English Companion Ning Group

Sorted collection of links to resources on teaching writing from the National Writing Project.

Great site for English teachers. Loads of useful sites, blogs, resources. Highly recommended.

Combines Flickr and Wikitionary

an interesting application/site that allows you to examine "semantic relationships" between elements in an online site/discussion.

Excellent teacher website

The Smart Set is an online publication covering culture and ideas, arts and sciences, global and national affairs - everything from literature to shopping, medicine to food, philosophy to sports. What sorts of topics is The Smart Set presently ruminating

More help on writing college application essays

Create your own font

Download hundreds of free classic audio books to your mp3 player or computer. Below, you'll find great works of fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

I think this is a great tool to use as a backchannel during a film or presentation

Jeff Utecht examines the stages of PLN adoption and tips for seeking balance.

Excellent compendium of practical strategies and resources for using comics in the classroom for a variety of purposes.

danah boyd--a must read

A classic painting from English Romantic artist that has been used for many book covers. Most recently encountered on cover and as guiding metaphor in Gaddis's "The Landscape of History" (very interesting book). Plan to use this first day of class to generate discussion in AP Lit about painting, literature, art, and their lives.

Excellent article from Teachers College Review. Here is passage from abstract that captures the focus: "But what exactly is "teaching thinking"? Do the many theories and programs of teaching thinking speak of the same "thinking," "good thinking," and "teaching thinking"? I claim here that there is actually not one approach to "teaching thinking" but three-three approaches to teaching thinking that compete with each other for control of the field. A conceptual mapping of the approaches to teaching thinking will, I hope, enable further theoretical development of this field and its more effective application in teaching."

Tips and lesson plans for using This I Believe- type essays in the classroom.

Frank McCourt's 2002 essay on teaching creative writing.

This is an inspired letter to the editor Conroy wrote in response to an effort to ban Beach Music. Keep it close; read it often. Food for your English teacher soul.