Room 2209 https://room2209.com/ Finding the key to the secondary ELA classroom Mon, 09 Sep 2024 21:38:12 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 https://i0.wp.com/room2209.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/cropped-Room-2209-Logo.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 Room 2209 https://room2209.com/ 32 32 220410104 Lesson Plan Idea: The Cynically Optimistic Book Review Challenge https://room2209.com/2024/09/09/lesson-plan-idea-the-cynically-optimistic-book-review-challenge/ https://room2209.com/2024/09/09/lesson-plan-idea-the-cynically-optimistic-book-review-challenge/#respond Mon, 09 Sep 2024 21:38:03 +0000 https://room2209.com/?p=209 I’ve been thinking a lot about cynical optimism (hence… this month’s theme) and about how that duality is almost a requirement in today’s atmosphere. I’ve been thinking about how maintaining positivity while existing in today’s world lies in the understanding and acceptance of life’s ups and downs, appreciating the ups when they come because we ... Read moreLesson Plan Idea: The Cynically Optimistic Book Review Challenge

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]]> https://room2209.com/2024/09/09/lesson-plan-idea-the-cynically-optimistic-book-review-challenge/feed/ 0 209 Sarcasm in the Classroom: Walking the Fine Line https://room2209.com/2024/09/08/sarcasm-in-the-classroom-walking-the-fine-line/ https://room2209.com/2024/09/08/sarcasm-in-the-classroom-walking-the-fine-line/#respond Sun, 08 Sep 2024 01:40:11 +0000 https://room2209.com/?p=205 Welcome, fellow educators, to the delicate art of wielding sarcasm in the classroom. Yes, you read that right. We’re about to dive into the treacherous waters of irony, where the unwary can sink faster than a lead balloon in a sea of confused stares. But fear not! With this guide, you’ll be navigating these currents ... Read moreSarcasm in the Classroom: Walking the Fine Line

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]]> https://room2209.com/2024/09/08/sarcasm-in-the-classroom-walking-the-fine-line/feed/ 0 205 Tilting at Windmills: Don Quixote Illustrations as Windows to Cynical Optimism https://room2209.com/2024/09/06/tilting-at-windmills-don-quixote-illustrations-as-windows-to-cynical-optimism/ https://room2209.com/2024/09/06/tilting-at-windmills-don-quixote-illustrations-as-windows-to-cynical-optimism/#respond Fri, 06 Sep 2024 17:13:58 +0000 https://room2209.com/?p=187 In the dusty plains of La Mancha, where reality blurs with fantasy, our beloved Knight of the Woeful Countenance charges forth, lance in hand, ready to battle windmills and right imaginary wrongs. Welcome, fellow cynically optimistic knowledge seekers, to a visual journey through the tragicomic world of Don Quixote. The Power of the Pen (and ... Read moreTilting at Windmills: Don Quixote Illustrations as Windows to Cynical Optimism

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]]> https://room2209.com/2024/09/06/tilting-at-windmills-don-quixote-illustrations-as-windows-to-cynical-optimism/feed/ 0 187 New Year, New Classroom: Revamping Your ELA Space https://room2209.com/2024/01/22/new-year-new-classroom-revamping-your-ela-space/ https://room2209.com/2024/01/22/new-year-new-classroom-revamping-your-ela-space/#respond Mon, 22 Jan 2024 02:21:42 +0000 https://room2209.com/?p=181 Alright, the countdown’s over. We’ve survived the return from holiday break (barely) and are back in the trenches with our favorite frenemies: teenagers and grammar. Woo hoo. But before we plunge back into the world of dangling participles and existential angst, let’s talk about your classroom. Because if that beige box of fluorescent despair is ... Read moreNew Year, New Classroom: Revamping Your ELA Space

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]]> https://room2209.com/2024/01/22/new-year-new-classroom-revamping-your-ela-space/feed/ 0 181 Shaking Things Up: Innovative Strategies to Kick-Start Your ELA Semester https://room2209.com/2024/01/15/shaking-things-up-innovative-strategies-to-kick-start-your-ela-semester/ https://room2209.com/2024/01/15/shaking-things-up-innovative-strategies-to-kick-start-your-ela-semester/#respond Mon, 15 Jan 2024 22:55:10 +0000 https://room2209.com/?p=171 It’s that time of the year again – the start of a new semester. And if you’re anything like me, you’re probably thinking, “How the fuck am I going to make Shakespeare and grammar drills exciting this time around?” I’m pulling at straws at this point. But here’s what I’m trying. Let’s compare notes later. ... Read moreShaking Things Up: Innovative Strategies to Kick-Start Your ELA Semester

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]]> https://room2209.com/2024/01/15/shaking-things-up-innovative-strategies-to-kick-start-your-ela-semester/feed/ 0 171 What I Teach the Week Before Thanksgiving https://room2209.com/2020/11/16/what-i-teach-the-week-before-thanksgiving/ https://room2209.com/2020/11/16/what-i-teach-the-week-before-thanksgiving/#respond Mon, 16 Nov 2020 17:07:00 +0000   The weeks before a break always seem like the longest.  The kids are restless, I’m restless, and we all understand that all we’re really doing is biding our time until that last bell before break.   Thanksgiving is a different type of beast altogether though.  My district gives an entire week, the first real break ... Read moreWhat I Teach the Week Before Thanksgiving

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]]> https://room2209.com/2020/11/16/what-i-teach-the-week-before-thanksgiving/feed/ 0 36 Trump vs. Obama: Analyzing Rhetoric https://room2209.com/2019/05/19/trump-vs-obama-analyzing-rhetoric/ https://room2209.com/2019/05/19/trump-vs-obama-analyzing-rhetoric/#respond Sun, 19 May 2019 22:51:00 +0000 https://room2209.com/2019/05/19/trump-vs-obama-analyzing-rhetoric/ We can’t have enough lessons over speeches or the rhetoric within those speeches. There is no end to it. The least we can do is have fun. So… I created a lesson, analyzing Trump’s victory speech and Obama’s victory speech. I wanted to give students a look at a speech that is heavy in rhetoric ... Read moreTrump vs. Obama: Analyzing Rhetoric

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]]> https://room2209.com/2019/05/19/trump-vs-obama-analyzing-rhetoric/feed/ 0 38 Resources for Teaching Anthem by Ayn Rand https://room2209.com/2019/05/12/resources-for-teaching-anthem-by-ayn-rand/ https://room2209.com/2019/05/12/resources-for-teaching-anthem-by-ayn-rand/#respond Sun, 12 May 2019 22:47:00 +0000 Before I create a unit, I always create a Pintrest board to generate ideas. I find that it’s the easiest way for my chaotic mind to organize something as complex as lesson building. Anything and everything I find that relates to the topic goes onto the board. I then filter through relevant materials and start ... Read moreResources for Teaching Anthem by Ayn Rand

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]]> https://room2209.com/2019/05/12/resources-for-teaching-anthem-by-ayn-rand/feed/ 0 39 If I Could Get Away With It: Movie Edition | The Royal Tennenbaums https://room2209.com/2019/05/05/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-movie-edition-the-royal-tennenbaums/ https://room2209.com/2019/05/05/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-movie-edition-the-royal-tennenbaums/#respond Sun, 05 May 2019 22:41:00 +0000 Wes Anderson. Le Sigh. Here’s the trailer. When this movie came out I was a freshman in high school and I fell in love. This movie is whimsical and quirky and my teenage brain didn’t understand how the story worked but I knew that it just did. And I knew that it was brilliant. And ... Read moreIf I Could Get Away With It: Movie Edition | The Royal Tennenbaums

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]]> https://room2209.com/2019/05/05/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-movie-edition-the-royal-tennenbaums/feed/ 0 40 If I Could Get Away With It: TV Edition | Buzzfeed’s Unsolved https://room2209.com/2019/04/28/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-tv-edition-buzzfeeds-unsolved/ https://room2209.com/2019/04/28/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-tv-edition-buzzfeeds-unsolved/#respond Sun, 28 Apr 2019 22:28:00 +0000 https://room2209.com/2019/04/28/if-i-could-get-away-with-it-tv-edition-buzzfeeds-unsolved/ So, this is the second edition of this series. I really wish that I could show Buzzfeed’s Unsolved. Here’s the trailer for season 4. (Warning: it is NSFW) I absolutely love this internet show. Two guys (Ryan and Shane) who work for Buzzfeed, go to notoriously “haunted” locals all around the world and try to ... Read moreIf I Could Get Away With It: TV Edition | Buzzfeed’s Unsolved

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