In this course, you will go from feeling frustrated to feeling EMPOWERED to move your students beyond summary and vague generalizations into solid, insightful analysis.

Before I tell you about this classroom-transforming professional development, let's talk about the teachers for whom I designed it.

You're a high school English teacher whose students are getting stuck in the rhetorical analysis process. They don't know how to move forward, and you've tried every trick you know to no avail. Your students lack confidence in their writing abilities, and you're starting to doubt your own ability to work your teacher magic.

You might be

a veteran English teacher who has AP English Language for the first time. You need help with the depth of analysis required for the course.

a first-year English 9 teacher whose college classes in writing instruction were lacking in real-classroom applications. You know that you provide the foundation for your students, and you want to make sure there are no cracks.

an English 10 teacher with a few years under your belt who wants to take your writing instruction to the next level with some fresh ideas to meet students where they are. 

a first-time AP Lang teacher who just wants to do right by her students. You see the potential in them and want to help them see it as well.

Sound like a good fit? Here's what you will learn.

By the end of this professional development, you will have

  • learned to distinguish analyzing from paraphrasing, judging, and summarizing.
  • learned to scaffold using personal prompts, images, stale text, and fresh text.
  • learned to teach students how to construct concrete details and commentary that serve their purpose.
  • learned to teach students how to construct an effective thesis.
  • learned the research behind templates and how to use (and not use) them.
  • learned to troubleshoot through back mapping and deconstruction.
  • learned ways to give timely and effective feedback.
  • learned strategies for building student and instructor confidence

What Teachers Are Saying

 "I had the pleasure of student teaching with Mrs. Kratzer, and we prepared sophomores for the North Carolina Writing Assessment and the AP English Language exam. Her writing methods made a world of difference for our students! The training she conducted for the staff was fun, engaging, and super easy to implement into any lesson." 

Sharifa Johnson
Founder, CEO - Books N' Bops

 "I have purchased Angie's AP English Language curriculum materials, and I am thankful I did. Most recently, I used her Rhetorical Modes Project, and the final products were not only substantial but also fun for my students! They now feel more confident, and I feel better prepared as an AP Language teacher." 

Jason M. Walker
AP English Language Teacher,
Redlands High School

  "If  you've ever wished for an experienced teacher to mentor you through  teaching writing, look no further. As an English teacher and instructional coach, I can say that Angie Kratzer is a wealth of  knowledge when it comes to guiding students to deeper levels of  rhetorical analysis.This course is for anyone who is ready to elevate critical thinking and prepare students for the next level."

Melissa Kruse
Instructional Coach
Blogger @ The Reading and Writing Haven

THE COURSE

Each Monday for four weeks, a new module will drop, and you will get a whole week to work through it at your own pace. You will be in a private Facebook group with the rest of the teachers taking the course, so you'll be going at your own speed, but you won't be going it alone.
module 1:
What analysis is and isn't 
(Released Feb. 1, 2020)

Here's where you get the experience of a veteran teacher and curriculum specialist who has trained thousands of teachers to get on the same instructional page.

In this module, you will learn what the terminology problem is. By the end of the module, you will
*make some decisions about consistent language
*learn a color-coding strategy to differentiate between concrete details and analysis
*learn to spot paraphrasing, judging, and summarizing..

module 2:
gradual release
(Released feb. 8, 2020)

This is the good stuff, the meat of the course. In this module, you will experience Angie's gradual release model of learning to write strong rhetorical analysis by becoming proficient at each core element of it.

Each participant writer will take on the role student and move through these steps:
*image analysis
*stale text analysis
*fresh text analysis
*paragraph construction
*thesis construction
*big picture planning.

module 3:
troubleshooting and feedback
(released feb. 15, 2020)

Eventually, all students hit a brick wall. By the end of this module, you will know how to help a student figure out the problem and get moving again. Through color analysis, back mapping, and deconstruction, your students can learn to do their own investigative work.

In the second half of this module, you will learn simple strategies for offering feedback on drafts without burning yourself out. You do get to have a life as an English teacher!

module 4: 
building confidence
(released feb. 22, 2020)

Identifying a problem is all well and good, but what if someone lacks the confidence to fix it? This module addresses that issue--for both student and teacher.

By the end of this module, you will have in your belt a number of tools to build student confidence in writing and teacher confidence in coaching.


“Top rate support here! Thank you for sharing your expertise.These materials 
evidence  your experience as they are instantly both student and teacher friendly.”
                                                                                              Judi S.

YOU GET

  • a four-week course with one module released each week
  • access to the materials for the life of the course. (In other words, if you can’t go through the course now, you will be             able to take it in June or December if you like. You just won’t have the benefit of the Facebook group or daily access            to Angie.)
  • 12 video lessons with accompanying graphic organizers, student activities, and handouts
  • exercises that will help you think through your own approach to writing and writing instruction
  • access to Angie Kratzer for the four-week duration of the course.

                      Want to do Module 1 with no risk?
          Let’s do that. How about a money-back guarantee?

From the minute Module 1 drops, you have SEVEN DAYS to decide if it is of value to you. You have until the night before Module 2 is released to ask for your  money back! No sweat. No questions asked. If it’s not for you, it’s not for you.

Frequently Asked Questions

When we facilitate this workshop live for teachers, they usually receive continuing education credit from their respective districts. At the end of the course, you will receive a certification of completion, which you may choose to turn in to your district licensure office for credit. You will need to do your own homework to find out if you need prior approval to receive credit.

This course is designed to target a specific problem: weak analysis. We will not be going into the depths of exigence, debating SOAPStone versus SPACECAT, or even looking at strategies and devices. We will be working on fixing the hardest problem there is to fix—sloppy, generalized commentary.

I will offer the course again, but not at this price, and I don’t have the dates lined up yet. I suggest that you purchase the course now and take it in the summer. You can still join the Facebook group for the current class and read posts and watch my Q&A videos after the group is archived.

The course begins on February 1, and my focus will be on my students, not on educating teachers about the opportunity and organizing their participation. I older I get, the fewer balls I can juggle at the same time, so I choose to give current students my attention. 

You can put into the course as much time as you like. Many of the lessons include writing exercises for you to complete as if you are the student. Of course, if you actually do the exercises, you will learn the most. There will be opportunities for you to practice strategies with students. I’m even going to ask you to do a thing or two that might be out of your comfort zone. I will invite you to be active in our private Facebook group, and if you’re feeling brave, you can post one of the writing products I have you create. There are several ways to jump in, even for introverts. The more you jump in, the more of the actual work you do, the more you will learn. You can be passive and learn a little; you can be active and walk away confident that you can guide your students to be better writers.

Indeed, I do! Life happens. You have seven days from the release of Module 1 to ask for your money back. There are no strings; you don't need to make excuses or prove that you gave it a try. Just email me before Module 2 drops, and I will refund your money. Easy peasy.

The first time someone showed me how
 to balance text evidence with student
commentary, my mind was blown. I had
been teaching writing for ten years! Instead of beating myself up about whatever I had been teaching all that time, I just decided to apply
what I learned. Learn better, do better, right?

The next ten years were transformative—
for me, for my students, and for my district.
For several years, I served teachers just like
you as a writing curriculum specialist for a
large district, and I showed them how to do
what you will learn in this course.
 
We had a 25 point gain in our
writing test scores in one year.

It works.

I hope you’ll join me.

© 2024 angie-kratzer