“Charlie was not expecting to spend his summer trying to solve a murder.”   Murder at the Hotel Hopeless is a captivating mystery that follows Charlie Hope, a teenager spending his summer helping his...

This semester, students at Leo Hayes High School spent time exploring books that spoke to them, and now they’re ready to share their favorites. Over the next few months, you’ll hear directly from...

Although it is often said, “Do not judge a book by its cover,” I personally believe this saying is purely metaphorical and not intended to be taken in the literal sense. Being an individual easily...

What I was reading (backstory included): (In the eighth grade, my English assigned our class a relatively straightforward project: choose a theme, find poems with the chosen theme, type the poems,...

Kindness is all that there is. Eoghan Wells’s debut novel The Gospel of Orla depicts the life of many teenagers around the world. Orla is a 14-year-old Irish girl trying to cope with the recent death...

Looking for a fun way to engage your students and make poetry instruction relatable? This one is for you! Whether you teach middle or high-school, this activity using Kristie Frederick-Daughterty’s...

Calling all Swiftie teachers! Invisible Strings is a brilliant, engaging poetry anthology that brings together 113 different poets who each respond to the music of Taylor Swift. These poets all...

Calling all Swiftie teachers! Invisible Strings is a brilliant, engaging poetry anthology that brings together 113 different poets who each respond to the music of Taylor Swift. These poets all...

What I was reading: The other day, I remembered Billy Collin’s ‘Piano Lessons’, a short collection of free verse poems which could be considered one long poem. It took me a while to track them down...

“Don’t believe anyone who tells you things aren’t going to be alright.” Jupiter Rising, written by Gary D. Schmidt is a beautifully crafted narrative that explores the complexities of adolescence,...

As we ask students to increase autonomy with mentor texts throughout the year, a great place to have them start is in their self-selected independent reading, looking at author bios.  Here is a great...

The novel Kill the Beast by Serena Valentino is a dramatic fantasy novel that combines Walt Disney’s fantastic universe of heroes, princesses, and magical creatures with the compelling stories from...

What I Was Reading: Japanese fiction seems to be having a bit of a moment, and I finally found a copy of the beloved novella Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto, first published in 1988 and translated to...

Dear Dad: Growing Up with a Parent in Prison by Jay Jay Patton, illustrated by Kiara Valdez and Markia Jenai, is an unforgettable graphic memoir. This memoir tells the story of Jay Jay’s experience...

Matching students with the right book can ignite their love for reading. With so many titles out there, the task can be a challenge. That’s where ReadOw comes in—a tool designed to connect readers...

“When we can let the things that bring us together fall apart, become places without souls, it’s another way we learn to not care about each other. Or about the land.” Everyone has experienced hurt...

What I was reading:  The rhetoric surrounding immigration has been prevalent in recent years. Having Latin American family, I’ve always seen how intrinsically connected Latin America is to the United...

Spanning a range of poets and time-periods, In Fine Form: A Contemporary Look at Form Poetry includes 180+ poems organized by their form. There are the usual suspects such as ballads, acrostic poems,...

The League of Canadian Poets’ mandate is to “elevate the cultural significance of poetry and champion the role of poets. Working to nurture and expand poetry communities and audiences, the organiza...

Are you looking for a book that will inspire both you and your students to fall in love with poetry this April? Kwame Alexander’s Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets and Poetry is a vibrant,...