John S. O’Connor has taught English classes for the past twenty five years in a wide range of settings from 6th grade to university classes, including Northwestern University and Penn State. He has taught in public and private schools, urban and suburban schools, a maximum security prison, an adult literacy center and the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and New Trier H.S. in Winnetka, IL. O’Connor has written two books on teaching writing: This Time It’s Personal: Teaching Academic Writing through Creative Nonfiction, and Wordplaygrounds: Reading, Writing and Performing Poetry in the English Classroom. A recent nonfiction essay was named a Notable Essay in Best American Essays (2011), and his most recent book of poems was a finalist for the Touchstone Distinguished Book Award in 2012. O’Connor has served as the education contributor for NPR affiliate, WBEZ, and he has blogged on the intersection of poetry and education for the Poetry Foundation. His poems have appeared in places such as The Cortland Review, Poetry East, and RHINO. He has been a featured speaker at state English Council conferences, and he frequently speaks at schools and universities.
View John O'Connor's Resume/Vita, Publications and Workshops.
To request NCTE Professional Development Services, complete the Online Request Form, call 800-369-6283 or email us today!
Learn more about John in this video where he reflects on what teacher's face on the first day of school (from an NPR interview).
Level: 6-12
- Poetry Reading, Writing, and Performance
- Teaching Nonfiction
Let us help you take the guess-work out of planning effective professional development for your teachers! Purchase a comprehensive professional development package that includes a one-day workshop with John O'Connor (on a topic of your choice) AND 20 copies of This Time It's Personal: Teaching Creative Nonfiction!
Cost: $3,000 plus travel costs.
Contact profdev@ncte.org to book this package!
*Other packages/quantities are available. Contact us to learn more!
Previous Presentations
- “Poetry Playgrounds: New Voices in the Classroom"
- “Poemsinging: Incorporating Poetry and Music in the Classroom”
- "Teacher as Reformer, Chicago, IL. Presented “Life Lessons: Learning to Analyze Characters and Ourselves through Story”
- "StoryFrames: Using Student Narrative to Improve Comprehension”
- “All Writing Is Creative: Teaching Academic Writing through Creative Nonfiction”
- “Real World Teaching: Writing throughout the Curriculum and All around the World”
- “21st Century Literacy: Blogging In (and Out) of the Classroom”
- “Media Literacy: Using Visual texts to Inform Literary Analysis”
- “Reading our Students in order to Help Students Read”