Welcome to the Companion Website for Teaching Literature to Adolescents

This wiki is designed to support the book, Teaching Literature to Adolescents, 2nd edition by Richard Beach, Deborah Appleman, Susan Hynds, and Jeffrey Wilhelm, Routledge, 2011. For further information and orders, click here. This book is also available as a Routledge ebook, a Kindle edition, or as a NookBook.

Designed to introduce prospective English teachers to current methods of teaching literature in middle and high school classrooms, this popular textbook explores a variety of innovative approaches that incorporate reading, writing, drama, talk, and media production. Each chapter is organized around specific questions that English educators often hear in working with preservice teachers. The text engages readers in considering the dilemmas and issues facing literature teachers through inquiry-based responses to authentic case narratives.

New in the second edition:

• More attention to the use of digital texts from use of online literature to digital storytelling to uses of online discussion and writing tools incorporated throughout
• New chapter on teaching young adult literature
• New chapter on teaching reading strategies essential to interpreting literature
• More references to examples of teaching multicultural literature.

"Teaching Literature to Adolescents provides chapter after chapter to help preservice English teachers prepare themselves to be more effective in the classroom...[It] explains ways to get students fully engaged in the literature classroom--interpreting, discussing, and writing about literature...[The] authors may say it's for preservice English teachers, but don't kid yourself—new and veteran teachers alike can benefit from the text and its related website."—Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, October 2007

This website is organized according to two major categories: Chapters and Generic categories (see the Sidebar to the right):

Chapters: When you click on Chapters, you will find Links, Activities, and Further reading.  Within each book chapter, there are specific references to Links on this site.  Activities include classroom teaching activities.  Further reading includes other related readings.

Generic categories: Generic categories include Links that cut across chapters related different aspects of teaching literature, for example, links related to teaching contemporary American literature.

Because this website is a wiki, instructors or students can add their own non-commercial links, activities, or further reading to this site.  To to add material to this site, you need an PBworks account.  If questions, please contact Richard Beach at rbeach@umn.edu