diane burrowes's Page

Thomas Pynchon can throw students for a loop—but that's the whole point of Pynchon, isn't it? THE CRYING OF LOT 49 gives students a quick punch of Thomas Pynchon's brand of postmodernism. Still, students need a bit of preparation before they step…

Here's a video to show your students before they tackle TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. Tom Foster, a professor at the University of Michigan, leads students through the first page of the novel--highlighting such things as style, mood, setting, theme, point…

In May 1844, Philadelphia –the City of Brotherly Love– was torn apart by a series of bloody riots. Known as the “Bible Riots,” they grew out of the vicious anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic sentiment that was so widespread in 19th century America.…

Do your students know William Weatherford--aka Red Eagle? They should. He fought for his people's land and freedom during the Creek Wars in Alabama.

The Zinn Education Project is giving away classroom sets (25 books per set) of Howard Zinn’s A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES to 20 teachers who submit stories about how they teach a people’s history in the classroom. A total of 500 books to be given away! Books have been donated by HarperCollins. We have provided some questions to help elicit the reason, use, and impact of your teaching a people’s history story. Deadline is Monday, April 26. Find out more…See More

One of my favorite spots in Vermont is the Frost gravesite in the cemetery of the First Church in Old Bennington--just down the street from the Bennington Monument. Robert Frost--New England’s poet of snowy woods, stone wall and apple trees. I hope…