What Does it Mean to Teach Dangerously?

When Kelly Gallagher and Penny Kittle set out to plan a year of teaching together, they knew they were going to have to take some risks, but that it would ultimately help them write a better book for teachers. After all, the best advice comes from those who have first hand experience. This is where the idea of "teaching dangerously" came from – from trying and failing, from succeeding in unexpected places, from changing plans halfway through the year.

In the video below, Kelly and Penny explain more about what it means to teach dangerously:

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Learn more about 180 Days on Heinemann.com

Kelly Gallagher teaches at Magnolia High School in Anaheim, California. He is the author of several books on adolescent literacy, most notably Readicide and Write Like This. Kelly is the former co-director of the South Basin Writing Project at California State University, Long Beach and the former president of the Secondary Reading Group for the International Literacy Association. You can follow him on Twitter @KellyGToGo

As a professional development coordinator for the Conway, New Hampshire, School District, Penny Kittle acts as a K-12 literacy coach and directs new-teacher mentoring. In addition, she teaches writing at Conway’s Kennett High School and in the Summer Literacy Institutes at the University of New Hampshire.

Penny is the author of numerous books including Book Love: Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in Adolescent Readers; Children Want to Write (coauthored with Thomas Newkirk); and Write Beside Them: Risk, Voice, and Clarity in High School Writing. You can follow her on twitter @pennykittle