Harnessing the Strength of “I’m Really Into” Essays: Straight from the Classroom

A BACKSTORY: THE CALL TO TEACH

After a fire destroyed a large part of my former school, Highland H. S. in Pocatello, Idaho last April, my English department head Stefanie Plato asked me to fill a long-term subbing position. 

I accepted and took over all teaching duties. Stef and I conferred about the original plan to teach Fahrenheit 451 to sophomore students. We agreed the book would not serve students well after the fire. 

I suggested a unit on finding joy. I’d been reading Unearthing Joy by Gholdy Muhammad at the time. Stef showed me the NPR series I’M REALLY INTO in which readers submit essays about their interests and hobbies. 

I loved the idea of having students write their own “I’m Really Into” essays.

HOW WE GOT HERE: THE BIG “I’M REALLY INTO” IDEA 

“After the Fire”: Our district implemented hybrid learning for Highland students. They would meet in person twice a week at Century H.S. and attend three days online via Google Classroom.

I’m Really Into essays checked all the boxes on my list of objectives for the class:

• An opportunity to get to know students.
• Raising student voices through memoir/personal narrative;
• Opportunities for literature connections; 
• Authentic ways to promote research;
• Mentor texts that appeal to a variety of interests;
• Curriculum suitable for hybrid teaching.

2. We read and discussed an essay from NPR: From Cycling to Foraging, Here’s What We’re Really Into. 

3. A later lesson focused on understanding organization through reverse outlining  Clouds Remind Me That Magical Things in Life Can Come Out of Nowhere.

4. I invited our administration to class to talk about their interests. They visited throughout the month to keep students interested in and working on their essays.

• Brad, our principal, told stories about how he’s into white water rafting and guiding. 
• Jena talked about her baking love and decorating cakes and cupcakes and her road biking. 
• Steve shared his love of theater and his new theater business with a former Highland student. 
• Stef told the class about her love of coaching her children’s sports and asked for volunteers. 

5. I wrote with students and modeled my writing process after seeking their input about what I should write about in a Google Classroom attendance question. Students chose travel as my topic: “I’m Really Into Travel.” 

6. After peer evaluating their essays, I introduced students to researching their topics and demonstrated with my travel essay how to rewrite the essay to incorporate research into it. These are highlighted in my “I’m Really Into” essay. The SMART BREVITY paradigm works for giving directions.

Toby, for example, wrote about his interest in psychology and focused on kleptomania. He incorporated research into his description of kleptomaniacs as often having lost the use of their hands:

7. Students used a scoring guide to access assessment criteria.

OF NOTE: I’M REALLY INTO LITERATURE CONNECTIONS

I selected ERASER TATTOO by Jason Reynolds and HOW TO TRANSFORM AN EVERYDAY, ORDINARY HOOP COURT INTO A PLACE OF HIGHER LEARNING AND YOU AT THE PODIUM by Matt de la Pena as our literature focus. 

• These stories elevate living writers of color and 
• They appeal to teens’ love of sports. 
• They invite students to think about moral dilemmas. 
• They are engaging and evoke strong responses in most teens. 

WHAT’S NEXT: ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL I’M REALLY INTO EXPLORATION

Young learners can explore things they’re really into. Some ideas: 

• What games are you really into playing?
• What family and friend activities do you enjoy?
• What animals are you really into learning about?
• What stuffies or toys are you really into?

I’d love to hear your ideas and read your Slice of Life stories about teaching  “I’m Really Into” writing to your learners. 

GO DEEPER

1. Explore the Smart Brevity format for book responses.
2. Learn more about Reverse Outlining at the Purdue OWL and the Howe Center for Writing Excellence.

Glenda Funk is a retired high school English and speech communication teacher who occasionally works as a substitute teacher in her district. Glenda will be a presenter at the upcoming NCTE Annual Convention and at the Western Literature Association convention. She blogs at Swirl & Swing: www.glendafunk.wordpress.com and writes poetry with the EthicalELA.com #VerseLove community. Glenda has been a regular blogger on Tuesdays and a participant in the Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge for a long time.