Students identify the qualities that contribute to effective verbal and non-verbal communication. They use those qualities as criteria by which to judge an in-class political debate on education.

Explore the concepts of community and point of view with these activities complementing the children's book Voices in the Park by Anthony Browne. Following a class reading of the story, ask students to either draw a map of the...

Now that your class has read all of Esperanza Rising, take the time to tackle big metaphors and themes. Pupils will participate in an activity called Chalk Talk, in which they circulate around the room in small groups and add...

The seventh in a series of nine exercises focusing on songwriting models for young lyricists on how to find and develop their unique voice. Class members suggest songs that they feel sound authentic and contrast the wording with songs...

Included here are step-by-step instructions for conducting a close reading of The Voice That Challenged a Nation by Russell Freedman. After an individual and class reading, class members read carefully through the text excerpt,...

Begin class with a short comprehension quiz and review and then move into a new genre: two-voice poems. The activity provides information about this type of poetry as well as a video example made by eighth graders that you can show your...

Explore a real world use of poetry with your class! Young language arts pupils consider the concept of advocacy and how journalism, photography, and poetry can raise awareness for a cause. They read several poems about individuals...

Students distinguish between passive voice and nomialization.

Students explore passive voice. They bring in rough drafts, exchange with other students, and look for ways to improve the essays through the elimination of the passive voice.

Students explore American social movements. In this writing skills instructional activity, students read Orwell's "Politics and the English." Students then apply the rules for writing that are included in the piece. Students follow-up by...

As part of a study of the Civil Rights Movement, class members examine documents associated with the Little Rock Nine, the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, the 14th and 15th Amendments to the US Constitution, and chapters from Melba...

Kathryn Barker's In the Skin of A Monster explores how a school massacre impacts a community. Unfortunately, the events depicted are all too familiar to many. This teacher's guide for Barker's novel offers activities that enable readers...

In this interactive sentence rephrasing worksheet, students rewrite each of the 29 sentences in a passive voice. This worksheet is interactive.

Students understand the water cycle through a role playing activity. In this water cycle lesson, students become familiar with the water cycle through a play about the water cycle. Students illustrate their parts and create a VoiceThread...

For this online interactive English skills worksheet, students respond to 10 multiple choice questions that requires them to change sentences in active voice to sentences in passive voice. Answers are scored immediately.

Have your class learn the essentials of public speaking. They compose a speech for their fifth grade celebration using iPods and presentation software. This would be a great end of the year activity for any grade level.

Review advanced grammar concepts with this standard online interactive multiple choice quiz. Young grammarians must know simple grammar principles such as verbs, prepositions and adverbs as well as higher-level knowledge like passive vs....

See the variety of verbs spelled out in these slides. From infinitives to intransitives, each verb is defined and shown with examples. Relationships of verbs to other parts of a sentence are clearly explained. This complex subject is...

What are you doing today? What have you done this week? What will you be doing next month? Focus on verb usage with a series of fill-in-the-black exercises on basic tenses, inappropriate shifts in tense, and active and passive voice.

Teach your middle schoolers to use their ears to their highest potential! Pupils practice active listening skills and reflect on how careful listening might prove to be important in and out of the classroom.

Use this resource to introduce the passive voice. The first box highlights important information on the passive voice. The second box contains a short assessment. Are your middle schoolers understanding how to use it?

In these writing style worksheets, students practice developing their writer's voice. Students complete three activities that help them with their writing voice.

In this active and passive voice worksheet, students read a paragraph regarding Thanksgiving and then rewrite five of the sentences in passive voice.

For this passive and active verbs worksheet, students read the instructions and study the examples for how to change a sentence with an active verb to one with a passive. Students change 10 active sentences about Halloween to the passive.