Notes from the Inkpot
Writing, teaching, creating - one ink-stained idea at a time.
How to Teach Animal Farm: Practical Strategies, Discussion Ideas, and Activities That Actually Work
Teaching Animal Farm works best when you slow students down and focus on how Orwell builds power through language, propaganda, and responsibility. In this post, I break down how to teach it without drowning students in context, share activities that actually work in the classroom, and include a free set of Chapter 1 creative writing prompts you can use straight away.
What Are Digital Writing Boxes? (And Why Teachers & Writers Are Quietly Obsessed)
Digital writing boxes are downloadable sets of fictional relics and documents that spark creative writing through curiosity, investigation, and worldbuilding. In this post, I break down what they are, why they work for both teachers and writers, and how The Soot & Shadows Series blends historical mystery, folklore, and atmospheric relics into a flexible creative writing tool. If you’re tired of prompts that say “imagine a door…,” you’ll love this.
Lord of the Flies: Why Students Engage, and Why Teachers Need More Than a Summary Sheet
Lord of the Flies hooks students instantly — the conflict, the power struggles, the moral ambiguity, the fear. The hard part isn’t engagement, it’s turning that interest into structured analysis, meaningful discussion, and actual writing without drowning in prep. Here’s how to make the novel work in real classrooms, plus a full resource bundle that covers retrieval, creative response, discussion, assessment, and digital differentiation.
10 Dystopian Texts to Teach Beyond 1984 (Classroom Ideas & Creative Writing)
Every time dystopian fiction comes up in the classroom, 1984 takes centre stage. And for good reason — it’s chilling, essential, and one of those texts I’ll always defend teaching. But Orwell isn’t the whole story. Dystopia is also about fear, climate collapse, isolation, memory, love, and the choices people make when systems fall apart. This post shares ten powerful texts that go beyond Orwell, each with themes, classroom ideas, and creative writing extensions you can use straight away.
Halloween Gothic Short Stories & Creative Writing Bundle: Teach Analysis and Imagination in One Go
Looking for ready-to-go Halloween ELA activities? This Gothic short story and creative writing bundle is perfect for middle and high school lesson plans. Explore The Tell-Tale Heart, The Fall of the House of Usher, and The Monkey’s Paw with complete activities, then let students create their own eerie narratives through the Victoriana Creative Writing Mystery Box. A time-saving, engaging way to combine analysis and imagination this October.
Save Hours Planning Creative Writing Units with Daily Prompts
Tired of reinventing the wheel for every creative writing lesson? Daily prompts offer a flexible, low-prep way to boost engagement, sharpen skills, and save you hours of planning. Here's how to build an entire unit around them, and where to grab your first month of prompts for free.
7 Free English Classroom Resources I Actually Use (And Still Love)
Seven free English teaching resources I’ve actually used in real classrooms. From creative writing prompts to post-reading tasks, these are my go-to freebies that still hold up, and they’re all ready to download.