8 thinking, writing and discussing activities to hook students

8 thinking, writing and discussing activities to hook students

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Educators know that they must bait their students' brains with activities that will lure their charges into picking up their pens, pencils, or computers, and turning on their minds. Here are 8 activities-4 Free and 4 Priced- that will snag students' attention and empower them to become life-long thinkers, writers and learners.

Teaching Tip: offer one of these activities for students to dig into while you take attendance. Save the  explanation of the day's agenda until after you have baited their brains with a fun and subtle writing and critical thinking activity.

Language Arts Comprehension Check: Ten Sentence Format

NOTE: This freebie is NOT an activity, but an invaluable teaching tool. Students should use it for any expository writing piece- from a warm-up to a complete essay, to a short answer response on a quiz or a test.

This Ten Sentence Format reinforces students' basic understanding of the elements of a good paragraph while they practice writing about literature. It also empowers them to write and develop more in-depth essays since they can expand the format to meet any length requirements by adding more body paragraphs. Perfect for clarifying and reinforcing the parts of an essay, teachers may also use it for an announced or unannounced quiz when they wish to check reading and writing comprehension, and for general writing practice or warm-ups.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Language-Arts-Comprehension-CheckTen-Sentence-Format-16081 (Free)

 The House of Comprehension EBook

(Note:The Ten-Sentence Format is a part of the Writing Module of my teacher resource, The House of Comprehension. 

You can check out the book here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/EBook-The-House-of-Comprehension-1557114 $ The House of Comprehension is a resource for ELA teachers in grades 6-9, written to address their efforts to help students comprehend structure in literature. The program presented in this teacher resource offers educators a complete solution -from Planning to Teaching through Assessment - that shows students how each element of literature works with the others to form a solid literary structure. By following this Show Me, Help Me, Let Me program, teachers facilitate their students' understanding of any text.

Comprehension - It's Good to be Me...It's Good to be You

These engaging activities will hook students into reading and writing about any text. The two activities motivate students to delve into the literature's subtext as they explore the characters they meet in their reading, while also allowing students to reveal their own personalities and thoughts. This is a great way for young people to turn their private "The Me You Don't Know" traits and thoughts into their, "The Me I Want You to Know" word pictures that they are willing to share publicly. 

Also, these FREE activities will jump start students' higher level thinking skills and give them a chance to exhibit their thinking in their writing. Although these work as great activities at the beginning of the year for you to get to know your students and for them to learn about each other, they are comprehensive activities throughout the year. 

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Comprehension-Its-Good-to-be-Me-Its-Good-to-be-You-859283 (Free)

 Journalism Beat Sheet

Whether Journalism teachers are veterans or rookies, the Beat Sheet is an absolute necessity to teach students reporting procedures and to develop basic interviewing skills. Because it is important for a school newspaper to cover all of the clubs and activities a middle or high school offers, this FREE Beat Sheet presents a succinct way for journalism students to find story ideas they can develop as a blurb for a column or as a News, Features of Sports piece for the newspaper.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Journalism-Beat-Sheet-90452 (Free)

Writing - "Just Say, 'NO!' to Dull Writing"

This year-long "Just Say, 'NO!' to Dull Writing" activity has always been one of my premier writing lesson plans for middle school and high school students. I hand it out the first week of the year, and explain that students are required to refer to it for any writing-graded or nongraded piece- during the whole year. They are to use it to revise warm-ups they want to develop into full length pieces, for short answer assignments during literature studies, for full-length essays or narrative writings, or for projects.  In short- for any and every in-class or homework assignment. Also, I make a poster of it to hang in the classroom and taped a copy of the list to each desk for  continual writing reinforcement. One of my students contacted me from college and asked me to send her a copy she could use in the tutoring center where she mentored peers.  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Writing-Just-Say-NO-to-Dull-Writing-1555338 (Free)

Language Arts Activity - "This is My Future"

Here is an activity that helps students get to know peers they view only as acquaintances, and also offers teachers a chance to learn about their students thoughts, beliefs and personalities. In this activity, students consider their futures. What is their dream career? Where do they see themselves in five, ten, fifteen or twenty years? This thinking and writing assignment allows them to ponder who they are now, where they are going, and what they need academically to help them attain their dream. It's also great to use in conjunction with the study of a book such as Into the Wild (Jon Krakauer), The Odyssey (Homer), I Am The Messenger (Markus Zusak) or Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurston). In this case, students complete the activity from the point of view of ones of the characters in the book they are studying.

Ask students to start this activity by designing a poster that depicts their dream career. If class time permits, they now should write a paragraph explaining the school subjects and necessary skills that they will need to master in order to help them attain their goals. If teachers want to move on more quickly, they can have a few students summarize their designs and then complete the writing aspect at home. When they have finished this activity, teachers may pin up the posters around the classroom so that all of the students can look into their peers' futures. These make a fascinating bulletin board, whether they are personal or fabout a character.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Writing-This-is-My-Future-1145950 ($)

Critical Thinking & Writing Lesson: Four Corners Activity

Engage students by getting them on their feet where they can share their opinions on a variety of contemporary topics. After that, give them time to express their thoughts in writing. These activities allow students to show their analytic and critical-thinking skills in speaking and writing. Also, they offer teachers a clear baseline, so they can assess what areas of writing their students will need to address during the year.

This is an excellent activity because it:

1. Makes the students think

2. Teaches them to express themselves verbally in a non-argumentative manner

3. Requires them to listen to others’ opinions, and 

4. Gets the students actively involved in classroom discussions.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Critical-Thinking-Writing-Lesson-Four-Corners-Activity-45528($)

Writing Activity: My Life's Journey

This activity requires students create a pictorial life map from their birth to the present day. Students should complete the project totally with images and brief captions. Continue the concept of this lesson with your first reading selection that the students will study. Although I have used this assignment in conjunction with teaching The Odyssey, it can accompany any story that involves a journey. It complements a variety of books-fiction and narrative non-fiction- for grades 6-12.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Writing-Activity-My-Lifes-Journey-287176($) 

Teaching Tip: Snag students' attention and feed their learning appetites with one-or two of these offerings as appetizers. Try this sequence of activities:

1. Choose a writing activity as students settle in and you take attendance.
2. Select an activity that gets the students talking. Any of these will accomplish that goal.
3. Ask a few students to share their responses for this exercise.
4. Close the class with any instructions re completing the writing activity.

Teacher Bonus: Teacher CLASSMART List

This "Teacher CLASSMART List" is comprised of 12 supplies that will save teachers' sanity during the school year. Three of the Items included are:

1. Hand cleanser (extra-large). Classrooms are Free-Range Germ Zones.

3. Antiseptic cleaning spray. This is a must in Germ Warfare Defense to use with students who sneeze or cough on their homework/ tests and then try to hand in the tainted papers. When they do, smile, hand them the bottle and tell them to go into the hall and de-germ those weapons of mass congestion. This is also a necessity for desk cleaning and purifying the air. and

10. Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. Just like burgers need fries and eggs need bacon, grading that stack of essays calls for the fruit of the cocoa bean…in any form.

 If you fill your supply closet with these items, you will enjoy a year that is as germ-free, stress-free and headache-free as possible.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Back-to-School-Freebie-Teacher-CLASSMART-List-1329512 (Free)

We all know how crucial writing right is in all aspects of students' education: from a warm-up, to a major essay, to standardized testing, to creating skills students will need after high school graduation, and to empower our charges with a lifelong love of the written word. These four free and four paid products offer you the bait you need to hook your students.  As for the CLASSMART List- isn't it time for some coffee, tea or chocolate?

Enjoy a Teach It Now Day Every Day.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Connie

Score With the Literature Super Bowl

After a weekend of football playoff games, I woke up this morning with Pigskin Fever, so I decided that I would offer you my literature review product,   Score With the Literature Super Bowl.  I originally created this review activity that will fit virtually any text-fiction or literary nonfiction in 2012. 

When Compass Publishing contacted me to write my book, The House of Comprehension, we decided to include it in Chapter 5 Decorating: Putting it all Together . Since it tied together all of the elements of literature and how they form the structure of any literary test, we tweaked it, so now it can be found on pages 160-165.

I am offering it in this post because I absolutely love how it engages and energizes students to review the novel or narrative nonfiction book that they have been studying. This novel analysis activity not only checks students’ comprehension of facts, ideas and details, but it also assesses their analytic and interpretive comprehension, ergo, it develops their higher level thinking skills. Score With the Literature Super Bowl includes specific directions for creating and playing the game, and all game pieces-football cards for the point values and questions, a spinner, and a score sheet.

With this teamed activity, students will quit playing their off-task Desktop Football with that folded triangular paper football that they flick toward their index finger goal posts.  If your desk is anything like mine used to be, you probably have a drawer full of these.  Instead, they will be singing,

                “I've been waiting all week for this review
The tough get rough when they’ve gotta’ clue. 
The last one standing gets an A for the game
After this day you’ll remember my name.”

(adapted from the song, “I’ve Been Waiting All Day For Sunday Night” sung by Carrie Underwood

and set to the tune” I Hate Myself for Loving You” by Joan Jett).

To begin, create questions about the novel. Gather the material that you want to review from study questions/guides, activities used during the study of the book, discussions, quizzes, and the final test, and from whatever other lessons from the unit . Make a numbered master list of your questions and a separate answer key, including each question’s point value. See the Teacher’s Directions page for the rest of the specific directions for how to prepare and then play the game.  Download and laminate the spinner and the football cards.

Add to the Super Bowl atmosphere by asking the students to wear a jersey of a favorite team or player, by starting the review playing the Sunday Night Football theme song, and by offering snacks, i.e. popcorn, football-shaped cookies, etc, if this doesn’t interfere with school policy.  Hint- ask the students to bring the snacks. For closure, have Literature Super Bowl Winners certificates.

Download this FREEBIE from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Activity-Score-With-the-Literature-Super-Bowl-1058494   .  For more activities that teach students the importance of the elements of literature in creating a durable story structure, check out the preview for The House of Comprehension  on http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Language-Arts-The-House-of-Comprehension-Preview-125128  or on the publisher’s TpT site: Digital http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-House-of-Comprehension-digital-edition-566148

Edition:

Print Edition: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-House-of-Comprehension-print-edition-566107 or publishing Compass's publishing site http://www.teachitwrite.com/

Meanwhile, enjoy this activity.

Happy Teaching, 

With K.I.S.S in mind, planning's no grind

Although summer is in high swelter mode, many teachers continue to create daily plans. During these lazy, hazy days, that has to be incredibly difficult- a feat that I was never tough enough to attempt. I salute you, my colleagues who accept this mission incredible.

Lately, though, social media status reports reveal that some teachers who chose to close their classroom doors in May/June, literally and figuratively, are being plagued by itches they just are not yet ready to scratch. What's causing this rash? The Lesson Plan Troll, bored and thirsty for attention, is tickling their brains.

My mind has fallen into a state of lethargy this week, resulting in brain freeze. Not coordinated enough to surf, even if I did live near an ocean, I decided to ride the waves of the Internet in an attempt to ignite my procrastinating writing muse. After a few clicks, I landed on a discussion posted in a LinkedIn group, The Teacher's Lounge.  The question,  "What are the top challenges teachers face when preparing for class?" hooked my yawning attention.

As I read the responses, I wondered, could I, clearly and concisely, put my planning philosophy into words? Clearly and concisely are the key components for this challenge, because although my book, The House of Comprehension- http://www.teachitwrite.com/-does showcase the approach that I utilize-it's a book, not a blog post, a venue where should conserve my words.

After playing around with my basic ideas, I created this mnemonic device: Know Investigate Synthesize Submit.  Based on the widely-used Keep It Simple, Silly concept ( I detest the word, Stupid, which is usually used...but that's a whole other post), here is Connie's Planning Policy:

from The House of Comprehension (29)

First of all, with each and every lesson idea, PowerPoint and activity that I create, I must consider:
WHO I am teaching (visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners as well as specific student needs,
WHAT I am teaching (the material),
WHEN (time of year and following what specific lessons),
WHY (Objectives/goals: Common Core, Bloom's Taxonomy or other), and
HOW (Step by step plans: student-centered and teacher-directed).

All of these criteria fit into my K.I.S.S plan:
Know (Research, Explain, Apply, Discuss)-READ
Investigate (Discuss, Evaluate, Analyze, Rate)-DEAR
Synthesize  (Create, Hypothesize, Originate, Imagine,          Compose, Envision)-CHOICE
Submit  (Propose, Offer, Present)-POP

My goal is to inspire students to want READing to become DEAR to them so they will have CHOICES and their lives (in school and in the outside world) will POP.

These terms do not only apply just to what I want students to demonstrate through their writing, projects, tests, presentations, etc. during and at the end of a lesson or unit.  While composing a lesson, I must perform each action of the Verbs in the parentheses, too.

Why? To me, teaching is a road, one my students and I must travel together, with all of us moving in the same direction. If I want my students to fuel their brains with  K.I.S.S,  then I must energize my plans with High-Octane doses of it, too.

"What are the top challenges teachers face when preparing for class?"  I would love to read your ideas. Please share them here.

Happy Teaching,

Building Strong Comprehension Bones-It's Elemental

Anyone who knows me as a teacher, understands how passionate I am about verbs being the backbone of creating word pictures, but that's a Thursday blog topic. Today is Elements of Literature Day on Teach it Write.

My feelings about how the elements of literature form the structure of any piece of literature-fiction and narrative non-fiction- are equally as fervent, though. Oh, each module can be a stand-alone entity, but one that would topple over with anything more than a wisp of air. Together, though... together these elements form a resilient structure that will support any in-depth study of literature and withstand the huffing and puffing from any skeptical wolf, no matter his or her costume.

Years before my book, The House of Comprehension was even a seed in my brain, or had taken root in my publisher's garden of teachers' resources (http://brigantinemedia.com/compass/), I created  a  presentation called, The Elements of Literature Power Point. This morning, I revised, clarified and updated this slide show. Not only is it now more visually pleasing for teachers and students, offering clearer content that teachers can use as their lessons' starting blocks, but it is also FREE.

English Language Arts teachers can utilize this slide show with their literature studies in a variety of ways. Here are two:

1. Present the whole show at once  as an introduction to the elements, or
2. Present each slide when its concept is the topic of the lesson.

Taught together with the text they are studying, teachers will help their students build  personal houses of comprehension by showing them how to expand their knowledge, to enhance their perception of the

 structure of texts, and to develop strong reading skills that will last them a lifetime. Students will become experts in analyzing:

1. The complexity and quality of the literary structure 
2. The importance of the setting to the story
3. The way characters mesh and clash to form the plot
4. The story's flow and the possibility for the characters' growth, and
5. How the tone,  theme,  symbols and point of view enhance the story, creating the subtext necessary for depth and meaning. 

This FREE ten-slide presentation enables teachers to help students to analyze literature in depth. Each slide

offers a visual lesson for Setting, Characters, Plot, Conflict, The World the Author Creates, Theme, Symbols, Tone and Literary Terms.

Teachers can show it as an overview or reinforcement lesson before analyzing a short story, a novel, narrative non-fiction, or as each element is introduced. I used this in English classes as well as Creative Writing classes when students were writing fiction.

By coordinating this FREE presentation with any literature study, teachers are ensuring that students are building strong houses of comprehension. This slide presentation addresses the Common Core Anchor Standards for Literature (R 1, 2,3, 5, 6 and 10) and Bloom's

Taxonomy's Remember/Understand, Apply, Analyze and Evaluate thinking skills.

Download this Free PowerPoint from: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Elements-of-Literature-PowerPoint and start a whole town of durable comprehension houses, with each structure revealing character, strong design elements and depth.

Happy Teaching,