I taught Sandra Cisneros's The House on Mango Street once, and quickly realized I needed to rethink my approach. In this post, I'll explain why, and why I’m building something new for students who need a little more structure, support, and literary confidence.

What Wasn’t Working (And Why I Had to Pivot)

Like many teachers, I first taught The House on Mango Street as a casual, creative unit. We’d read the vignettes together in a book club format and wrap up the unit by having students write their own, personal creative vignette.

But midway through the unit, I started to notice that my students weren’t really connecting with the text. They didn’t understand the rich, symbolic, poetic nature of Cisneros’s writing. They would get lost, bored, and either try to finish their discussion questions as quickly as possible, or try every which way from Sunday to avoid the discussion at all.

I was so disappointed (and quite frankly, surprised!) when the students weren't "just getting it," and in love with a text that I found so beautiful, accessible, and full.

If that's what reading the book was like, you can imagine what it was like to use the text as a model for personal vignette writing.

When it came time for students to write their own vignettes, they were anything but inspired. They were confused, and frustrated with the insistence that they should be galvanized by a work they didn't connect with at all.

Cue classroom of eye rolls the moment I projected the vignette assignment sheet on the board for us to go over.

While no teacher, or adult, enjoys that kind of moment with students if you're trying to get them to do something they clearly don't want to do, it gave me pause.

I realized I was asking students to model a form of writing that they hadn’t actually learned how to read.

What I’m Doing Instead

I start with the skills. I guide students through a close reading of a small, powerful selection of vignettes — and we focus on what makes them work:

• Symbolism and imagery
• Tone and mood
• Figurative language (simile, metaphor, repetition, allusion, and more)
• Theme development

We don’t just read — we study. And then, we write. But instead of creative vignettes, we start with analytical paragraphs. Clear structure. Modeled examples. Practice choosing evidence and breaking it down.

It’s foundational work. And it changes everything.

Building a Course for Students Who Need This

Because this model has worked so well in my own classroom, I’m turning it into a self-paced online course called **Unlocking Literary Analysis with **The House on Mango Street. It’s built for 9th and 10th grade students who:

• Struggle with English class, but want to improve
• Feel lost reading figurative or poetic texts
• Want to build paragraph-writing confidence step by step

This could be great for students who might otherwise be stuck in remedial summer school — or for families looking for a meaningful, skills-focused alternative.

Want to Help Me Shape It?

I’m running a beta test in May and June, and I’m currently looking for families who want to preview the course early. It’ll be free or deeply discounted for beta testers, and I’d love to hear what works, what’s confusing, and how I can make it stronger.

If you know a student or parent who might want in, feel free to send them my way.

Thanks as always for reading — and for supporting the work of reimagining what English class can be.