In today’s society, it is important that students can use their critical thinking skills in their everyday lives. The perfect place for students to learn how and to practice critical reading, writing, arguing, and even listening is the high school English classroom. Here are 10 critical high school English lessons and skills that teachers should be teaching their students!
When it comes to teaching writing, there is just so much to teach. To help students become stronger writers, students need to be well-versed in sentence structure, grammar, and how to organize their ideas, just to name a few skills. One of the best ways to teach middle school ELA and high school English students to become stronger writers is by focusing on specific skills one at a time. This way, students are not overwhelmed, and teachers can more easily assess a certain writing skill. Here is a look at ten secondary ELA writing resources teachers can use to help build strong writers.
Engage your students all year long with these activities for any novel (also works for short stories too)! This secondary ELA resource is filled with 32 novel activities that you can use before, during, and after reading any novel! These novel activities are perfect for a class novel study, independent reading projects, lit circles, and more! This resource includes multiple teacher instruction pages to help you seamlessly integrate these novel activities in your classroom, and it is organized into four sections: pre-reading, while reading, differentiated writing tasks, and after reading. These are the novel activities that are included: Section 1: Pre Reading Cornel Novel Notes Pre Reading Predictions Academic Vocabulary for teaching a novel Vocabulary Quiz w/ Answer Key Novel Terms Word Search Section 2: While Reading Story Prediction Chart Making Inferences Theme and Plot Analysis Story Elements Plot Structure Characterization Activities Figurative Language Chart Socratic Seminar Resources and Evaluation Form Section 3: Differentiated Writing Tasks These writing tasks ask students to write well-planned, thorough responses that are just one paragraph in length. They are differentiated to help young and/or struggling writers and readers, and actively guide students as they write. Grading rubrics and textual evidence organizers are included! Compare and Contrast Characters Direct and Indirect Characterization Mood Theme Conflict Tone Figurative Language Section 4: After Reading All post-reading assessments and assignments include a writing component and two different rubrics: one with preset points values and one with fill-in-the-blank points values. Comparing Theme to a Song Story Cube Novel Quilt (can also be turned into a bulletin board) Creative Comic Assignment Novel Group Research Project Prep is quick and easy... Just select which activities you want, print, and go. You'll be ready for an engaging literary-based activity! TEACHERS LIKE YOU SAID… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stacey W. says, "My students and I found the resources in this bundle engaging and challenging and appreciated the variety and opportunities for some alternative assessments. There were clever ideas for reading checks and the layouts were well-designed and saved me a huge amount of planning time, as well as giving me some nice ideas for fun ways to demonstrate understanding." ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Jennifer R. says, "This is a great toolbox full of activities that you can incorporate into any novel that you teach. My students loved these and stayed engaged the whole time. I did most of these in centers in my high school classroom and had students rotate to the different ones. It worked out so great. One of the best I have bought!!!" ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Brenda F. says, "I like the variety of activities. It allows me to focus on different ideas with each novel and match interests with assignments. This is a good buy." ___________________________________ You may also like… → Sticky Note Literary Analysis → Analyzing Literature Task Cards → Annotating Task Cards: nonfiction, fiction, and poetry ___________________________________ Helpful Advice: * Make sure you click the "follow" button next to my picture so you don’t miss out on sales and new resources * Please provide feedback on this resource. Doing so will help you earn TPT credits that you can apply toward future purchases! It’s like FREE TPT cash! © The Daring English Teacher, Inc. All rights reserved. License good for single-classroom use only.
With a new school year upon us, it’s time to re-energize your teaching practices with some new routines and resources. Here are ten teaching resources and
When it comes to reading nonfiction, my students tend to get bleary-eyed and hard-of-hearing. It’s like they instantly think of their history textbooks and informational articles and they decide before they even know the topic that they aren’t going to like it. And that is one of the big hurdles when it comes to teaching nonfiction texts at the middle school and high school level.
As students head back to school, ELA teachers everywhere are considering how they are going to begin the school year, so I wanted to walk you through one of my favorite lesson plans entitled, "Why do we read?" As an educator, there are few things as exciting and rewarding as introducing a young person to
By The Daring English Teacher When it comes to teaching writing in the middle school ELA or high school English class, it can oftentimes feel like there is just so much content to teach. And in all honesty, that is entirely true. We simply do not have enough time to teach students every single thing they need to know in order to be the best writers they can be. However, we can focus on essential skills one at a time to build strong writers. When I first teach a type of writing to my students, I provide direct instruction and activity-based assignments so that students have an understanding of the genre of writing and what is expected of them. At the beginning of the new unit, I use this ELA writing instructional resource to directly teach students about either argument, narrative, or informational writing, and then we spend time each day working on developing the information using some of the included writing graphic organizers. In addition to sharing the above resource that I use for teaching writing, this blog post will also include three strategies to help you improve your writing instruction. Teaching Writing Tip 1: Simplify it and Break It Down One of the most vital steps in teaching writing to middle school and high school students is simplifying and breaking down the writing instruction into small, manageable chunks. One of the easiest ways to do this by focusing on less. Rather than having my students write an entire essay or paragraph, I will ask for three sentences: a topic sentence that answers the prompt, an evidence sentence with a properly introduced and cited quote, and one commentary sentence for an explanation. By breaking down the writing process into small, manageable chunks, students are less intimidated and more focused on demonstrating their writing abilities. You can read more about how I break down writing instruction and snag a free download by reading this post about teaching writing in the secondary ELA classroom. Teaching Writing Tip 2: Use Sentence Frames One of the most effective ways to scaffold writing instruction is by providing students with meaningful sentence frames. There are so many benefits to using sentence frames in the classroom, and even high school students benefit from them as well. When teachers include sentence frames during their writing instruction, they are teaching students HOW to academically organize and write their ideas. To read more about using sentence frames in the classroom, you’ll want to visit this blog post about scaffolding writing instruction through the use of sentence frames. This blog post also contains sentence frames that you can use today in your classroom as well as a free sentence frame download! Teaching Writing Tip 3: Incorporate Grammar In addition to simplifying writing assignments and using sentence frames, another key area to help students become stronger writers is by focusing on grammar. When students know how the parts of speech work together and when student understand how language works, they will naturally become stronger writers. The three biggest grammar lessons that I’ve found help students improve their writing abilities are the parts of speech, dependent and independent clauses, and sentence structure. By focusing a little bit of time on these conventions, your students will become stronger writers. You can read more about how I incorporate these grammar lessons in my classroom and download a free parts of speech interactive notebook activity by reading this post about helping students improve their writing skills by focusing on grammar. After incorporating these three strategies into your writing instruction, you might also be interested in three more tips for teaching writing and three strategies to boost student writing. Teaching Writing Resources: Writing a Persuasive Essay Portfolio - by the SuperHERO Teacher MLA Style and Format - by Tracee Orman Writing Activities - by Presto Plans Teaching the Process for Literary Analysis - by Room 213
Effective strategies for teaching academic vocabulary in middle school ELA Middle school ELA curriculum for academic vocabulary development
Filler Activities for ELA (blog post) What can you do with five extra minutes in secondary ELA? Here are a few ideas to engage students until the bell.
With a new school year upon us, here is a look at 10 must-use secondary ELA teaching units, lessons, and activities for your classroom. These units are
In an earlier blog post, I wrote about the benefits of assigning a collaborative writing assignment in the high school English and middle school ELA
Analyzing poetry can be a scary thing, for both teacher and student. There are so many terms to know and understand, and so few words in a poem! When it comes
With so many middle school ELA and high school English teachers starting the school year with remote or hybrid teaching, this school year will look very
Have you been wanting to try stations in your Secondary ELA classroom but aren't sure where to start? Read through this quick post where we share 8 station ideas and how to use them with your ELA students.
What must-teach novels do you have in your ELA classroom? These six novels will get your students thinking and start important discussions.
With so much content to cover in the middle school ELA and high school classroom, it can sometimes feel a bit overwhelming. Here is a look at my favorite ELA
Effective strategies for teaching academic vocabulary in middle school ELA Middle school ELA curriculum for academic vocabulary development
With a new school year upon us, it’s time to re-energize your teaching practices with some new routines and resources. Here are ten teaching resources and
Helpful tips to running a successful Llt Circle in a secondary ELA classroom.
Wondering how to sequence grammar instruction? You'll want this list that scaffolds grammar lessons so that one skill builds upon the next.
Engaging ELA test prep activities and lessons, how to make high school English test prep fun, secondary ELA standardized testing ideas
Looking to connect with other teachers? These secondary ELA Instagram accounts are a great starting place for your educational community on IG. (Blog post)
Take the stress out of teaching your students how to write a research paper with this complete research writing unit! This comprehensive and complete research paper writing unit will help you teach your students how to write a research paper. Now available in print + digital! This step-by-step resource teaches your students the eight steps of research writing, and it includes every single thing you could need for a successful research writing unit! Plus, it is updated for 9th edition MLA! The editable teaching presentation (which comes in both PowerPoint and Google Slides®) is ideal for direct instruction and includes multiple days of guided instruction! The research writing presentation introduces students to the eight steps for completing a research project: selecting topics, generating questions, brainstorming, researching and gathering credible information, organizing and outlining, writing the first draft, peer editing, and finalizing the paper. This research writing unit includes: a 72-slide, editable instructional presentation a multi-day unit outline to help you plan instruction MLA citations and source cards student handout source card graphic organizer research writing guidelines handout research paper outline research paper assignment about an invention created before 1950 multiple research paper writing graphic organizers Peer edit form Research paper grading rubric Google Docs® assignment handout and writing organizers Google Slides® digital sketch notes Your students will love how easy research writing will be! This unit simplifies research paper writing and makes it more accessible for all learners. You'll see a tremendous improvement in your students' writing! The research writing instructional presentation is a multi-day teaching presentation that introduces students to the basics of research paper writing and MLA format, which is updated for the current 9th edition MLA requirements. The research paper writing presentation covers the steps to writing a research paper, the differences between reliable and unreliable sources, MLA citations and formatting, source cards, and more. It also includes writing examples and sentence starters to help students improve their research writing skills. IMPORTANT RESOURCE INFORMATION: The included PDF file is not editable. However, this resource was updated in January 2024 to include a Google Slides® presentation, Google Docs® assignment sheets and organizers, and a Google Slides® digital sketch note organizer. The organizers in the Google Docs file are formatted to be 100% editable and user-friendly. TEACHERS LIKE YOU SAID… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ DHH of the Lakes says, "My students really benefited from such a structured way to write their first research paper. They loved the topic choices and each student enjoyed researching their chosen topic. Thank you for creating such a wonderful resource and sharing it with us!" ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Makayla R. says, "I loved this resource! The PowerPoint is so so helpful. It walks you through everything from the bare basics of ‘what is research’ to ‘how to cite sources. Such a time-saver for teachers who don’t have time to make all their own power points." ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Malinda B. says, "The PowerPoint was amazing! Easy to understand, concise, and able to use as a scaffolding tool from beginning to end of the research paper. The additional materials were great, and helped out tremendously with visual learners, as it had several graphic organizers included. I would highly recommend!" ___________________________________ You may also like… → Essay Writing Teaching Unit → Annotating Text Made Easy → Academic Vocabulary - Words about Research ___________________________________ Helpful Advice: * Make sure you click the "follow" button next to my picture so you don’t miss out on sales and new resources * Please provide feedback on this resource. Doing so will help you earn TPT credits that you can apply toward future purchases! It’s like FREE TPT cash! © The Daring English Teacher, Inc. All rights reserved. License good for single-classroom use only.
With distance learning in full swing, here’s a closer look at ten resources that English teachers can digitally assign their students. All of my SMARTePlans
Presentation and strategy are everything when you’re introducing a novel to your class, especially if you have a few (or more) resistant readers in the mix. That is why it is important to introduce a novel in an exciting and engaging way!
Student choice is a cornerstone of student engagement. When students can take charge of their learning and can pursue topics of interest, they will be more engaged and more inclined to do the work, and their work will become more meaningful. This blog post explores different ways to integrate studen
Part way through some lesson last year, I said that my students should “let it go.” I don’t remember what “it” was, exactly, but I remember two or three students jumped up and threw their arms out and sang the line from Frozen. Then, one started making up new lyrics for the song based on my lesson. It was ridiculous and funny and it all happened so fast. See, the thing is that we connect with music, and we don’t have to be particularly musical to do it. Music gets inside our heads and makes us feel things, and some tunes and lyrics never leave us. That’s why I (a non-musical person, by the way) love using music in the secondary ELA classroom. I’ve found that in middle school and high school, music breaks up a bit of the routine and allows students to access information that they may otherwise struggle with or find boring. Music can be used strategically (or just for fun!) in the secondary ELA classroom to increase engagement and retention. Here are seven ways I use music in my English classroom. 1. Present music as an avenue of direct instruction The easiest and most obvious way to use music in secondary ELA is to find a resource that puts a new concept to music. My favorite resource for using music in direct instruction is Flocabulary. I’ve used these short hip-hop videos to review story elements, introduce public speaking, and solidify some research skills. I also LOVE sharing Schoolhouse Rock with my students. Y’all, Schoolhouse Rock was already looking dorky and dated when I was a kid, but just *lean in* to this with your students. Tell them that you KNOW it’s dorky, but that you’re going to embrace that together in your classroom. 2. Introduce Song Analysis Another way to use music as a tool for direct instruction is by presenting songs as texts to be explored, analyzed, and imitated. I use songs to teach plot, genre, and figurative language. They are a short and easily accessible text (3-5 min) that provide a lot of fodder for student discussion. I do a whole Song Analysis lesson as part of my Short Stories unit, and you can download that lesson for free HERE. On my blog, I share 15 Songs to Use in Secondary ELA and 15 (More!) Songs to Use in Secondary ELA. Be sure to check those out, since they include ideas for analyzing song lyrics. 3. Play music to encourage relaxation & focus People from surgeons to athletes have been tapping into music’s relaxing properties before tackling a stressful situation. Remember Michael Phelps’ omnipresent headphones? We can allow our students the same opportunities and play some music while they’re writing, studying, or taking a test. Along this same line, music can be used to inspire creative writing. Encourage students to develop playlists for a certain writing project they’re working on. I often share my writing playlists with students to give them some ideas – my playlist for a sappy YA romance novel is completely different from my dystopian fairy tale rewrite playlist. Students should be encouraged to choose music that moves them towards the end goal: being creative and productive and awesome! 4. Have students create songs to demonstrate learning Music also makes a great option for a final project. Students can demonstrate what they've learned by making a song about it (or rewriting lyrics to a known song). My students write Symbolism Songs after reading Lord of the Flies or The Pearl, showing their interpretation of a symbol through music. 5. Show students how to create study songs Anyone who learned “The Fifty Nifty United States” as a kid knows the power of music to help memorize information. I mean, that stuff really sticks! Students can use music to help them study hard facts or vocabulary and definitions. They don't have to be amazing musicians to find a tune to make it stick - just have them try out making a recording of an effort on their phones. There is a simple ioS app called Recorder for this, or you can get a more sophisticated piece of software like Audacity. Eventually, they'll choose what study methods work best for them, but you can at least show them this tool is available. 6. Encourage storytelling with operas & symphonies You can also use music that's already out there and available to get students writing. Operas and symphonies both provide excellent opportunities for this, since they are a vehicle for a story anyway. You could play a piece from an opera and have students imagine the story. What emotions do they hear from the characters? Who's singing? What conflicts come to mind? You could have students write or discuss the stories they come up with, or even act them out in a scene set to the music. Don't share the original plot with them -- let them explore many possible answers. This is a great way to get them to engage in some creative writing, as well as explore the storytelling devices of classical music. 7. Actually, you know… play some music Also, you could just play music. :) Whenever I want to give students a set time to finish an activity, I put on a song or a playlist. For example, if students need 3-4 minutes to cut out foldables and title the pages of an interactive notebook spread, I'll put on a song. I also used the song “Final Countdown” last year for the last minutes that students assembled their writer’s workshop portfolios. What are some creative ways that you use music in your classrooms? We'd love to hear from you in comments or on IG @secondaryenglishcoffeeshop. :) Check out these other resources for using music by Coffee Shop teachers: Grammar Activities: Musical Grammar Mistakes by Presto Plans Analyzing Music Videos (Volume 2) by Stacey Lloyd
There are three things every teacher should do before taking their students to the computer lab to research information for their research papers: teach the difference between reliable and unreliable sources, check to make sure every student has a self-generated research question, and help prepare students with key phrases and words to search. Whenever I begin teaching the research paper, I always share with my students the story of how I wrote my Master's thesis paper. It was a 50 page paper with 50 different sources.
One of my favorite lessons to teach in my short story unit is the Hero’s Journey. I enjoy teaching the hero's journey because I love seeing my students’ aha! moments - the moment when they get it, and they start making the connections between the content I am teaching and their favorite books and movies. Their faces light up, and faint chatter about Harry Potter, various Disney movies, and other stories slowly fills the room.
One of the most challenging things for a (new) teacher is planning and pacing the curriculum. After all, there are so many different standards to teach,
With a new school year upon us, it’s time to re-energize your teaching practices with some new routines and resources. Here are ten teaching resources and
The start of a new school year or new semester is the perfect time to establish new classroom learning routines! Whether it be a bell-ringer routine for the
10 ideas for planning engaging novel units: creative, engaging lesson ideas for your next whole-class novel unit
With these 15 strategies, secondary ELA teachers can incorporate task cards into reading, writing, grammar, and intervention!
Looking for fun and engaging end of novel activities for middle school and high school? I've got you covered! Continue reading to learn about five activities
Whether you are teaching literature or writing, it is important to include lessons that include instruction and practice in your classroom. Here is a look at
*A DIGITAL OPTION HAS BEEN INCLUDED FOR GOOGLE SLIDES/GOOGLE CLASSROOM* Be sure to re-download! There are directions and links inside the pdf. Hello, ELA! This resource is a unique way to get your students warmed up at the beginning of your ELA block. Each month contains 4-5 weeks of ELA bell work, which will have a theme around the season, national holidays, or events associated with that particular month. The morning work is focused on ELA 8th Grade Common Core Standards. Each day has a thematic structure to cover language standards as well as enhance vocabulary and comprehension skills. Save money by purchasing the year long BUNDLE!ELA Daily Review 8th Grade {Growing Bundle} Each week follows a predictable and engaging structure: Meaningful Monday: Monday is focused on making meaning. Tasks will focus on synonyms, antonyms, vocabulary words, context clues, and making meaning in a short amount of text. Some tasks may require students to make meaning in the text (inference, message, adages, proverbs, etc.) or build vocabulary skills. Text Structure Tuesday: Tuesdays will have a paragraph that requires students to identify the text structure, signal words, main idea, author's perspective, or vocabulary, or any other question types related to the Craft and Structure standards. Wordy Wednesday: Wednesday is all about working with words. Tasks include working with shades of meaning, homophones, spelling, prefixes, suffixes, roots, and other word skills. Throwback Thursday:Thursday is all about grammar usage and conventions. Figurative Friday: Figurative Friday tasks include working with various types of figurative language including similes, metaphors, idioms, poems, alliteration, structures of poems and more! 🛑 Are you a member of the TLL Membership? These materials are already included. If you are not a member, click here to learn more. The TLL Membership gives you an all-access pass to hundreds of ELA resources for teachers in Grades 3-5.I hope this resource works for you! Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or feedback. -Jessica This ELA + Math Morning Work is available for the following grade levels: ELA + Math Bundles 1st Grade 2nd Grade 3rd Grade 4th Grade 5th Grade ELA Bundles 1st Grade 2nd Grade 3rd Grade 4th Grade 5th Grade 6th Grade 7th Grade 8th Grade ELA Weekly Assessments 2nd Grade 3rd Grade 4th Grade 5th Grade 6th Grade Math Bundles 1st Grade 2nd Grade 3rd Grade 4th Grade 5th Grade Let’s connect! The Literacy Loft Blog The Literacy Loft on Instagram The Literacy Loft on Pinterest The Literacy Loft on Facebook Email: [email protected]
Teaching rhetorical analysis is one of my absolute favorite units to complete with my students. I love teaching my students about rhetorical strategies and devices, analyzing what makes an effective and persuasive argument, and reading critical speeches with my students. Here is a quick list of some of my favorite speeches for rhetorical analysis.
This blog post will introduce you to six simple, fun, and enriching project-based learning ideas for your English Language Arts classroom.
Here are ten engaging and fun activities to use in your classroom when you are teaching Animal Farm.
Are you noticing some gaps in your curriculum? Are you looking for some new, creative ideas for how to fill these holes in your ELA curriculum? This post gives you 10 creative ideas for how to fill holes in your secondary ELA curriculum.
Effective strategies for teaching academic vocabulary in middle school ELA Middle school ELA curriculum for academic vocabulary development
Help your students recall essential terms with these literary device posters. Two sets are included: literary devices & figurative language!
With a new school year upon us, it’s time to re-energize your teaching practices with some new routines and resources. Here are ten teaching resources and
With a new school year upon us, here is a look at 10 must-use secondary ELA teaching units, lessons, and activities for your classroom. These units are
