Curated OER
Be An Effective Note-Taker
Guide your middle schoolers through the process of taking notes with this presentation. With tips and suggestions in the first half, the slideshow could be a good way to begin a research unit in your classroom. The second half of the...
Curated OER
Starts with the Letter A
Warm up your learners' minds with this short quiz about words that begin with the letter a. There are a total of 10 multiple-choice questions. This is a great worksheet to use prior to a language arts lesson! Note: You can...
Curated OER
English: Level C Lesson 99
In this English language vocabulary worksheet, young scholars select words or phrases from 4 possible answers to complete a sentence. The sentences have varied structures with unusual topics and sometimes advanced vocabulary. The...
Curated OER
Forming Plural Nouns
Everyone knows that a noun is a person, place, thing, or idea - but what happens when you have people, places, things, or ideas? Use this SMART board activity to guide your class through plural nouns. Several activities, including making...
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.
Speak Truth to Power
Jamie Nabozny: Bullying: Language, Literature and Life
Class members identify bullying in contemporary texts and role play how they might change those scenes to examples of anti-bullying. They then re-define their initial definitions of bullying and discuss what they...
Curated OER
Memoir Writing Based on Jerry Spinelli's Milkweed
Using chapter 1 of Jerry Spinelli's Milkweed, middle schoolers write a personal memoir based on Spinelli's style and a Six Trait writing activity. The lesson plan suggests several ways to activate prior knowledge, including a picture...
Curated OER
Parts of the Plot: Constructing A Plot Diagram
After reading "The King of Mazy May" by Jack London, learners reinforce their literary analysis skills in this SMART board lesson. The provided SMART board file allows themto define elements of a short story, and then add it to the plot...
Curated OER
Our Town
With the songs "My Hometown" by Bruce Springsteen and "Allentown" by Billy Joel, learners examine external versus internal conflict. When they have finished the first part of the lesson, they create their own poem (or song) about the...
Curated OER
The Ultimate Survivor Using Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
What items would you need to survive if you were stranded in a remote place? Using chapter 10 of Gary Paulsen's Hatchet, middle-schoolers work through a Six Trait writing activity to create a story about their own survival in a similar...
Curated OER
Is Perception Reality? Writing Paradoxes in Poetry
Explore the paradox of the universe - or, at least, of popular music - with this lesson. Using the songs "Inaudible Melodies" by Jack Johnson and "She" by Green Day, your class will complete a graphic organizer to help them understand...
Curated OER
Introduction to Symbolism
Your young readers might know that the stars on the American flag symbolize the fifty states, but what symbols best represent who your students are as people? Use this SMART board presentation to guide learners through an activity about...
Virginia Department of Education
Determining Purpose and Audience
Build the writing skills of your junior high wordsmiths with activities that introduce many essential skills of writing. As a class, they develop working definitions of formal vs. informal writing, explore different categories of...
Odell Education
Reading Closely for Textual Details: Grade 7
Enhance the reading experience with a set of lessons designed to improve textual analysis. Seventh graders use guiding questions to read both informational text and literature closely in the first part of the unit. Next, they work on...
California Federation of Chaparral Poets, Inc
Poetic Devices
Have everything you need to know about the elements of poetry with a nine-page handout. Split into four categories—word sounds, meanings, arrangement, and imagery—budding poets may reference terms, read definitions, descriptions, and...
Curated OER
Grammar Games and Activities
Thirty pages of grammar activities? Your young grammarians will be well versed in the parts of speech, basic verb tenses, and much more after completing even a handful of these exercises.
Curated OER
Grammar Practice: Choosing Between Fewer and Less
When should you use "fewer" instead of "less?" Reinforce this grammatical nuance in your class with this handy reference sheet. A short explanation guides learners through the process of choosing one word over the other, and a series of...
Curated OER
Understanding and Using Suffixes to Expand Vocabulary
After a review of what suffixes are and how they are used, middle schoolers utilize a worksheet that is embedded in the plan to work in pairs to strengthen their understanding and skills in using these very important parts of our...
Curated OER
Writing a Halloween Poem
A delightful instructional activity on poetry is here for you and your middle schoolers. Learners are instructed to write a Halloween poem. They get to choose the age range for the audience of the poem. So, it may be scary (for older...
ReadWriteThink
Alliteration in Headline Poems
Poetry is everywhere you look! Create found poems using headlines from newspapers and magazines. Young poetry focus on creating alliterative phrases with words they find in headlines, tying their poems to a central theme.
Curated OER
Grammar Practice: Restrictive vs. Non-Restrictive Clauses
Go over the basics of restrictive and non-restrictive clauses with this grammar worksheet. After reviewing the concepts, as well as the definitions of parentheticals and appositives, young learners label ten sentences as restrictive or...
Curated OER
Avoiding Run-On Sentences (I)
Eliminate run-on sentences! This practice opportunity highlights run-on sentence errors and how to fix them. Examples are shown, and learners are given two options: using semi-colons or commas and coordinating conjunctions. Help polish...
Curated OER
Persuasive Writing
Motivate your class with this interesting presentation. As a way to explore persuasive writing, learners discuss the information found in a series of slides with advertisements. They identify the persuasive language found in each picture...
Curated OER
Could Have, Should Have, Would Have
Could have, should have, would have learned your auxiliary verbs! Use this resource to describe the meaning of each set of words, and then let your kids try to complete the given sentences. Since most people don't actually take the time...