Welcome to the Middle School Cafe! Why have I called my site a cafe? Well, if you know me as well as my students do, you'll understand one very important thing about me - I LOVE coffee! I call it froo-froo coffee (mocha's, latte's, skinny, nonfat, extra shot, well you get the picture), the fancier the better. Unlike many who visit the coffee house, I don't have just one specialty drink I ...
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Latest from the Cafe
Do Book Clubs Work with Whole Class Novels?
Can you effectively engage students in a book club if you are required to teach a specific class novel? Yes, Yes, Yes!!!! In fact, you might find that students get more out of the class novel when it’s presented in book club format.
I’ve heard many times that “I would love to try book club, but ...
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FIVE More Reasons to add Book Clubs to your Secondary ELA Class
If my last post didn’t convince you to try book clubs in your secondary ELA class, here are five additional reasons to consider!
As you can see, I’m very passionate about adding book clubs as a strategy in secondary ELA. I have found no other reading strategy as successful as book clubs. ...
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Our First Bump in the Road
Welcome to another first Friday Bonus - tales of my online teaching journey. If you recall from last month I accepted a job in my current district teaching in their new online program - a way to reimagine what school looks like. Since my district doesn’t start back until the middle of ...
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FIVE Reasons to Include Book Clubs in the Secondary ELA Classroom
When you hear the term book clubs and literature circles do you automatically think elementary school? I used to think just that – that literature circles were for elementary and upper elementary. That is until about 10 years ago when I was introduced to literature circles for my 8th grade reading ...
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Engage Students in Reading with Book Clubs!
You may be asking yourself, What is a Book Club? Well, it is not much different that a book club you find through a book store or one you create with a group of your best friends. Essentially, a book club is a group of people (in this case students) who are reading the same book, then sit ...
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Student Led Book Talks
There is nothing better for and ELA teacher’s heart than to hear her students actively engaged in discussions about books. Several years ago, when I was mentoring a 5th grade teacher, I was envious that she got to use Literature Circles in class. Her students were highly engaged in academic debate ...
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