By Kate Baker, High School Teacher & 2018 CEL Convention Program Chair, Manahawkin, NJ: Brody is eight and a half years old. With his graying muzzle, it is evident that he is starting to show his age. I'm reminded that my superhero dog is mortal. This...
By Charlene Mendoza, Secondary ELA & Social Justice Education, Tucson, AZ: What do YouTube stars, Harvey Milk, and Wendy Davis all have in common? They were all nominated by students I had the privilege of working with during a project titled "Nobel Prize for Democracy In...
By Kirsten Foti, 7-8th Grade Reading and Writing, Arlington, TX: After eleven years of teaching, I had the unique opportunity of having a full-time tutor work in my classroom. I sent out an inquiry through Facebook and received a response from one of my first-year students....
By Jodie Scales, High School Language Arts, Muncie, IN: I have a student who wrote an introductory letter to me at the beginning of the year explaining that his biggest fear is having to talk or present in front of anyone else, let alone in front...
By Amanda Brewer, Middle School Teacher, Denton, TX: I teach in a suburban school with a mix of kids in it—racially diverse, high-income, low-income, etc. In my fifth year teaching eighth-grade reading, I was lucky to have small classes. One year, I had one class period...