Marcus Miller

IMPORTANT SKILLS I WANT TO TEACH MY STUDENTS

One of the most important skills that I teach my students is how to make a clear, well-articulated argument with a thesis worthy of debate and backed by compelling evidence. If you enter my classroom, you will commonly hear me asking students what their evidence is for their claim.  

TEACHING METHODS TO REACH THESE GOALS

The ninth grade course is set up as a tour of many different kinds of writing: memoir, epic poetry, the contemporary novel, and so forth. We focus on the skill of close reading as well as how to articulate and evaluate the various thematic ideas of the author’s text. Students are asked to look at a text as though with a magnifying glass and to not merely observe what they see, but also to explain what they see. Students are frequently given short passages to discuss in small groups and then come together as a class to discuss what they have discovered in small groups.     

MY FAVORITE PROJECTS

During one section of Tara Westover’s “Educated,” the author explores how the thought of not having enough money for health care, rent, and so forth was so all consuming that she could not focus on her studies. To give the students a feel for what it would be like to worry so much about finances and to increase financial literacy, we do a “Wealth Matters” activity. Students are divided into fictional families where they must set a budget and then are surprised by a couple of unexpected expenses that force them to alter their budget. The families have very different income levels and quickly see, as Westover writes, “the most powerful advantage of money [is] the ability to think of things besides money.”  

WHAT I LIKE BEST ABOUT TEACHING AT SEVEN HILLS

I most enjoy having writing conferences with students at any stage of the writing process. There is nothing better than helping a student to find their voice.