Over the past month, two teachers in geographically disparate locations tried out their first whole novel studies, using the methods in my book, Whole Novels for the Whole Class.
Nancy Wahl (@WahlWords), in Texas, shares her experience teaching Elie Wiesel's Night--whole novel style--in this fresh post, Story of Learning, on her blog, Journey to Story. A veteran teacher, she is excited to be engaging with new ideas and melding aspects of the whole novel approach with some of the great practices of her classroom. Her enthusiasm is contagious! Enjoy a peek into her classroom!
About a month ago, Ken C (@RAMS_English) also a veteran English teacher, curriculum leader, and prolific blogger in Massachusetts piloted the same text, Night, in his 8th grade English class as a whole novel study, while another teacher on his team was teaching the text in a more traditional style. Ken chronicles the whole process and shares his resources on his blog in eight parts! He also includes results of feedback from his students which I thought was super interesting and such an important piece of trying out something new. In this way, he lets others learn from his risk-taking and reflections.
Here are his posts in reverse order--
My Students Weigh In On Whole Novels Method
The Whole Novels Pilot: A Look Back
Day Two's Seminar: A Slight Adjustment
Night: Final Projects, Final Discussions
Feedback: The Lifeblood of Teaching
Day One: Modeling Annotating Skills
Whole Memoirs for the Whole Class