

Teaching Middle School ELA
Caitlin Mitchell
Welcome to the Teaching Middle School ELA Podcast, where we help English Language Arts teachers create dynamic, engaging lessons while balancing the everyday responsibilities of teaching middle school.I’m Caitlin Mitchell, a longtime ELA educator and curriculum creator, and I know firsthand how challenging it can be to manage grading, planning, and student needs—while still trying to have a life outside the classroom. That’s why every Tuesday and Thursday, I bring you practical strategies, curriculum inspiration, and innovative teaching ideas to help you feel confident, prepared, and energized.Whether you're looking to revamp your writing instruction, streamline your planning process, or engage even the most reluctant readers and writers, you’ll find actionable support here. You'll also hear real classroom stories, fresh lesson ideas, and occasional interviews with other passionate educators.If you teach reading and writing to middle schoolers and want to stay inspired and up-to-date with best practices in ELA education, you’re in the right place. Tune in every week and let’s transform your teaching—together.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 19, 2021 • 10min
Our Favorite F Word In the Classroom - 103
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, we ask you to consider a few important questions: How do you spend your prep periods? How often do you analyze student data? And how is teaching affecting your personal life? If you don’t like the answers to these questions, we’re here to help you start working smarter, not harder. Hello batch planning, and goodbye stress, resentment, and burnout. Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Jan 12, 2021 • 12min
Move Past Overwhelm and Start Batch Lesson Planning TODAY - 102
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, we share exactly how to begin batch lesson planning by first looking at your entire school year, then getting more granular by focusing on individual units, and finally planning daily lessons. We discuss all of our best strategies in this episode so that you can learn from our many years of practice! Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Jan 5, 2021 • 12min
How to Protect Your Peace in 2021 - 101
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, we share the best strategy to make your teaching life manageable and enjoyable. You will kiss burnout goodbye and stop planning day-by-day. Using our best techniques for batch planning, you will change your teaching life forever--seriously! Batch planning changed our teaching experiences, and now, we batch plan just about everything. Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Dec 29, 2020 • 15min
Celebrating Our 100th Episode With Stories From Our EB Teachers - 100
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, you will hear from members of the EB Teacher’s Club and the EB Writing Program. These fabulous educators share how becoming an EB teacher changed their careers and lives for the better. The transformations they experienced are motivating, inspirational, and the perfect way to close out the year 2020. We hope you enjoy them as much as we did. Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Dec 22, 2020 • 16min
Is Your Narrative Unit Really Improving Students’ Writing Skills? - 099
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!Fortunately, over the years, we’ve learned what works, and what doesn’t, when it comes to teaching narrative writing. And today, we share the three questions you should ask yourself about your narrative writing units to make sure your students are really mastering the writing standards. Links mentioned in this episode: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Christmas-Writing-Activity-for-Middle-School-Gingerbread-House-for-Sale-2867123 https://ebacademics.com/detectivelesson Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Dec 15, 2020 • 11min
Why Being a “Perfect” Teacher Isn’t What Your Students Need - 098
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, we share exactly why a perfectionist or comparison-driven mindset is so harmful to your students’ learning outcomes and your own professional development. We also give you the tools and encouragement to leave your comfort zone, try something new, mess up, and try again. A teacher who unafraid to fail, and willing to be flexible, is the teacher your students truly need. Links mentioned in this episode: ebacademics.com/detectivelesson Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Dec 8, 2020 • 19min
How One Writing Teacher Got Her Life Outside of School Back - 097
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!When Mindy found the EB Writing program, her life changed. She is now able to spend more time with her husband, she feels confident about the writing instruction her students are receiving, and she has a newfound love of writing, herself! Listen to today’s episode to hear about Mindy’s transformation after implementing the EB Writing Program. Plus, learn how she took a narrative writing publishing party to the next level by involving her community! You won’t want to miss this episode. Links mentioned in this episode: ebacademics.com/detectivelesson Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Dec 1, 2020 • 20min
How Empowered Educators Find Solutions Instead of Setbacks - 096
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!And today on the podcast, we’re going to talk through the most common stressors that teachers experience--everything from last-minute lesson planning to grading burnout--and we’ll give you multiple solutions or strategies for each so that you can focus your time and energy on what WILL work instead of what won’t. You deserve to love your job and have a life outside of teaching. Listen in to today’s episode to learn the simple changes we made that dramatically improved our lives in--and outside--the classroom. Links mentioned in this episode: ebacademics.com/detectivelesson Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Nov 24, 2020 • 9min
A Life-Saving Holiday Activity That Will Get you To Winter Break - 095
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!You’re exhausted, and you’re probably just barely making it through these last few weeks before break. We’ve been there, and that’s why we created an incredible holiday writing activity years ago that we’ve used every December for ages! It is always a huge hit because it’s rigorous, highly engaging, and it gets everyone in the holiday spirit. Listen to today’s episode to hear all about our Gingerbread House Writing Activity and how we successfully implemented it in our classrooms, year after year. Plus, if you listen in until the end, you’ll get an opportunity to win this resource for FREE! Find out how! Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H

Nov 17, 2020 • 16min
Playing to Win Matters More Than Curriculum - 094
I’d love to hear from you! Send me a text!In today’s episode, we encourage you to step into a new mindset. We encourage you to nurture a new and improved thought process. We invite you to step into the role of an empowered educator--an educator who creates the life she wants to lead, and isn’t just a victim of circumstance. We all have challenges, but the teachers who succeed in the classroom--feel organized, prepared, confident, and at ease--they play to win. They develop game-plans while others are complaining or scrolling their phone. Listen in to hear how you can play to win in your school, no matter what you’re up against this year. Are you enjoying the podcast? Tag us @ebacademics and let us know which episode you're listening to! Make sure to Subscribe and leave us a Review! Your review helps us reach even more middle school ELA teachers just like you! It would mean so much to us. To leave a review in iTunes, click HERE and scroll down to Rating and Reviews. Click on "Write a Review" and let us know how this podcast is helping you in your ELA classroom! Other episodes you might enjoy: Constructive Criticism: How to Change Your Mindset and Be Open to Feedback Mini Literary Analysis Writing PD: H