Writing

Learn more about how schools teach students writing and composition skills
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Teaching Opinion Teachers Swear by These Instructional Approaches for Engaging Students
It's true that some strategies can take more time. But often, teachers have to slow down to move students forward.
Larry Ferlazzo, July 17, 2024
12 min read
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English Learners Opinion Teachers Share Their Best Lessons for Intermediate English Learners
Students build confidence in their language skills when they're taught four basic sentence structures, moving from simple to more complex.
Larry Ferlazzo, July 15, 2024
5 min read
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Teaching Opinion 'Magical': How One Teacher Describes a Pandemic-Recovery Moment
Not all student losses from the pandemic are headline-grabbing. Students have forgotten some basic skills.
Larry Ferlazzo, July 12, 2024
7 min read
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Teaching Opinion To Build Trust in the Classroom, Encourage Students to Share Their Stories
Before asking students to open up, teachers need to build an environment where young people feel safe. Here's how to do that.
Larry Ferlazzo, July 1, 2024
10 min read
Singer Taylor Swift performs on stage during her Eras Tour at the Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on June 7, 2024.
Taylor Swift performs on stage during her Eras Tour at the Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on June 7, 2024.
Jane Barlow/PA via AP
Reading & Literacy Q&A Can Taylor Swift Get Students to Love Poetry?
A college professor will train middle and high school teachers on how to use Swift's lyrics in their curriculum.
Madeline Will, June 19, 2024
8 min read
Reading & Literacy Spotlight Spotlight on How Reading and Writing Fuel Each Other
This Spotlight will help you learn the benefits of tutoring on reading skills; identify how to build students’ reading stamina; and more.


April 1, 2024
Teaching Video Teachers, Try This: A Pen Pal Exchange to Improve Student Writing and Build Empathy
This class experiences so many benefits through the monthly letters they exchange with their pen pals at the local retirement home.
4:00
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Reading & Literacy Opinion How to Help Students With Their Writing. 4 Educators Share Their Secrets
In many classrooms, students are handcuffed by restrictive templates for assignments instead of getting to practice how to create.
Larry Ferlazzo, February 16, 2024
13 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
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Policy & Politics Opinion Scholars’ Writing Is Often Unclear. Why That Matters for the K-12 Field
Academic writing is often incomprehensible. Public-facing writing can help scholars break bad habits.
Rick Hess, February 12, 2024
9 min read
3D rendering of a robot child thinking about something
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Classroom Technology An Expert Asked AI to Write Like a 4th Grader. Here's What It Came Up With
ChatGPT and other AI writing tools are becoming sophisticated enough to imitate students' writing styles, making cheating harder to detect.
Alyson Klein, December 18, 2023
1 min read
Classroom Technology AI Can Mimic Students' Writing Styles. How Are Teachers Supposed to Catch Cheaters Now?
AI is rapidly becoming too sophisticated for even veteran educators’ detective skills, educators and experts say.
Alyson Klein, December 13, 2023
6 min read
Reading & Literacy Video Teachers, Try This: A Writing Exercise for Amazon’s Strangest Products
Students search for the strangest product they can find on Amazon, and practice writing reviews in this pre-winter break exercise.
Lauren Santucci, December 7, 2023
3:19
Image of a person using a computer, with glasses, papers, and pencil on the desk too.
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Assessment If ChatGPT Can Write Virtually Anything, What Should a National Writing Exam Test?
That's a question the board that oversees the National Assessment of Educational Progress is confronting amid AI's rapid ascendance.
Libby Stanford, November 17, 2023
6 min read
Photo of child practicing cursive writing.
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Curriculum More States Require Schools to Teach Cursive Writing. Why?
Technological advances notwithstanding, advocates give a long list of reasons for teaching students cursive.
Elizabeth Heubeck, November 16, 2023
5 min read