Welcome to the Podcast
The Empower Students Now Podcast
How to Quit Grading So Much…
Amanda Write Now · How To Quit Grading So Much And Make It More Meaningful So, you want to know how to quit grading so much? Or maybe you just want your grading process to be more systematic and meaningful for students. Well, reading this blog post is the first step...
How to Teach Reading and Writing Workshop from a Distance
Amanda Write Now · How To Teach Reading And Writing Workshop From A Distance Many teachers are wondering, can I still teach reading and writing workshop from a distance? The quick answer is... absolutely! Whether you want to admit it or not, the current state...
Distance Learning Community Building Activities for Middle and High School
Amanda Write Now · 15 Community Building Distance Learning Activities Middle Schoolers Will LOVE! Students in our class need to feel that their unique voices, opinions, and experiences matter. In this article, you'll get inspiration and ideas for distance learning...
My Best Tips for Managing a Book Club Unit
Managing a book club unit is tough! Some teachers may feel so overwhelmed by all the moving pieces that they avoid book clubs altogether. This is completely understandable. During a book club unit, students are reading different books, analyzing a wide range of...
Want to Get Started With Workshop? Do This One Simple Yet Powerful Thing!
Does this sound like you? You learn a new idea, a new way of teaching, a new strategy and you're all in. You become so convinced THIS is the way to go about things from now on! But, this energy to change everything all at once eventually wears off and you're left with...
How I Cut My Grading Time by Ten Hours
I teach 4 sections of English with a total of 128 students. Grading that many papers every few months is a huge endeavor and can overtake a person's life! In my 13 years as a teacher, I've never been able to kick that nagging feeling that there's always more to...
ONE Crucial Thing You Might Not Be Doing When Planning Writing Units and How To Start Doing It!
Teachers are SUPER busy during the school year and need to be efficient when planning new writing units. It is absolutely necessary to find ways to save time. The thing is you are most likely missing one huge step before you even begin planning your lessons. Listen to...
13 Ways to Motivate Resistant Writers
We all have resistant writers in our classrooms. This is a fact of teaching life. In the video below learn 13 different ways that you can help resistant writers become much more motivated. Not all of these ways will work. You need to try different combinations with...
The Truth About Programs: 4 Programs That Changed Me That I Eventually Quit
Quitting programs. I've followed and quit so many programs in my life! Diets, work out routines, parenting guides, teaching curriculum. Programs are everywhere we turn. Dictionary.com defines "program" as: a plan of action to accomplish a specified end. In this blog...
What does workshop actually look like in a secondary classroom?
I get a lot of emails every week asking a wide range of questions. One question that seems to come up over and over again is, what does workshop actually look like in a secondary classroom? Here's the simple answer: workshop can look however you want it to look. You...
Your First Mini Lesson of the School Year: How Workshop is Like Playing Fortnite Battle Royale
There are so many things we need to accomplish the first week of school. We need to get to the content but we also need to teach students about how our class will run and build relationships and community too. Now you may feel a bit overwhelmed at this point. Not to...
Life Changing Podcasts and Books for Teachers
Teaching is such a demanding job that requires constant energy. And when school ends abruptly it can leave us feeling empty and looking for ways to fill the void. Here is a big lists of podcasts and books that can help!