Lexile Levels, Freshmen Fun, and Independent novels!

My school recently invested in a reading program to pilot to a few classes.  I was lucky enough to be chosen to try the new program with two of my 10th grade classes and one 9th grade class.  Achieve 3000 tailors specific articles (chosen by the teacher from an AMAZING list) to every individual student.  The program starts by testing the students' lexile levels, and we receive a score report in less than 24 hours.  After the initial test, Achieve 3000 automatically sets each student's log in to their own individual lexile level.  Every student reads the same article, but every student will read a different level article.  Yes, the program actually changes each article to fit every student's learning style!  The students then have to answer multiple choice questions, thought questions, and complete graphic organizers.  They gain points for right answers and are even offered cool prizes if they are a top scorer. It's a great program that REALLY helps some of my struggling readers and pushes my veteran readers past their comfort zones.  You can learn more about the program here: Click!

I was also lucky enough to be chosen to teach a large class of 9th graders that contains honors, regular, and ESL children ALL IN THE SAME CLASS.  I've never faced a bigger challenge, but the students are GREAT and I really enjoy being their teacher.  I found that choosing novels and short stories is THE GREATEST CHALLENGE OF THEM ALL. When one group is confused, the other group is bored to tears.  Everyone is on a different level which makes it so much harder!  After I received my Achieve 3000 lexile level scores, I gained SO MUCH INSIGHT as to why certain children were struggling.  


This week, my fabulous media specialist, AMAZING assistant principal, and I, put together a game plan to really target specific learning goals and individual needs in this class.  I decided to survey my children and find out their reading interests, preferences, and history.  I used this form: 

Then, I took this information + my lexile scores and headed to our school library!  The media specialist helped me pull books that were appropriate for each child's reading level.  We chose books that would be high interest - we even found some graphic novels!  I put together a "book tasting" with silver trays from the dollar store and handmade genre signs. 

I placed one tray on each table.  The following day, I gave students a blank "menu" and explained the rules.  They were to get in groups of 5. I sent one group to each table and gave the class 5 minutes to look at books from that genre.  They could read the back, flip through the pages, check out the cover, and get a general "taste" for what the book was about.  I also had them to fill in their "menus" with their top favorites!  After 5 minutes, every group switched and went to a different genre.  The process repeated.  We talked about choosing a "good fit" book, so they also had to rank each one of their choices on how difficult they thought it would be for them to read.  Here's a sample of their menu: 

I was blown away by how much my class enjoyed this!  Here they are, enjoying their book tasting :) -

Everyone took it seriously and had a great time!  After we left the library, I sat down with all of their surveys and made individual colored coded cards.  Each color represents a different genre group (so we can have small group discussions).  

They checked out their books the following day and I was pleased to see that almost all of my students dove head first into their books! YAY!  We're currently creating individualized lap books from file folders.  I'll post more as we progress.

I now begin my class by teaching a reading strategy + a literary device.  They take notes and create foldables for their interactive notebooks.  Then, I give them 20-25 minutes to read their chosen books silently.  During this time I conference with small groups.  I use a specific form that I created that is GREAT for monitoring growth, and even for parent conferences!  The form looks like this: 

I'm anxious to continue with this process and see how my children grow.  I'll keep you posted and check back in shortly.  So far, my students like the individual conferencing because of the extra attention :).  It also holds them accountable!  They don't want to be the one who can't talk to me because they haven't read. Yikes!  

Have any of you tried an individual novel concept before? How did it go? Do you have any magic secrets that I need to know about?

Better Body Biography

I know we've all seen a million body biographies, BUT I still like the basic concept and wanted to be able to use the idea for my honors class. We recently finished MY FAVORITE book that we read all semester: A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. It is AMAZING. Seriously, if you've never read it, buy it, read it, then go ahead and buy the class set. I believe in this book so much that I bought my own class set from thriftbooks.com. A set of 30 books was less than $90! It is such a great site, and they even give teacher discounts on orders over 20 books. Just use the code APPLE to get your discount, too! 

 Because I like to differentiate (and partially because I'm slightly crazy when it comes to being original and not copying anyone's idea), I do separate projects for each one of my sections of Honors English II. My first period is super creative, so I wanted them to be able to utilize their artistic abilities whenever they analyzed the end of the book. I revamped the body biography and kicked it up a notch or 3 for their project. All I provided for my students was blank paper, crayons, and directions. They had to illustrate, create, and most importantly THINK for themselves about the overall intended effect of the author. I asked them to look at everything from symbolism in setting, to motifs that help develop the theme. Here's an exact list of what I asked them to do:

Here's a couple of my favorites:

They had to add specific details and textual evidence on the back of their separate parts.  They actually spent two days on this project, meticulously combing through the text, and talking with each other about what they enjoyed reading.  

I had my next period complete a "create your own book" project based on how violence (motivation, reaction, brutality) evolves throughout the memoir.  I'll talk about some of my favorites tomorrow! Here's a sample:

Since we've wrapped up the book, we're starting on my second favorite: Night! My freshmen are also have a great time reading...I let them choose their own books (yes, I must have had a moment of crazy, but I'm hoping they'll be mature enough to handle it).  What's everyone else reading? 

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Happy Homecoming!

It's Homecoming week at school and I could not be more excited if I tried!  Nobody, and I mean NOBODY loves high school football more than I do.  I could have brain surgery and lose a limb, but still show up at the field on Friday nights.  I love to see all of my many children on the field (and on the sideline cheering!) showcasing their talent.  

As another fun part of Homecoming week, my school does a door decorating contest. I decided to give my 1st period free reign (WHICH IS SO HARD WHEN YOU WANT TO CONTROL EVERYTHING AND  MAKE SURE IT'S JUST RIGHT)  over my door.  I have some hilarious and creative children in the class, and they came up with what is probably my favorite door of all time.  

Check it out: A great take on Straight Outta Compton 
(The "L" is for Lincolnton, NC)

The 3D wolf head is my favorite.  Didn't they do a great job!? Let's hope this encourages my football "sons" to beat those Trojans on Friday. 

What are some of your favorite Homecoming traditions? 

Happy Homecoming, Ya'll!

Character Foil Fun

I've always loved Kevin Hart....I love him even more now that I was able to use him so that my students would understand foil characters!  We used the concept of (I'm ashamed that I think this movie is so funny) Get Hard, in order to understand how authors enhance characterization through the use of a character foil.  

I discussed how and why this literary technique is used by emphasizing the film and all of the ways in which the characters are different.

We even practiced with a few of their favorite texts before we ever discussed the foil characters in OTK. My students later completed a group project on Oedipus + Creon and how they are a great example of foil characters. 

BUT, I always like to challenge my students individually as well - especially in an Honors Class!


I'm actually a huge fan of tricking my students into doing harder work than they think they can do. (You're always smarter than you think you are!) So, I secretly choose AP prompts and make the word choice appear easier, to take away some of their fear. They have no idea they're doing AP work, but their test scores and writing styles certainly show improvement!

 I decided that their first official analytical prompt would deal with foil characters.  I use a released form of open-ended AP prompts.  This is a great way to introduce your students to more difficult material + apply it to whatever you're currently studying. All you have to do is change a few words and BAM you have an instant activity that challenges students, yet still sticks with the content.  Here's a list of open ended AP prompts if you're interested: Click Here!


We spent an entire week discussing how to write an analytical paper, what NOT to do, and how to make your project stand out from the rest.  Their notebooks looked like this at the end of the week:

The culminating activity: Choose a story or novel that you've read that displays an example of a foil character.  Illustrate the characters and include their differences.  Include at least 2 symbols + three quotes that highlight their differences on each side.

THEN, respond to the following prompt: In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas or behavior of the minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Discuss how the relation between the minor character and the major character from the book/story you chose illuminates the meaning of the work. Here's a few of my favorite illustrated examples:

You can purchase my foil project which includes a rubric, project outline, examples of paper + illustrations, and more! Click here to view: Character Foil Project

We're moving on to my favorite memoir now, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. What's everyone else reading?

Oedipus is my Hero

Is it seriously almost October!? I feel like September came and went in less than five minutes!  My Honors English II Classes have been working on one of my favorite pieces - "Oedipus The King" by Sophocles! There's nothing like a little incest, murder, and blindness (a triple threat!) to add zest to the classroom.  
While teaching the play, we discuss the history, time, and author.  This always brings up a discussion on timeless literature and themes - which leads right into one of my favorite things to talk about: ARCHETYPES!  It's always fun to see my students totally amazed by ancient story patterns and how almost everything we currently read/watch follows the same outline! We talk about the hero's journey and even play archetype Go Fish, but my FAVORITE activity is The Hero's Journey Map.  I play a GREAT TED Ed video to introduce the archetypal hero's journey - really breaks it down into "common" language and gives students a modern example to view.  You can check it out here: 

We fill in a blank pie chart with the steps of the journey and even use Disney's The Lion King as an example! I give them a chart of character archetypes and they work in groups to locate examples in literature and film.  Here's what their notebooks look like after our discussion:

Then, I give students a blank pie chart with 9 "slices".  They have to choose a book or a film that accurately depicts the Hero's Journey.  They fill in the pie chart with illustrations, quotes, and symbols that reflect the journey in that particular piece.  I also have them write a constructed response which forces them to examine HOW the steps fit (did they have to force the steps, or did they happen naturally) and how at least one character in the tale is an example of an archetype.  Here are some of their examples of The Hero's Journey:

This always leads into a discussion about how Oedipus follows the steps of the hero's journey - and also how he is an example of an important character archetype: the tragic hero!

We just ended the play and completed one of my favorite projects: Foil Character Fun! I'll post those treasures later in the week.  As always, it's been fun, Oedipus! :)

Back To School!

Everyone thinks that I'm crazy because I LIVE FOR BACK TO SCHOOL! I get so excited when I see the school supply set up come out at Office Max.  It's so bad that even my grandmother buys me Staples gift cards for holidays! I LOVE meeting all of my new students and jumping in to new curriculum.  The majority of my paycheck usually ends up at Barnes and Noble - there's nothing better than new books to start the school year out right. 

This "back to school" season has been even crazier than usual, but I've never been more excited to get things rolling.  I even have an ESL class of 35 freshmen sandwiched between two sections of Honors World Lit!  Their energy is contagious, and I've really enjoyed getting to know all of my new children.  Here's how I got my year started.


We had an "Open House" a few days before the first day of school.  I like for my students to know exactly what the course will be like, so I typed a cute listing of everything we'll read, when my tutoring hours are, and how their parents can contact me.  I also included a supply list. 

I'm a huge fan of treat bags - like, I'll look for a holiday or invent a new one just so I can make treat bags. BUT I was a little pressed for time this year.  I ended up attaching some cute tags to Blow Pops to hand out at Open House.  I was THRILLED that I had so many students come to meet me that I ran out of candy! 

After Open House, I jumped right into making things for the first day of school.  Being a perfectionist will probably kill me one day, but of course I had to make sure my syllabus stood out.  I used rainbow paper (Yay buy one, get one free at Staples!!) and made a template for a flip book syllabus.  Here's how it turned out: 

I like to give my students a survey on the first day of school.  I like knowing the basic things such as favorite movie and favorite candy, BUT it's also super important for me to get know their reading and writing preferences and habits.  I made a brochure-like survey on colored paper.  I learned SO MUCH about my students this way.  

As a first day activity, I had all of my classes fill out a "What You Should Already Know" packet.  It was a basic list of literary elements: pictures, examples, and definitions that they worked in groups to complete.  This was a way for me to jump into the curriculum from the first day AND assess what they already knew. 

Finally, I gave all of my children a treat bag complete with Smarties (because that's what they are ;) ) and pencils.  

I didn't leave out my teacher friends either...I bought packs of rainbow pencils + made a cute tag to attach. Super easy and a way for me to show them how much I appreciate all that they do.  I seriously have THE BEST group of teachers on my hall.  EVERYONE is always helpful, understanding, and FUN! 

How was everyone else's first week?  I'm ready to get the ball rolling and show my students how much fun reading can be.  We've started Oedipus Rex with my honors class and "The Cask of Amontillado" with my freshmen.  Sophocles and Poe - is there really any other way to start the school year!? ;) 

I've also included all of these items in a back to school pack in my TPT store!  Check it out here: Back To School Pack