Presents 11 titles selected for the 2000 Honor List for young adult literature. Notes that the books were selected by combining their favorites with the best-book list compiled by the editors of such publications as "School Library Journal,""Booklist," and "Horn Book." (SG)

"Speak," by Laurie Halse Anderson, is one of the most powerful young adult novels to come along in the past decade. It has won numerous awards, including the "School Library Journal" award for "Best Book of the Year," and was a National Book Award Finalist. Despite this acclaim, many English teachers are uncomfortable teaching "Speak" in their…

In schools where student learning is a top priority, librarians' roles include teacher, instructional partner, reading motivator, staff developer, information specialist, curator, and program administrator. They are steered by national standards akin to those guiding core subjects, and it is the librarians' job to embed these standards…

High school teacher Karen E. Moynihan creates a multimodal project inspired by the creative nonfiction style of "The Orchid Thief" by Susan Orlean. Students choose a collectible item and immerse themselves in the subculture of the collectors. The project includes participation in library and field research, interviews, photography and graphic…

In this article, Jorge Arredondo begins by describing an experience he had in his Houston, Texas high school where his teacher and a librarian via a collaborative unit made literature come alive for him. His experience later influenced his English language arts (ELA) career in public education and inspired him to do the same for his students. Now…

This author arrived at the Folger Shakespeare Library in 1981 kind of by accident, a DC public high school English teacher on hiatus from the classroom due to burying parents and birthing children. She was on her way back to that classroom, but the opportunity to work in the land of all things Shakespeare was too good to pass up, even though there…

Junior high school teacher Kristie Jolley believes students become more willing and motivated to practice reading strategies when they are "comfortable within their realm of literacy." Background knowledge of video games helps students succeed in understanding and enjoying game-based texts, which she incorporates into her classroom library as…

In this article, the author relates her library experiences in high school. She considers those trips to the central library in downtown Buffalo as the hallmark of her eleventh-grade education. Now, she observes how the old way of doing research in the library was so different from what is practiced nowadays. Students nowadays who are considered…

In 2006, the author returned to school after completing the Teaching Shakespeare Institute at the Folger Library inspired with new performance-based ideas for teaching the plays. The author began to wonder about using Shakespeare as a vehicle for investigating "rich and strange" language with English Language Learners (ELLs). The author began by…

A statement on the ever-present need to fight for freedom of speech and against censorship. (RL)

Stovall makes an innovative deal with her students: Read 20 books this year and complete a creative project about each, and there won't be any other homework. Stovall describes her method, the projects, how it succeeded, and what the limitations were. (Contains 1 note.)

Describes the realities of current state of the teaching of William Shakespeare in U.S. schools. Compares these realities with the philosophy of teaching of the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC. Shows how the Folger Library's education program resonates with their proclaimed philosophy. (HB)

An English teacher believes that it is necessary for students to know how and why censorship operates in school libraries and classrooms to help them have the tools to speak for themselves. Free-choice reading, mock trails, and writing assignments are used to teach students about the censorship of books that are used in the schools.

Describes a system for involving students in identifying, reading, evaluating, and ordering paperback books for a school library.

Presents high school teachers' recommendations for books about the history and use of the English language. (MM)