The Middle School Literacy Project by Luke Morin

I was the Highest Performing Teacher in Colorado. No One Noticed.

Achievement data reveals excellence in schools every year. We mostly ignore it — and the reasons expose more about our values and incentives than we…

Feb 10 • Luke Morin

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January 2026

A Lily Pad, in Practice

A close-reading model using Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder”

Jan 30 • Luke Morin

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Wading Into the Deep End: What Reading Actually Requires When the Text Gets Hard

Explicit, text-driven modeling unlocks the rigor of complex texts. It's messy, and we should be doing far more of it.

Jan 7 • Luke Morin

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December 2025

Creating a Classroom that "Crackles"

Silent, passive sitting is the default in most classrooms. It’s a poor match for how humans bond—and for how students actually learn.

Dec 18, 2025 • Luke Morin

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“Junk Lit” and the Cost of Easy Reading

Kids need complexity, but our fixation on engagement keeps pushing rigor out of the room.

Dec 4, 2025 • Luke Morin

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November 2025

AI Schools Are Selling a Dangerous Fantasy

Their most insidious “innovation” has probably already infiltrated your school. Here’s how to fight back.

Nov 14, 2025 • Luke Morin

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Finding the Light in the First Lines

Literary openings do more than begin a story—they illuminate it. When students learn to slow down and see, everything else falls into place.

Nov 7, 2025 • Luke Morin

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October 2025

Finding Meaning in the Margins

Annotations capture student thinking in motion—and remind us that seeking clarity often begins with a little chaos.

Oct 31, 2025 • Luke Morin

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The Surprising Power of the Humble Worksheet

Students spend hours on screens at school. It's bad for them, and paper is better anyways.

Oct 23, 2025 • Luke Morin

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Why Mastery Doesn't Matter

Our obsession with “standards mastery” has turned reading class into a slog for teachers and students — and it’s hiding an even bigger problem.

Oct 16, 2025 • Luke Morin

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The Great Reading Collapse

How decades of hollow instruction drained reading of its meaning—and why it’s time to start believing in our students again.

Oct 7, 2025 • Luke Morin

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