Creative English Teacher.com
Cart 0

Creative English Teacher

Five Reasons to Teach King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

British Literature Five Reasons To Teach Series Mythology World Literature

Five Reasons to Teach King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

“Herein may be seen noble chivalry, courtesy, humanity, friendliness, hardiness, love, friendship, cowardice, murder, hate, virtue, and sin. Do after the good and leave the evil.” ~ Sir Thomas Malory, “Preface to Le Morte D’Arthur” ~ Some stories just resonate with students, and the saga of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table is a student favorite time and again. Maybe it’s that the story cycle is so long, spanning fourteen script-stories, with a sprawling cast of memorable characters. Or maybe it’s just the medieval setting full of knights and damsels, wizards and enchantresses, chivalry and jousting. No...

Read more →


End-of-Course Surveys: Using Feedback to Improve Instruction

Teacher Life Teaching Ideas

End-of-Course Surveys: Using Feedback to Improve Instruction

Someone once said that “Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions,” and I fully agree. (Don't tell Wheaties!) That’s why I end every school year with end-of-course surveys, where students can give me detailed feedback. Here are some tips for doing so.

Read more →


Five Reasons to Read Bram Stoker's Dracula

British Literature Five Reasons To Teach Series

Five Reasons to Read Bram Stoker's Dracula

Why should high school teachers teach Bram Stoker's classic novel Dracula? Here are five different reasons, along with some creative teaching ideas and links to some free materials! In Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the forces of good face off against an ancient evil—Count Dracula, the lord of the undead, as he travels from his crumbling castle in Transylvania to the teeming city of London in search of fresh blood. 

Read more →


Five Reasons to Teach Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

British Literature Five Reasons To Teach Series Teaching Ideas

Five Reasons to Teach Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

 Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift is a classic of British Literature, and in spite of its many sub-par adaptations (I’m looking at you, Jack Black), it remains a timeless tale full of lessons for modern readers. So here are five reasons to teach Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.  Satire is a tricky art form, and its undisputed master is Jonathan Swift. I mean, he even has an adjective named for him: “swiftian” meaning "darkly humorous." Gulliver’s Travels, written in 1726, lampoons everything from religious infighting to political parties to the monarchy itself. Swift was an ordained Irish priest who did not...

Read more →


How to Self-Publish a Book: The Simple and Not-So-Simple Method

Self-publishing Writing

How to Self-Publish a Book: The Simple and Not-So-Simple Method

“How do you publish a book?” Since I have been self-publishing for nearly fifteen years, I get this question a lot. So I would like to answer the question here honestly, for anyone who is brave enough for the answer! 

Read more →