Virginia Department of Education
Grade 8 Writing Prompts
Imagine four pages of writing prompts. Although designed specifically for eighth graders, the topics could be used for upper-elementary and high school writers as well.
Curated OER
Literary Terms
"Is that your final answer?" Challenge and thrill your class with this language arts game, which is based on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." The game covers literary terms such as point of view, alliteration, and protagonist, and is...
Computer Science Unplugged
You Can Say That Again! – Text Compression
Compression, the process computers use to store information, is the focus of a resource that presents two different stories that describe the concept of compression by eliminating repeated letters and replacing them with a...
Curated OER
Latin and Greek Roots Lesson Plan: Creating a Board Game
Students explore Latin and Greek roots. In this vocabulary lesson plan, students create a board game featuring Greek and Latin roots.
Curated OER
Georgia CRCT Online
Prepare your class for a standardized exam with this language arts practice test. Designed for the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT), these fifteen questions would be a great review for your seventh graders. Two...
National Constitution Center
Address America: Your Six-Word Stump Speech
Stump speeches are the focus of this exercise that combines politics and language arts. After learning about this type of speech, the class listens to Obama's 2008 presidential campaign stump speech and answers a series of questions that...
Curated OER
Using Games to Reinforce Vocabulary Development in English Language Learners
Practical ways to implement games and activities into whole-class and sheltered English language development time.
Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation
Greenhouse Gas Game
You will need to gather a number of tokens, bags, and other various game components in order to incorporate this activity into your curriculum. Different tokens represent carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Printable 8.5"x11"...
Curated OER
Cooperative Group Spelling Game
Partners or groups work together to practice the correct spelling of words. They speed-cut letters from print sources and arrange them into correctly spelled words from their lists. Newspapers are suggested, but magazines might result in...
English Genie
Printable Scrabble Letters
Set up your own word and vocabulary games with a set of Scrabble tiles. Included are all the letters of the alphabet (plus extra vowels) as well as pieces for triple and double word score and triple and double letter score. Learners can...
Curated OER
Searching for Meanings Beneath the Surface of the Poem
Learners examine poems from Latin America and the Caribbean. They compare different perspectives and subjects in the poems. They research Peace Corps volunteers as well.
Vocabulary A-Z
5-Day Vocabulary Teaching Plan
Reinforce important reading skills with a set of vocabulary lesson plans. Middle schoolers complete sentences, play word games, finish analogies, and build their growing vocabulary with a packet of helpful and applicable graphic organizers.
EngageNY
Evaluating Sources, Continued: The ONLINE EDUCA Debate 2009 (Part 2 of 10)
Watching videos and playing online games can be educational, but too much screen time has its drawbacks. Pupils watch a video about the topic and write down the claim, reasons, and evidence in support of reduced screen time for children....
Curated OER
Rave Reviews
A fun instructional activity that utilizes toys and persuasion! After reading the article, which was written in 2005, pull some advertisements for toys currently being sold. These will be more relevant to your middle and high schoolers....
Curated OER
Use These Writing Applications in Your Classroom
Utilizing writing applications in the language arts classroom to help pupils begin and develop their writing.
Curated OER
Learning Vocabulary by Using Reference Materials
Finding engaging ways to help your middle schoolers build their vocabulary is not easy to do. The lesson presented here offers a great way to motivate them to build vocabulary by making it into a game. Teams of pupils use a dictionary...
Curated OER
Whose Feat?
Play a vocabulary game with words from an article about Savion Glover's contribution to the film "Happy Feet." Then, small groups of young scholars design and create original movie advertisements using vivid vocabulary to give Glover the...
Curated OER
Character Tea Party
A tea party in Wonderland? An East Egg brunch with Gatsby, Daisy, Tom, and Nick? Breakfast with Miss Havisham, Lady Macbeth, and Abigail Williams? Or dinner with Andre, Hamlet, and Randle Patrick McMurphy? Class members select a favorite...
Curated OER
What is Theme?
What is theme, and how can you find themes in literary works? These and other questions are answered by a colorful and engaging presentation that not only defines the term but also provides easy to understand examples. The slides...
Curated OER
Getting In the Game
Learners explore how interactive Web sites support live sports programming, and then design Internet sites that provide interactive support for a favorite television program. They present their mock ups to the class.
Curated OER
Homophone Game
Students participate in a game that deals with homophones. They review the rules to the game and work in teams to run up to the board and write two more versions to each homograph called out by the teacher. All team members participate...
Curated OER
The History of Scrabble
Students discover the history and rules to the classic board game, Scrabble. In this spelling lesson, students complete a KWL chart on Scrabble and present their findings in an oral report. Students work in pairs to reenact...
Curated OER
The Hunger Games
Enjoy this exciting novel with your students, and bring the games to life in your classroom!
NFL
Super Bowl: History and Anthology
The educational opportunities are overwhelming with this (almost) complete anthology and history of every Super Bowl since 1968. Excite your football enthusiasts with information that can be used to create cross-curricular...