13 Creative Poetry Month Lessons to Engage Middle Graders
Bring poetry month lessons to the classroom this April (aka National Poetry Month)! We specifically chose these 13…
by Carina Assayed March 22, 2023
Bring poetry month lessons to the classroom this April (aka National Poetry Month)! We specifically chose these 13…
by Carina Assayed March 22, 2023
I have to admit…I am biased toward teaching any dystopian unit. I find any opportunity I can to…
by Carina Assayed March 14, 2023
How do you celebrate women’s history month in the classroom? Make space in your curriculum to celebrate women…
by Carina Assayed February 28, 2023
With love in the air, I have been reading a ton of LGBTQ YA books this February. Whether…
by Carina Assayed February 14, 2023
For the last five years, the first unit I teach is always a short story unit. Every year,…
by Carina Assayed February 7, 2023
New year, new bookshelf goals! A personal goal of mine this school year is to add more diverse…
by Carina Assayed January 24, 2023
Looking for text recommendations and engaging resources that you can use during Native American Heritage Month (and year…
by Leila Hobbs November 9, 2022
From sci-fi to fantasy to historical fiction, this list of short stories has something to interest every reader…
by Leila Hobbs September 20, 2022
These contemporary poems by Black authors will help diversify your poetry unit, help students process current events, and…
by Leila Hobbs July 12, 2022
Whether you’re hosting a lit circle or adding to your classroom library, these novels in verse will be…
by Leila Hobbs June 7, 2022
Change it up with these NEW short stories for teaching American Lit in middle & high school ELA.…
by Leila Hobbs May 24, 2022
May is AAPI Heritage Month, so to celebrate, here are 5 short stories that will help your students…
by Joan Sung May 3, 2022
One tool for promoting diversity in the classroom is using texts by international authors. Here are 5 texts…
by Abena April 13, 2022
In this post, I share tips, ideas, & resources for teaching Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes. My students…
by Danielle Hall February 1, 2022
No matter what you read, there’s something you’ll love on my list of the best books of 2021!…
by Danielle Hall December 7, 2021
Looking for more books with trans characters to add to your classroom library? I have recommendations for middle…
by Leila Hobbs August 24, 2021
Do your students struggle to identify instances of symbolism in a text? Yeah, mine too. So today I…
by Danielle Hall March 16, 2021
Do you want to be teaching social justice in ELA but you don’t know where to start? Check…
by Danielle Hall February 23, 2021
Want a contemporary novel for your curriculum? Need classroom library suggestions? Check out Clap When You Land by…
by Leila Hobbs February 17, 2021
Happy Hispanic Heritage Month, y’all! We celebrate this every year from September 15th to October 15th, and we…
by Danielle Hall September 24, 2020
I recently finished Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron and it got me thinking about using inclusive YA…
by Danielle Hall August 6, 2020
Are you looking to create a more inclusive classroom library? Are you asking yourself, “What should I read…
by Leila Hobbs July 10, 2020
With the decade drawing to a close, it’s time to reflect on the great books released in 2019!…
by Danielle Hall December 12, 2019
This week we’re chatting about Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz, a heartwarming #ownvoices tale of two…
by Danielle Hall November 21, 2019
It’s Native American History Month! How are you celebrating and honoring Native culture in your classroom? One great…
by Danielle Hall November 7, 2019
Books can be both mirrors, reflecting students’ lives, or windows into the lives of others. You know the…
by Danielle Hall October 10, 2019
Writer & teacher L. Samantha Smith joins us to chat about The Stars and the Blackness Between Them…
by Danielle Hall September 27, 2019
Since we started the YA Cafe Podcast, we’ve gotten a lot of questions about LGBTQ middle-grade novels. This…
by Danielle Hall September 19, 2019
BookTuber, Nikea JaLynn (cohost of the series #BlackGirlLit), joins us to chat about The Revolution of Birdie Randolph…
by Danielle Hall August 22, 2019
Are you teaching short stories for high school, and all you have is a dusty anthology of “classic”…
by Danielle Hall August 15, 2019