I’ve finally brought back to life one of the most popular posts on APLitHelp with updates of how the unit has grown since its conception (see what I did here). I’ll first share an introductory activity that Melissa Smith created that was included in the original post then jump into my activities and resources. Using … Continue Reading

Much of the real work of writing is done in the revision stage, but getting student buy-in can be challenging. Since I only teach AP Lit, my students are primarily writing timed essays which is a quick pass at literary analysis, but the far majority of writing is not done in a timed setting. In … Continue Reading

Today’s post is written by Brian Hannon. If you’re familiar with Brian through LMS Curriculum, you already know the quality of his resources are AMAZING, and this unit is no exception. The entire unit is linked at the end of his reflection on it. Thank you, Brian!! Pretty much every year prior to this one, … Continue Reading

In response to Brian’s post a couple of week’s ago on writing commentary, I invited Melissa Smith to share her method of giving feedback. Her feedback is quick and individualized. Thanks, Melissa! I’ll be following up in a couple of weeks with how I handle feedback and revision. I have 100 students in 4 sections … Continue Reading

Thanks to Brian Hannon for sharing his resources at LMS Curriculum with us this week. This is one of my go-to sites for inspiration and ideas, and these new materials are AMAZING! – SB As much as I champion the use of poetry in our classrooms, I do admit that I, too, struggle with implementing … Continue Reading

Teaching is hard. Teaching in 2023 is particularly challenging. As I’ve met teachers across the country (actually the world) this summer, the concerns teachers have seem to be far more pressing than previous years. Here are some of the most common things I heard throughout the summer: 

This year, I found myself on the sample selection team for the digital FRQ3, and while no responses (to my knowledge) referenced Sheryl Crow’s hit, the vast majority of students found this prompt about reinvention very accessible: In many works of literature, characters choose to reinvent themselves for significant reasons. They may wish to separate … Continue Reading

For the 2022 reading, College Board asked me to read for AP Seminar, and I happily accepted because I didn’t want to miss out on the ~*experience*~ of an AP reading.  While it certainly broadened my horizons on the work that goes into AP Seminar, I was much more excited when I got my invitation … Continue Reading

This year, I had the opportunity to read for Question 3, the Open-Ended Question. I was excited with the assignment since I had never formally read for this essay at any of the readings, but I was also a bit concerned about the accuracy of my performance because of the sheer variety of responses I … Continue Reading

As Susan said about Q1, the operational Q2 passage, “The Rock Eaters,” and prompt were definitely accessible for most students this year. I still looked at a few drawings, read a few song lyrics (“In the Heights”), and even saw one person who wrote out the numbers from one to one hundred (!), but for … Continue Reading