Author Archives: Carla
The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
At Dame Elizabeth Taylor’s funeral Thursday, good friend Colin Firth read “The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo” by Gerard Manley Hopkins. I have copied the text here from Project Bartleby, which adds some notes about this version at the … Continue reading
Mark Twain Museum Hosting Teacher Workshops
The Mark Twain Museum in Hannibal, Missouri, will hold three workshops in June and July for teachers on Teaching Mark Twain in the classroom. General information and a link to a full description and application form are available at http://www.marktwainmuseum.org/index.php/education/for-teachers. … Continue reading
Norman Mailer Award for Creative Nonfiction
Have some outstanding student writers? Submissions are now being accepted for the 2011 Norman Mailer High School and College Writing Awards for Creative Nonfiction. Cash prizes of $5,000 to $10,000 will be awarded to National Winners. Visit Norman Mailer High … Continue reading
Propagate
We were working on vocabulary, and Ian was looking up the word “propagate” in the online dictionary. Suddenly he exploded. “Look at that!” he nudged his buddy. Almost immediately two other guys were also looking over his shoulder. “What’s the … Continue reading
Etymology: Australia
I was talking to students about where words come from, getting ready to teach the word etymology. I put the word checkmate on the board and asked if anyone knew what language the word came from. One young man spoke … Continue reading
Huck Finn
Last year I put together a series of lesson plans for Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In the process I read the novel several times and gained new respect for Twain’s subtlety. The book had me laughing and crying and angry … Continue reading
On Becoming an “Educational Practitioner”
Comedian George Carlin had a routine on euphemisms in which he talked about soldiers who were unable to cope with combat any more. In World War I, he said, the condition was called shell shock. By World War II it … Continue reading
Why I will never be a “value-added” teacher …
The test question: In Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, “The Raven,” the speaker is sad because ___. Students who don’t remember anything else about Poe should remember that the answer has to involve the fact that someone, somewhere has died. But … Continue reading
A Bad Case of Stripes
“I don’t want to take notes. I’m not going to need this.” Cody sat in the back row, his arms folded across his chest, his mind made up about the value of Emily Dickinson in his life. I smiled and … Continue reading
Final thoughts from NCTE
We tell our principals that we come to NCTE for the workshops, and we do. But just as important, we come to NCTE to spend time with like-minded people, to let our inner reading geek or inner writing geek come … Continue reading