From Hit Peee Poop to Authentic Critical Writing: Growing Pains in Middle Level ELA

This article reflects a teacher’s realization that, while her catchy songs and mnemonics geared toward the young adolescent sense of humor help students memorize rules, they do not really foster authentic understanding or deeper thinking about any of the content they create. After reading “Anthem or Nah?”, Anderson adapted one of her writing lessons and was able to get her students more engaged in not just writing, but in their thinking about themselves, their classmates, and society as a whole.