA Classroom

by Xan Mays (Hoggard HS) & Taylor Thomas (Ashley HS)

It’s common in ELA classrooms across grade levels for groans and feelings of dread to arise when poetry is mentioned. Students tend to see poetry as confusing and boring, which immediately puts them at a disadvantage when they are asked to read and analyze any poem. Rather than forcing more poems from the textbook down the students’ throats and hoping that this time it will click, why not take a more inventive approach--one that meets students where they are and reveals to them how they are already more familiar with poetry than they realized.

Ms. Xan Mays (Hoggard) and Mr. Taylor Thomas (Ashley) have been using popular song lyrics as poetry in their classrooms for years. The two educators presented a session on the topic at 2017’s New Hanover County School's Summer Institute for Instructional Innovation conference. Below, they discuss their thought process behind the activity:

Navigating the Teaching Roller Coaster: Bringing Your Inner Hero to the Rescue

-by Susan Hitt

Superman. Wonder Woman. Spiderman. All to the rescue! Except, we as educators can’t rely on fictional characters to save the day. We are the superheroes of the classroom. As we hit the mid-year mark, it’s easy to fall into that post-holiday slump. The festivities have come and gone, and springtime’s long, warmer days seem forever away. So how can we speed past the disillusionment phase and soar on into rejuvenation and on into reflection?

How Choosing One Thing on Which to Focus, Makes the Rest Fall into Place

by Susan Hitt

As educators, we are often our harshest critics. We hold ourselves up to the "Pinterest-teacher" standard where classrooms are perfectly decorated and there is never an item askew. But we all know learning is messy. Teaching is messy. From uncapped highlighters rolling around to a whiteboard covered in 30 different handwritings, we know evidence of learning is not "picture perfect." But that's okay. In fact, that's what we as educators embrace. We have to learn to pick and choose where we want our focus to lay, and I, for one, long ago gave up on the idea of perfection. 

Pineapple Tidbits: Episode 1: a little of this and a little of that

-by Susan Hitt

One of the reasons I started this blog was to foster collaboration among fellow teachers by providing them a platform to share their successes in the classroom. Another reason I wanted to start this blog is that there is So.Much.Good.Stuff out there in the land of the Internet! Every time I check Twitter or my email I'm inundated by the latest and greatest TedTalks, YouTube videos, educational newsletters & blog posts all filled with tips and tricks for the classroom.

Don't get me wrong, having so much information at my fingertips is amazing. I remember those old card catalog days, laboriously sifting through hundreds of cards with tiny print which then sent me on a scavenger hunt around the library. Thankfully, now, with just a few keystrokes and a wifi connection, I can access with ease whatever topic for which I'm currently seeking more information. 

The Power of Paideia Part II: Paideia in Practice

-by Alex Schaivone, New Hanover High School

Catch up with Part I of Alex's blog post here: (The Power of Paideia Part I: I'm a Believer)

After a month of anxiously waiting to dive into my first Paideia seminar, I struggled to find a text that would do the process justice while also appealing to my students. I perused the Paideia Institute’s website (which is a fabulous resource if you’re just starting Paideia seminars for the first time), scouring the lesson plan archives for just the right seminar for my students. As a teacher of seniors, I knew that this lesson had to be good. It was the beginning of their last year of high school and I was determined to start the year off on the right foot.

The Power of Paideia Part I: I’m a Believer

-by Alex Schaivone, New Hanover High School

As an AP English teacher and a notorious chatterbox, I like to talk. A lot. I love the exchange of words and ideas and thrive off of debate and civil discourse. I could talk for hours, and I have been guilty of dominating conversations on more than one occasion. Since I was old enough to speak, my mother has always said that I could talk the paint off a wall. To put it simply, my life revolves around words.

Pineapple Potluck: Your Invitation to the Table

-Susan Hitt

Last February when I first decided to create this blog, I spent much longer than I’d rather admit trying to come up with the perfect name. My favorite contender was Pineapple Potluck, but I found over and over I had to explain the name to people. I couldn’t have a blog with a name no one understood, so back to the drawing board I went and finally landed on Education Celebration. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the name Education Celebration because to me it symbolizes all that I want this blog to be--a place to celebrate all that you as educators are doing in your classrooms.

Padlet: A Must-Try Digital Tool for Your Classroom

Brenna Sheehan, Laney HS

Padlet is a digital canvas to create beautiful projects that are easy to share and collaborate. It acts like a virtual pinboard in which students can post video clips, photos, links, comments, etc. This awesome digital tool is not just for students to use! I’ve used it to create an introduction to The Kite Runner that serves as the base of a webquest (scroll down to see this Padlet). You can also create a group Padlet for several people to collaborate. This would work really well on a group project or simply serve as an inspirational pinboard for your class.

The Magic of Blended Learning: Part III (Implementation)

by Emily Perez, Laney HS

Check out Part I (overview) and Part II (Why it Works) of the Magic of Blended Learning blog posts. Now let's jump into part III, how to implement blended learning.

Listed below is my arsenal to be used to create those warm, fuzzy teacher moments, particularly when facilitating a blended learning lesson:

• Expectations. In the beginning of the year, I always make it a priority to explicitly tell my students what my expectations are for them as participants in whole class and small group activities. On blended learning days, I review those expectations with them again. That way, students are clear as to what is and is not considered acceptable behavior. To further drive my point, I project a PowerPoint slide of “Stations Do’s and Don’ts” and “Participation Norms.” Trust me, they get the message.

The Magic of Blended Learning: Part II (Why it Works)

-Emily Perez, Laney HS

In my previous blog post, I reflected on my journey and ultimate acceptance of using blended learning in the secondary ELA classroom. While it is not necessary to use blended learning every day (by any means), it is a nice way to periodically break up the monotony of whole-class review, discussion, and introductions to a topic. Additionally, you might experience some of these “happy teacher moments” in the process:

The Magic of Blended Learning: Part I

-by Emily Perez, Laney HS

Earlier this year, I attended a professional development session on teacher leadership where the presenter asked us, “What is your why?” For most people (myself included), the answer was easy - the students. The kids, the young minds, the myriad of personalities that walk through our door each day, each hour. But I realized that my true “why” is more than just the students and their vivacious, complex personalities. My “why”, my “aha moment” (as my college professor used to say) is the moment I get to watch my students help each other, teach each other. Naturally, I am always looking for lessons that enforce my “why”, which is how I became a true advocate for blended learning stations in the secondary ELA classroom.  

Rescued: Why PLCs Prevent Educator Isolation

-Beth Swindell, Hoggard HS

For my college application essay (more years ago than I would like to admit), I was asked to write a response to a quote by John Donne. He writes, “No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main….” I would bet some of you have even used this for a journal response at one point or another. I’m pretty sure I have. For whatever reason, those words are what popped into my head when I sat down to write this post. And in that reminiscing, I realized that maybe I understood more about that quote as a teenager than I have in my adult life, and especially more than I have in my career up until recently.

Sharing Successes: What this Blog is About!

-Susan Hitt

High school English teachers have The.Best.Job.Ever! Where else can one host dramatic readings and reenactments, orchestrate seminars to foster discussions,  and bare witness to that lightbulb moment when a student realizes their favorite song embodies all that is poetry.