Once my students moved from their How Do I Research? introduction presentation to The C.R.A.P. Test worksheet to help them find credible sources to gather notes from, they were finally ready to take notes! Yay! Continue reading
Adopt a Pet Activity
Standard 3
Boys vs. Girls
I wanted to do something fun with my eighth graders today–a discussion/debate between girls and guys that related to House on Mango Street. Continue reading
My Favorite Book
My Book Club is made of eighth grade Reading Intervention students who really struggle with reading. One of my girls told me, point blank on the first day, “I don’t read.” My goal is to change that by making reading fun and by caring about the students and working with them individually over the course of the three/four weeks. Continue reading
Sentences Competition
Today my sixth graders were finishing up the editing process for their personal narratives. They were all at different places–just starting, halfway through, almost done–so I decided to create some fun, Halloween-related extension activities for those who were finished. Continue reading
Book Talk: A Face First
Encouraging students to read is important. As a teacher, modeling reading is even more important! So today I gave a book talk on one of my favorite books from elementary/middle school: A Face First. Continue reading
Discussion – Let’s Get Moving!
“How can I make teaching this book interesting?” I said to myself aloud, in the middle of the library, like a crazy person. It was a Sunday night and I was putting together my teaching plans for Monday. My Honors 10 students were just starting Part I of To Kill a Mockingbird and I wanted them to have fun. I needed some inspiration. Continue reading
Modern-Day Scarlet Letters
I truly believe that students learn best when they are asked to relate content to their personal lives. That was my goal with this ending, fun activity–Modern-Day Scarlet Letters–applying the theme of hidden vs. exposed sin to students’ own lives. Continue reading
Peer Editing
Peer editing is a wonderful tool…if done effectively. When students read one another’s work, they are able to see and fix errors in their peers’ papers, as well as translate those changes to their own papers. They are also able to read with a critical eye and put themselves in a teacher’s seat for a moment, hopefully looking at their work from a flipped perspective. Continue reading
Scarlet Letter Discussion Groups
My American Seminar students have read up through chapter 18 in The Scarlet Letter. This point in the novel is filled with important themes, changes, symbols, and relationships, and to make sure my students were noticing and understanding these, I made a group discussion activity for them. Continue reading