My students have been studying argument for the last few weeks. We’ve covered most of the basics and a bit more: the rhetorical triangle, ethos, pathos, logos, classical v. Rogerian structures, induction v. deduction. syllogisms, and claims, evidence, and warrants a la the Toulmin model.… Read More
All posts by “Tricia Ebarvia”
Slice of Life 8: Fifteen suggestions
On this International Women’s Day, I finished reading Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s new book Dear Ijeawele, Or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions. The book is structured as a letter to Adichie’s friend who asked her how she could raise her young daughter to be a feminist.… Read More
Teaching Argument in a World of Alternative Facts
Given the state of today’s political discourse and the complex challenges presented by social media sharing (and over sharing), it’s more important now than ever for teachers to take an active role in helping students navigating the information and misinformation they encounter every day. At… Read More
To Blog or Not to Blog: Blog!
As Moving Writers readers know, one of the central ideas behind this site is authentic writing—what does writing in the real and wild world look like (versus the sometimes too-tightly controlled world of our classrooms)? Over the years, I’ve come to believe that the more… Read More
March Madness: Determining Significance
March Madness March is still two months away, but that didn’t stop my students from facing off March Madness style as we reviewed Lord of the Flies last week. One of the challenges students often face when writing literary analysis is that writing literary analysis… Read More
What Are You Working On?
I’ve always believed in the writing process. My teaching didn’t always reflect that belief, as I spent too many years earlier in my career creating worksheets and essay prompts and outlines and templates. I soon realized that just because my writing instruction included steps didn’t… Read More
Slice of Life: Color Matters
Race has been on my mind lately. Race, ethnicity, culture, color. I’m sure my heightened awareness has something to do with politics and the news. Every day, a story is published, a post shared, a tweet tweeted about another incident that has something to do… Read More
Credo
It’s hard to describe the experience of the NWP/NCTE Conferences. A gathering of thousands of educators might seem overwhelming to some—and it definitely can be—but this year, more than any other, being with my teacher tribe was rejuvenating, especially after the last few weeks. After… Read More
“Teachable Alternatives” to the 5-Paragraph Essay
On Friday morning at the NCTE Annual Convention, I sat in a session that featured Tom Romano, Mariana Romano, and Linda Rief. My hands failed me that session. I simply could not get all the ideas down in my notebook fast enough. One after another,… Read More
Finding a Way Forward: Deliberate Acts of Kindness
It’s been a tough week. Like many teachers, I’ve found myself feeling lost—and feeling loss. After staying up much of the night on Tuesday, I woke up on Wednesday, November 9, unsure of how I would teach that day, unsure of what to say to my… Read More
Tricia Ebarvia 
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