Oct 3, 2018 | Jess Woods, Rigorous Courses
Every academic discipline has the inevitable, “Why do I need this?” topic. For English classes, that topic is literary analysis. It’s easy to dismiss the importance of literary analysis if you think you will never use it again outside of high school, but assuming...
Sep 17, 2018 | Jess Woods, Rigorous Courses
Pros and Cons of Annotating Tools I grew up in an educational environment where writing in books was discouraged; thankfully, my parents had a different mindset and allowed me to annotate in my books from an early age. I credit this practice for instilling a love for...
Jun 28, 2018 | Engaging Education, Jess Woods
Unlocking Literary Depth: The Power of Creative Projects As an English teacher, you will never hear me discredit the merit of writing a good analysis paper. There’s something magical about formulating a well-tuned claim and finding the precise evidence and wording to...
Apr 9, 2018 | Engaging Education, Jess Woods
If your student complains about studying poetry, rest assured that you are not alone! Of the various elements of literature that I teach, the one that undoubtedly is met with the most skepticism is poetry. I am never surprised, but I am always a little sad to see that...
Nov 13, 2017 | College Preparation, Jess Woods
The future of learning is changing. While the preceding statement is always somewhat truthful, there has been a definite and accelerated shift in the last decade, and it shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Our world sits under the reign of technology, and...
Jun 7, 2017 | Engaging Education, Jess Woods
If you write much at all, you’ve probably run into issues within your writing. Maybe you realize that a character isn’t coming across the way he/she needs to. Maybe you run into a snag in the plot. Maybe you simply don’t know where the story is going. There could be...
