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Lesson Plans

literary-field-trip-end-of-year-review-ela

End of the Year Review Activity for Secondary English Language Arts – Literary Field Trip

Bring your students on a literary field trip as an end of the year review activity for your secondary English Language Arts students. This is a unique and engaging end of year review activity that can be used with any set of texts. This post will cover what you need to know for implementing a literary field trip within your end of the year activities in secondary ELA. Read on for information, tips, and links to helpful resources.  What is a literary field trip? A literary field trip is an engaging activity that helps students delve into different places studied throughout texts using a unique boarding pass and flight template. Students will help plan a trip to “travel” to settings

continue reading

8 We Were Liars Activities to Implement in Your Novel Study

Ditch traditional text analysis for these engaging and rigorous We Were Liars activities for your secondary English Language Arts classroom. As educators, we strive to immerse our students in the rich tapestry of storytelling, inviting them to explore narratives from various angles. E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars is a novel that not only captivates with its suspenseful plot, but also beckons educators to weave creativity and critical thinking into their teaching methods. In this blog post, you’ll unveil a treasure trove of 8 engaging activities tailored for your We Were Liars novel study. These activities go beyond the pages, aiming to foster a dynamic and immersive learning experience. Whether you’re a seasoned educator seeking fresh ideas or a newcomer eager

continue reading

Unlocking Potential: The Power of Teaching Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom

I am a really big believer in making sure that my students no longer need me when they leave my class and teaching the topic of multiple intelligences in the classroom helps me prepare them. Specifically, when I plan my lessons, decide on our units, or design a class, I think about what I am offering to my students that they can take away and apply to their lives. That’s why I believe taking time to focus on teaching multiple intelligences is a crucial piece of unlocking student potential.  What Does Multiple Intelligences Mean? In simple terms, the idea of multiple intelligences comes from psychologist Howard Gardner. Typically people hear “intelligence” and think about an IQ test, or the grade

continue reading

Make Character Analysis Entertaining and Rigorous with a Character Puzzle Project

Using a character puzzle project is an entertaining and yet rigorous activity for understanding character analysis. It is a group-effort analysis that challenges students to analyze the relationships between characters, thus better understanding the art of storytelling.  This post will cover what you need to know for implementing a character puzzle analysis within your secondary ELA classroom. Read on for info, tips, and links to helpful resources.  What’s a Character Puzzle Project? This puzzle project transforms character exploration into an engaging journey that encourages students to delve deep into the narrative, unraveling the intricate web of character relationship and traits over the course of the text. By incorporating puzzle pieces, we can bring character standards to life in an innovative

continue reading

Fun and Engaging Character Analysis Activities for Secondary English Language Arts

When taking time to focus on character analysis for secondary students, English teachers often seem to fall into the essay camp. Not that there is anything wrong with formal writing assignments, but we can definitely offer more fun and engaging character analysis activities to our secondary students. I’m excited to bring you a few fresh ideas to add to your teaching arsenal. Let’s get to it. Why Focus on Character Analysis? Often I find students just want to identify the major players of a work and some very basic information when working on character analysis, but there is so much more to understanding characters and the roles that they play to drive a story forward. Students can make predictions when they

continue reading

How to Teach Students About Storytelling Through Literary Elements – A Guide for Secondary School Teachers

The framework of storytelling rests in the literary elements. And while I know my students have covered the literary elements in elementary and middle school at various times, I think it’s important for students to look in-depth at how literary elements work together for more complex storytelling. This kind of explicit reteaching, in many cases, will serve as the foundation for everything you do in English class. I like to think of the literary elements as the “language” of ELA just as math and science have their own jargon. Discussing story elements gives us a way to communicate clearly with our students about stories in a way that will make them both better readers and writers. Where to Start I definitely

continue reading

10 Creative Writing Activities for Secondary English Language Arts

Whether you are looking for a unit or you have a whole class dedicated to creative writing, there are a plethora of activities and resources to choose from. And just because you teach secondary ELA doesn’t mean your “big kids” don’t enjoy the creative outlet. Not every creative assignment has to be seriously minded or a huge endeavor. Creative writing projects can simply be warm-ups for the class, an activity for early finishers, or a great “filler” assignment when you want to work on writing but don’t want students dedicating weeks to an essay. I’ve got 10 easily applied creative writing activities for secondary ELA. #1: Googly Eyes This activity is super easy and fun- all you need is a

continue reading

Enhance Your Mystery Unit with Literature Circles in Secondary ELA

Mystery remains one of the strongest selling genres in book sales today, so introducing your students to this genre through literature circles is an easy way to enhance your mystery unit and add some meaningful learning opportunities into your classroom to help to create lifelong readers. Adding a genre-based choice reading mystery unit to your ELA classroom increases engagement and gives students a chance to explore this popular literary style. Through literature circles, students can engage in active reading and discussion around topics such as cause and effect, summaries, plot development, characterization, suspense, problem solving strategies, and so much more. The mystery genre provides a perfect springboard to dissect plenty of related literary topics. In this blog post, I’m going

continue reading

How Do I Grade Choice Reading? Equitable Grading Practices in the ELA Classroom

Note: This blog is a guest post written by educator Allyssa Graham, a National Board Certified high school teacher from New York. Follow Allyssa for more teaching tips and strategies on her Instagram @teachingintheflx. Several years ago, I began incorporating required choice reading into my ELA classroom. I had read numerous books by Penny Kittle, Kelly Gallagher, and Donalyn Miller to name a few, and I was hooked. The evidence was clear – when students had the time and opportunity to read something of interest to them in school, they became a better reader and writer.  Every day for the first ten minutes of class, we participate in a reading sprint. Students read a book of their choice (literally anything

continue reading

Help Your Students Write a Novel in 30 Days… For Real!

Are you looking for a fresh and fun way to challenge your students while helping them develop their writing skills? Have you ever wondered if it’s possible for your class to write an entire novel in just 30 days? The answer is, YES! As a teacher, it’s so exciting when your students get truly engaged with a project that requires potential creativity. But how do you turn the thought of writing a novel into something achievable even at the elementary or middle school level? Here’s the guide to making it happen this academic year — and be warned; your student writers might even surpass their initial expectations! Note: This blog is a guest post written by Krista at Whimsy and

continue reading
literary-field-trip-end-of-year-review-ela

End of the Year Review Activity for Secondary English Language Arts – Literary Field Trip

Bring your students on a literary field trip as an end of the year review activity for your secondary English Language Arts students. This is a unique and engaging end of year review activity that can be used with any set of texts. This post will cover what you need to know for implementing a literary field trip within your end of the year activities in secondary ELA. Read on for information, tips, and links to helpful resources.  What is a literary field trip? A literary field trip is an engaging activity that helps students delve into different places studied throughout texts using a unique boarding pass and flight template. Students will help plan a trip to “travel” to settings

continue reading

8 We Were Liars Activities to Implement in Your Novel Study

Ditch traditional text analysis for these engaging and rigorous We Were Liars activities for your secondary English Language Arts classroom. As educators, we strive to immerse our students in the rich tapestry of storytelling, inviting them to explore narratives from various angles. E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars is a novel that not only captivates with its suspenseful plot, but also beckons educators to weave creativity and critical thinking into their teaching methods. In this blog post, you’ll unveil a treasure trove of 8 engaging activities tailored for your We Were Liars novel study. These activities go beyond the pages, aiming to foster a dynamic and immersive learning experience. Whether you’re a seasoned educator seeking fresh ideas or a newcomer eager

continue reading

Unlocking Potential: The Power of Teaching Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom

I am a really big believer in making sure that my students no longer need me when they leave my class and teaching the topic of multiple intelligences in the classroom helps me prepare them. Specifically, when I plan my lessons, decide on our units, or design a class, I think about what I am offering to my students that they can take away and apply to their lives. That’s why I believe taking time to focus on teaching multiple intelligences is a crucial piece of unlocking student potential.  What Does Multiple Intelligences Mean? In simple terms, the idea of multiple intelligences comes from psychologist Howard Gardner. Typically people hear “intelligence” and think about an IQ test, or the grade

continue reading

Make Character Analysis Entertaining and Rigorous with a Character Puzzle Project

Using a character puzzle project is an entertaining and yet rigorous activity for understanding character analysis. It is a group-effort analysis that challenges students to analyze the relationships between characters, thus better understanding the art of storytelling.  This post will cover what you need to know for implementing a character puzzle analysis within your secondary ELA classroom. Read on for info, tips, and links to helpful resources.  What’s a Character Puzzle Project? This puzzle project transforms character exploration into an engaging journey that encourages students to delve deep into the narrative, unraveling the intricate web of character relationship and traits over the course of the text. By incorporating puzzle pieces, we can bring character standards to life in an innovative

continue reading

Fun and Engaging Character Analysis Activities for Secondary English Language Arts

When taking time to focus on character analysis for secondary students, English teachers often seem to fall into the essay camp. Not that there is anything wrong with formal writing assignments, but we can definitely offer more fun and engaging character analysis activities to our secondary students. I’m excited to bring you a few fresh ideas to add to your teaching arsenal. Let’s get to it. Why Focus on Character Analysis? Often I find students just want to identify the major players of a work and some very basic information when working on character analysis, but there is so much more to understanding characters and the roles that they play to drive a story forward. Students can make predictions when they

continue reading

How to Teach Students About Storytelling Through Literary Elements – A Guide for Secondary School Teachers

The framework of storytelling rests in the literary elements. And while I know my students have covered the literary elements in elementary and middle school at various times, I think it’s important for students to look in-depth at how literary elements work together for more complex storytelling. This kind of explicit reteaching, in many cases, will serve as the foundation for everything you do in English class. I like to think of the literary elements as the “language” of ELA just as math and science have their own jargon. Discussing story elements gives us a way to communicate clearly with our students about stories in a way that will make them both better readers and writers. Where to Start I definitely

continue reading

10 Creative Writing Activities for Secondary English Language Arts

Whether you are looking for a unit or you have a whole class dedicated to creative writing, there are a plethora of activities and resources to choose from. And just because you teach secondary ELA doesn’t mean your “big kids” don’t enjoy the creative outlet. Not every creative assignment has to be seriously minded or a huge endeavor. Creative writing projects can simply be warm-ups for the class, an activity for early finishers, or a great “filler” assignment when you want to work on writing but don’t want students dedicating weeks to an essay. I’ve got 10 easily applied creative writing activities for secondary ELA. #1: Googly Eyes This activity is super easy and fun- all you need is a

continue reading

Enhance Your Mystery Unit with Literature Circles in Secondary ELA

Mystery remains one of the strongest selling genres in book sales today, so introducing your students to this genre through literature circles is an easy way to enhance your mystery unit and add some meaningful learning opportunities into your classroom to help to create lifelong readers. Adding a genre-based choice reading mystery unit to your ELA classroom increases engagement and gives students a chance to explore this popular literary style. Through literature circles, students can engage in active reading and discussion around topics such as cause and effect, summaries, plot development, characterization, suspense, problem solving strategies, and so much more. The mystery genre provides a perfect springboard to dissect plenty of related literary topics. In this blog post, I’m going

continue reading

How Do I Grade Choice Reading? Equitable Grading Practices in the ELA Classroom

Note: This blog is a guest post written by educator Allyssa Graham, a National Board Certified high school teacher from New York. Follow Allyssa for more teaching tips and strategies on her Instagram @teachingintheflx. Several years ago, I began incorporating required choice reading into my ELA classroom. I had read numerous books by Penny Kittle, Kelly Gallagher, and Donalyn Miller to name a few, and I was hooked. The evidence was clear – when students had the time and opportunity to read something of interest to them in school, they became a better reader and writer.  Every day for the first ten minutes of class, we participate in a reading sprint. Students read a book of their choice (literally anything

continue reading

Help Your Students Write a Novel in 30 Days… For Real!

Are you looking for a fresh and fun way to challenge your students while helping them develop their writing skills? Have you ever wondered if it’s possible for your class to write an entire novel in just 30 days? The answer is, YES! As a teacher, it’s so exciting when your students get truly engaged with a project that requires potential creativity. But how do you turn the thought of writing a novel into something achievable even at the elementary or middle school level? Here’s the guide to making it happen this academic year — and be warned; your student writers might even surpass their initial expectations! Note: This blog is a guest post written by Krista at Whimsy and

continue reading

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