Language Arts Education Articles for Teachers

How much time do you spend developing new vocabulary in your students? It seems like this is a main focus in elementary school, yet it tapers off drastically in middle and high school. Although not as much emphasis is placed on building one’s vocabulary bank at this age, knowing more words ...

The last week of April is known as National TV-Turnoff Week. What does this actually mean? Over the years, this particular week has evolved into a week’s worth of awareness regarding alternative activities that create and/or maintain a healthy, well-rounded lifestyle. Such activities w...

No matter the age, experience, or skill level of the writer, getting started can sometimes be a giant obstacle to overcome. Struggling to create the beginning of a story can cause many young writers to become reluctant, or even form a grudge toward writing. Likewise, trying to find a way to encou...

The pinnacle of college basketball, March Madness is a season within itself. With brackets, statistics, and the anticipation of the championship game, the tournament can’t help but bring an annual energy to the classroom. Along with basketball tournament talk, March also is the time of year...

Although the Common Core State Standards push nonfiction to the front of education during the middle and high school years, it’s still important to promote independent reading, whether pupils choose fiction or nonfiction works. Reading provides many benefits to the growing brain; it develop...

First recognized in 1994, National Craft Month is celebrated each March. From in-store programs and promotions, to do-it-yourself classes, National Craft Month highlights the popularity of creating arts and crafts in American households. According to the Craft and Hobby Association, fifty-six per...

The Common Core State Standards Initiative has gained a lot of attention, especially in the past few months. As a teacher, you know that within the next two years, these are the standards you will be required to implement in your classroom (unless you currently reside in one of the five states wh...

My family has moved around a bit, and one of the first things I do upon settling in to a new place is get a library card. For me, that little piece of plastic is an anchor, or maybe a key, to a community. We have belonged to enormous, modern libraries with skylights and coffee bars, and we have b...

In making the transition from the state content standards to the Common Core State Standards, my colleagues and I find ourselves re-evaluating the current curriculum, which had been carefully aligned to the former content standards. Specifically, we are looking at changes in the teacher-selected ...

Let's face it, most students view the eight parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, adverbs, interjections, prepositions, and conjunctions) as less than exciting. In fact, I can remember beginning a lesson a few years ago by telling my pupils (in my most-excited voice), "Boys and gir...

There is nothing quite as wonderful as a field trip that goes off without a hitch. The kids are excited and motivated, they have just experienced something new, and you are currently considered the best teacher in the world (for that day at least). But truthfully, field trips can be frustrating, ...

Interdisciplinary instruction is crucial to academic achievement, and is receiving a lot of help from Common Core standards that emphasize teaching across content areas. If you're still not convinced, you can check out the two dozen articles we have that mention interdisciplinary planning. T...

The winter season brings about changes in weather, activities, and routines. School activities, as well as curriculum, move forward with the season. This provides an opportune time to use the winter weather as a focus for classroom lessons and activities. Specifically in the language arts classro...

In the beginning, the task of transitioning to the Common Core English Language Arts standards was a bit daunting to say the least. However, I quickly learned that equipped with the right organizational tools, the task of transition is comprehensible and manageable. Using a graphic organizer and ...

As the enormous, glowing ball descends on the people of Times Square, and confetti falls thick in New York’s frigid air, how are people in other parts of the world celebrating the coming of a new year? Namely, what are the people of India, China, Japan, and Israel doing? Reserve the compute...