Mississippi Middle School Anthology

About the Book

Mississippi Middle School Anthology is a collection of students' writings completed during the 2001-2002 school year at Horn Lake Middle School, Horn Lake, Mississippi. Eighty-three eighth grade English students, a number from Hispanic and African-American backgrounds, were given the opportunity to submit poems, short stories, and personal essays for publication. The teacher and editor, Mrs. Sharon Hall, M. S. Ed, selected the best of these and, after, proofreading and editing and arranging them by genre, sent them to a publisher. The project turned out to be a unique learning experience for both the students and their teacher. Obviously, the finished book will be of great interest to school libraries, teachers, college students enrolled in teacher education programs, middle schoolers the world over, and child psychologists. And because Sharon Hall is convinced that MMS Anthology is a creative teaching device for all levels, she has this to say to other educators: "It is very important for students to see their work displayed in some attractive way, and those teachers who require their students to turn in written work would do well to consider this quite inexpensive motivational device. For specific information on how to publish student anthologies, send an email to me at sharonjhall@dixie-net.com."

About the Author

Sharon J. Hall, M. S. Ed., who lives in Holly Springs, Mississippi, with her writer husband, Wesley, has taught English on the middle school and high school levels in Missouri, Arkansas, and Mississippi. In Missouri she served as Director of Accelerated Schools for the State Department of Education, and at Mid-South Community College she was Director of Curriculum. Both as a teacher and as an administrator she has earned certificates in Classroom Management, Writing Across the Curriculum, Crisis Mitigation, and Curriculum Development.