Let’s get this out of the way first—yes, I was there was Tom Hanks spoke. Yes, it was as good, nay, better, than everyone says. But that’s now what I’m here to talk about.
Aside from the attention and consideration of Tom Hanks, the 2023 NCTE Conference was filled with many teacher-led sessions. I attended many of these, varying from good to mediocre, and took copious notes. I could offer a play-by-play of things I learned from the NCTE Conference, but instead I’m going to keep it short and sweet. Here are 5 things I intend to take from the NCTE Conference and use with my students ASAP.
ChatGPT Poetry Composition Challenge
Because Tom Hanks offered 400 signed books for purchase for those who rushed to claim a ticket (and because I’m the competitive type), I was late to the ChatGPT session. However, I got a fantastic lesson idea from just 15 minutes at the tail end of this session. The teachers showed a simple yet complex poem to their students, such as “Suicide’s Note” by Langston Hughes or “This is Just to Say” by William Carlos Williams. Then, students had to ask ChatGPT to replicate a poem such as this. However, there were rules. For example, they weren’t allowed to use the author’s name, poem title, words from the poem, or any specific quote or comparison.
In order to replicate a poem similar to the source poem with AI, students need to be very specific in their descriptions. In fact, they often verge into analysis territory. The leader described one student telling ChatGPT that the speaker should be “beckoning the reader to put their face to the surface.”
I am SO excited to try this exercise as an introductory poetry unit with my sophomores. I also sent the idea to the Creative Writing teacher at my school, believing it to be a valuable lesson in poetry instruction.
Writer’s Memos
Another idea I learned that I intend to start using quickly came from a lesson on writing feedback. I’ve taken a lot of PD on this topic this year, so I don’t think there is too much improvement I need to add at this point. However, one instructor mentioned using writers’ memos in their instruction.
A writers’ memo is a note that goes along with a submission of writing. The student reflects on how they feel about the writing assignment and their performance. The teacher reads this memo BEFORE grading the assignment, telling them what to focus on and what the student wants rewarded (if deserved) more than anything.
This is brilliant. I not only intend to do it with long papers in my sophomore class, but with anxiety-inducing on-demand essays in my AP Lit class.
Ekphrastic Poetry
One of the first sessions I attended was co-taught by the AP Lit famous Carlos Escobar. The session was on ekphrastic poetry, or poetry that reflects a visual form, such as art.
The leaders offered poetry pairings that I intend to use in my AP Lit class. I don’t have lesson plans to go with each, but here are some of the pairings they suggested:
Poem: “The Garden Between Days “by Zuyi Zhao (2023)
Painting: John Singer Sargent “Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose”
Poem: “The Dance” by William Carlos Williams
Painting: “Kermesse” by Pieter Brueghel
Reverse Ekphrastic (poem came first)
Poem: “The Great Figure” by William Carlos Williams
Painting: “I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold” by Charles Demuth
Poem: “Blue Horses” by Mary Oliver
Painting: “Blue Horses” by Franz Marc
I look forward to using an ekphrastic poem with AP Lit in the next few weeks, especially as many of my AP Lit students are also artistic.
Journalism Lead Challenge
One of the most helpful sessions I attended was on Journalism classes in high school. I currently teach our Journalism course at my school and was looking for tips to strengthen and grow my program.
The warm-up activity discussed asking students to write a variety of news leads for each assignment. And while I do this at the beginning of the school year, I kind of drop it after our first news article. But when the instructor asked us to consider writing five kinds of news leads, I was mildly intrigued.
After an hour of very helpful teaching and sharing of ideas, the instructor returned to this idea of a variety of leads. Now, instead of hypothetical practice, it was real. We were to write five types of leads for the NCTE Conference as we saw it so far. Here is what I wrote:
A factual/descriptive lead
The 2023 National Council of Teachers of English Conference was held in Columbus Ohio over this past weekend, where over 1000 English educators met to grow in ideas and instruction.
A blunt lead
For four days, Columbus Ohio was overtaken by grammar police.
A paradoxical lead
The NCTE Conference was both overwhelming and underwhelming, depending on who you asked.
A lead that is all dialogue
“Where is D234?”
“There’s no room left.”
“Did you see the line for the bathroom?”
“Does that one have any food left?”
“I can’t find the escalator.”
“Welcome, can I help you?”
A controversial lead
Some of the information I got at NCTE I could have learned in a blog post.
Respect the Mic
The very last session I attended was on the recommendation of Melissa Alter Smith, so naturally I went. This session shared a collaborative spoken word poetry effort from Oak Park River Forest High School. I was immediately intrigued, as I went to college right next to OPRF and did several observational hours there in my early undergrad days.
These poems can be found in Respect the Mic, a collection of poems from students, advisors, and teachers at OPRF. I’ve been flirting with the idea of studying poetry collections as a unit for a few years now (again, thanks to Melissa), and this solidified the need for poems like this in my classroom. I bought the book already and can’t wait to read it. You can order your own copy of this book here!
To Wrap up
There were countless other moments that I loved from the NCTE Conference (most of which involve Susan Barber). I’m excited to return next year, hopefully as a presenter myself! If you attended, I’d love to hear what sessions or ideas you heard that you found helpful!
