In honor of the Rhinos 2-0 upset victory in the parks and rec U10 soccer league, I bring you the seven greatest upsets in literature.Before we get to our list of the greatest short story upsets of all time, I want to make … [Read more...]
Three Stupid Characters in American Literature
October 12, 2015 By Leave a Comment
In honor of Columbus Day, I remind you of the following, courtesy of The History Channel. For nearly a decade, Columbus lobbied European monarchies to bankroll his quest to discover a western sea route to Asia. In Portugal, … [Read more...]
Lesson Plans for The Odyssey: Alternative Book Report for Becoming the World’s Greatest Epic Hero or Heroine
August 17, 2015 By Leave a Comment
I had just finished teaching The Odyssey. I nailed it with my Odyssey teaching unit, which covered just about every common core objective your local politician and lawyer and school administrator and college professor and … [Read more...]
Edgar Allan Poe at His Absolute Horrific Best
August 6, 2015 By Leave a Comment
I share with you one of the most beautifully horrific passages in American Literature. It comes from Edgar Allan Poe's "The Pit and the Pendulum." It's a description of the rats in the dungeons of Toledo, for whom the … [Read more...]
Great Essay Topic: Which Literary Character Would Win a Hunger Games Fight to the Death?
July 29, 2015 By Leave a Comment
I just read "The Lottery" for the first time in over 30 years. As with most things from my youth, it was a lot better in my youth.And like most things as an adult, it gave me a great essay topic. But before we get to the … [Read more...]
“The Yellow Wallpaper” Analysis, Summary, and Lesson Plan
July 20, 2015 By 2 Comments
I read "The Yellow Wallpaper" again the other day and found it fantastically chilling, which led me to question my initial dislike for the story years ago when I read it the first time.After several seconds of thought I … [Read more...]
Characterization Lesson Plan Chart
May 11, 2015 By Leave a Comment
So I was looking for a lesson on characterization on my own site the other day. I found some good ones, but nothing that I could just print out and use.I couldn't help feel that I had totally let down my colleagues from … [Read more...]
Cyclops Lesson Plan for The Odyssey
April 29, 2015 By Leave a Comment
My administrator came in to my classroom the other day and inquired about my "Cyclops Lesson Plan for The Odyssey.""You're not upset about the kid's eye I poked out doing a reenactment, are you?" I inquired."Oh no, … [Read more...]
