This book is a brilliant work of architecture—the making of an English course. How do you shape the movement of the 180 days, balancing open space and structure, individuality and assessment, breadth and depth (not to mention managing the damn thing). Two of our country’s most innovative teachers, Penny Kittle and Kelly Gallagher take on this challenge in a cross-country collaboration, exploring the art of the possible. This book—and its amazing video accompaniment—illustrates not so much the fixed course everyone should teach (even they don’t totally agree on that), but how to think through the making, and the principles that should be its foundation.—Thomas Newkirk
Spending 180 days on the job and in the world with Penny Kittle and Kelly Gallagher is like apprenticing yourself to a year in the kitchen with two master chefs who speak honestly and passionately about the challenges we face and the choices we must make every day in our own classrooms. I learned something new on every page, verbally annotating just about every suggestion with a mental “Yes!” or “Try this!” At every turn, they acknowledge and address the constraints, especially of time, we all face in our classes—then show us how they manage to teach their students so much and so well despite those constraints.—Jim Burke, author of The English Teacher’s Companion
"This book is everything. I mean this whole-heartedly and without exaggeration – this book is everything. It is everything I needed when I began teaching, and it is exactly what I need now to reflect on my practices, my curriculum, and my kids. The depth of knowledge and experience here, living alongside the breadth of thinking across the time and space of a school year, takes my breath away. Thank you, Penny and Kelly. May my children have teachers who have read and used this book."--Kate Roberts, author of A Novel Idea
Who among us hasn’t wished to be a fly on the wall of Penny’s and Kelly’s classrooms? In 180 Days, we aren’t just flies—we are invited into their brains, their plan books, and their friendship as they answer the question that plagues every teacher: how to do it all in one year? This book is not about how to find time where time doesn’t exist. It’s not about turning 180 days into 200 days so you can fit everything in. This book is about making decisions about what really matters enough and how to make the most of the time we are given with our students. It honors teachers as decision-makers and reminds us of the power of professional collaboration to change not only our students’ learning but also our own professional lives.—Allison Marchetti and Rebekah O’Dell, coauthors of Writing With Mentors and Beyond Literary Analysis
