5th Grade ELA Test Prep Handouts

Simplify fiction instruction for 3rd-5th graders with 10 mini-lessons, STAAR practice, passages, activities, 81 small group cards, anchor charts, and models. Topics: Plot, Inference, Summary, Context Clues, Main Idea, Text Structure and more!

➡️ Why You Will Love

⭐A lesson plan that is planned and prepped so you get your planning time back!

⭐Science of reading-aligned strategies for students to apply to their reading.

⭐Real-world connections so that students see how the skill is applied to their everyday lives. 

⭐Flexible Format to integrate into any curriculum.

➡️ What’s 10 Skills are Included

• Author's Purpose

• Author's Voice

• Characteristics of Nonfiction Genres

• Context Clues

• Inference

• Main Idea and Supporting Details

• Making Connections

• Paraphrase and Summarize

• Print & Graphic Features

• Text Structure

➡️ What’s Included

• Warm Up
• Anchor Chart
• Interactive Google Lesson Slides with an Adventure Theme
• Real-world connections
• Model Text
• Guided Notes
• Guided Practice
• Small Group Instruction
• Independent Practice
• Exit Ticket

➡️ How to Use Suggestions

• Begin with a warm-up to spark curiosity and introduce the day’s focus.
• Teach with the anchor chart, lesson slides, model text, guided practice, and guided doodle notes, encouraging students to make connections.
• Engage students with a story-driven adventure activity.
• Provide scaffolded practice using small group instruction and independent activities.
• Wrap up with an exit ticket to assess understanding and inform future lessons.
• Use Google Application to assign or download resources.

Bring Reading to life with this incredible resource today!

➡️ LET’S CONNECT

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➡️ ADDITIONAL SUPPORTS

Mini-Lessons

Activity Packs

STAAR Prep

Short and Extended Constructed Responses

Engage 3rd-5th graders with a nonfiction characteristics lesson: bell ringer, guided notes, ELA STAAR practice, activities, anchor chart, model passage, and exit ticket—ideal for intervention, stations, STAAR prep, independent reading comprehension, and differentiated supports!

A low-prep lesson designed to help learners understand features of the Nonfiction Genre.

➡️ Why You Will Love

⭐A lesson plan that is planned and prepped so you get your planning time back!

⭐Science of reading-aligned strategies for students to apply to their reading.

⭐Flexible Format to integrate into any curriculum.

1. 90 Day Reading Comprehension Bell Ringer Warm-Up Routine: This daily bell-ringer routine provides 90 days of reading comprehension practice, helping students build consistency in analyzing texts, identifying main ideas, and drawing inferences. Perfect for regular, bite-sized practice that reinforces key comprehension skills.
2. ECR Relay Race: Engaging STAAR Writing Prep: This interactive relay race activity is designed to make STAAR writing preparation engaging. With 12 prompts focused on extended constructed responses (ECR), students will work on crafting thoughtful, structured responses, honing their ability to articulate ideas clearly and support their answers with evidence.
3. STAAR ECR Mastery Resource for Informational Essays: This resource focuses on informational essay writing with a strong emphasis on developing thesis statements, claims, and supporting evidence. It’s a targeted approach to mastering the essential components of STAAR informational essays, equipping students with skills in organization and argumentation.
4. Thanksgiving Argument Writing Unit: Debate Topics & Lesson Plans: This seasonal resource engages students in argument writing through Thanksgiving-themed debate topics. Students will practice constructing persuasive arguments, making claims, and providing relevant evidence—core skills for STAAR ECRs and persuasive writing in general.

This bundle provides comprehensive practice in reading comprehension, essay structure, argumentation, and evidence-based responses, setting students up for success in standardized test preparation.

Elevate your middle school ELA classes with our comprehensive 90-day warm-up routine, meticulously designed to bolster end-of-year testing performance and reinforce grade-level skills. This resource is the perfect tool for 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade educators seeking a hassle-free, standards-aligned solution that covers all priority CCSS and TEKS for 6th-grade English Language Arts. It can be used for intervention, extension, review, and introduction for grades 6-8!

Key Features:

• Curriculum-Aligned: Targets 18 essential ELA skills, including inference making, theme development, plot analysis, vocabulary enhancement through Greek and Latin affixes, text structure, author's craft, elements of drama and poetry, interpreting informational texts, figurative language, finding supporting evidence, evaluating arguments in speeches, and more.
• Diverse Content: Engages students with a variety of topics, from sports and video games to wildlife and excerpts from iconic speeches, ensuring relevance and interest.
• Comprehensive Resource: Offers 271 slides in a versatile PowerPoint and Canva format, plus a Google Doc with daily questions and open-ended justifications, complete with an answer key for each.
• Classroom Flexibility: Seamlessly integrates into your teaching approach, with options for print or digital use, perfect for Google Classroom or notebook-based learning.
• Student-Centered Learning: Encourages discourse, builds academic stamina, and fosters confidence through rigorous, thought-provoking content.
• Assessment Ready: Each multiple-choice question is paired with an answer key, allowing for immediate feedback and ongoing assessment of student understanding.

Benefits:

• Time-Saving: Ready-to-use slides and documents save precious planning time, allowing you to focus on teaching and student interaction.
• Skill Retention: Spiral review format ensures continuous reinforcement of critical ELA skills, aiding retention and mastery.
• Engagement & Rigor: A diverse range of topics and question formats keeps students engaged and challenges them to think critically.
• Curriculum Integration: Easily implemented as a 10-minute daily warm-up, this resource aligns with your curriculum goals and supports students' preparation for end-of-year assessments.

How to Use: Ideal for the first 10 minutes of class, this ELA warm-up routine can be projected, printed, or distributed digitally. It's designed to integrate smoothly into your existing curriculum, providing a daily opportunity for students to demonstrate and build upon their ELA competencies.

Get Your Copy Today: Don't miss out on this essential ELA warm-up routine that promises to make your classroom a hub of learning and discussion. Prepare your students for success with a resource that's as educational as it is engaging!

Do students need help understanding cause and effect? These cause and effect activities offer reinforcement and practice to produce great student essays.Step-by-step and easy-to-follow cause and effect activities include: Relationship Word Chart Fill-in-the-Blank Pearl Harbor Essay Activity 2 Fill-in-the Blank Organizers for Pearl Harbor 2 Cause and Effect Graphic Organizers for Generic History Writing 1 Pearl Harbor Cause & Effect Essay Assignments with Pre-writing 1 Generic History Cause & Effect Essay Assignment/Pre-writing Meets state and federal guidelines for ELA; meets state history guidelines. Help students easily understand cause and effect with this Pearl Harbor/generic history packet with visual graphic organizers. Use for test preparation and standardized test practice.

Every April, students can celebrate Tell-a-Story Day, which occurs at the end of the month. This 16 page handout will help students with organizing and telling fact-based stories. Great for building oral communication, evidence/proof, and re-telling memories. Includes: Finding storytelling topics Graphic Organizers for planning stories in chronological order Setting up a storytelling event Designing advertisements/invitations Peer workshopping stories Links to multicultural, professional, international/national storytelling centers, storytelling videos and websites Can be used any time of the year! Students will enjoy sharing stories while learning how to use fact-based information. Fun and educational!

20 Non-fiction writing prompts to help students with assessment writing. Comes with 20 handouts with graphics and writing space. Includes:

In my future I see...

People say I'm a dreamer...

My life is like a song...

Home represents...

Gossip spreads like wildfire...

plus 15 more non-fiction writing prompts that relate to students' lives!

Excellent for assessment prep, journal prompts, non-fiction connections to readings. Use the prompts as introduction into research then use the writing process and peer workshop essays for Common Core requirements.

Need help with organizing cause and effect essays? These 7 charts will guide students through planning and pre-writing cause and effect essays. Step-by-Step graphic organizers with note about cause and effect definitions, paragraph writing tip, and writing challenge to reorganize the essay on each handout.

Excellent for assessment practice, college test prep, standardized test prep, and expository writing. Helps build critical thinking skills. Meets state and federal ELA guidelines.

Get ready to start testing out on a positive note with these testing motivational notes for students. Designed to uplift and inspire, these notes are meant to be placed on students' desks before they begin their testing journey. Each card features a unique motivational message tailored to boost confidence, foster a positive mindset, and ignite determination in students as they embark on their testing endeavors.

From encouraging words of affirmation to empowering quotes, these notes serve as a reminder that every student possesses the ability to excel and shine brightly. Whether it's a reassuring note about believing in oneself or a gentle reminder to stay focused and resilient, these cards aim to create an atmosphere of encouragement and support during testing sessions.

Most items to be added to the notes can be found online or in your local grocery store.

Includes color and black and white versions. Just PRINT AND GO!

Looking for birthday messages. I have a set HERE.

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Includes prompts for writing informative and argumentative essays. Also includes writing powerpoints, outlines, and rubrics

What is the electoral college and how does it work? This is an informative essay prompt, two articles, a map, and outline sheet. Your kids will all learn how voting isn't as straightforward as some people think. This comes complete with rubric

Should students be required to learn second language? This is an argumentative essay prompt, three articles, and outline sheet. Your kids will all have their own opinions about whether or not schools should require students to learn second language. This comes complete with rubric.

This is for Google Drive

Looking for more argumentative prompts with articles?

Minimum Wage - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Facebook: Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Did Shakespeare write his own stuff?:Argumentative prompt, articles, and rubric.

Should Schools Ban Soda? - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Should students be required to learn second language? This is an argumentative essay prompt, three articles, and outline sheet. Your kids will all have their own opinions about whether or not schools should require students to learn second language. This comes complete with rubric. This is a pdf.

If you want the Google Drive editable version

CLICK HERE

Looking for more argumentative prompts with articles?

Minimum Wage - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Facebook: Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Did Shakespeare write his own stuff?:Argumentative prompt, articles, and rubric.

Should Schools Ban Soda? - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Should students be required to learn how to write in cursive? This is an argumentative essay prompt, three articles, and outline sheet. Your kids will all have their own opinions about whether or not schools should require students to learn how to write in cursive. This comes complete with rubric.

CLICK HERE for Google Drive

Looking for more argumentative prompts with articles?

Minimum Wage - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Facebook: Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Did Shakespeare write his own stuff?:Argumentative prompt, articles, and rubric.

Should Schools Ban Soda? - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Should students be required to wear school uniforms? This is an argumentative essay prompt, two articles, a graph, and outline sheet. Your kids will all have their own opinions about uniforms and whether or not schools should require uniforms. This comes complete with rubric. This is for Google Drive

Should students be required to wear school uniforms? This is an argumentative essay prompt, two articles, a graph, and outline sheet. Your kids will all have their own opinions about uniforms and whether or not schools should require uniforms. This comes complete with rubric. This is a pdf.

If you want the Google Drive editable version

CLICK HERE

Looking for more argumentative prompts with articles?

Minimum Wage - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Facebook: Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Did Shakespeare write his own stuff?:Argumentative prompt, articles, and rubric.

Should Schools Ban Soda? - Argumentative prompt, articles, and outline sheet

Explain the effects of cell phone addiction. This is an informative essay prompt, two articles, a graph, and outline sheet. Your kids will all learn something about cell phones that they may never thought of before. This comes complete with rubric

Bundle includes 109 Pages total & 41 Google Forms

Clauses: 16 pages/5 Google Forms

Commas: 26 pages/13 Google Forms

Fragments, Run-Ons & Comma Splices: 14 pages/3 Google Quizzes

Transition words: 16 pages/4 Google Quizzes

Commonly Confused Words: 18 pages/9 Quizzes

Capitalization: 11 pages/4 Google Quizzes

Apostrophes: 8 pages/3 Google Quizzes

I made these after realizing that my students in high school needed practice with the mechanics of how to construct a sentence before I could begin instructing them on best practices for structure in their essays. There are pages for them to practice (on paper) or you can use as a quiz for after instruction! All of the Google quizzes will self-grade and they are editable.

This is the essential Test Prep Bundle for students testing for state or district exams.

They're also adaptable for students who are doing self-directed learning as each includes a short teaching page for students to reference as they are working through the activities.

Colons, Semicolons and Commas - by the time your students are done, they will be begging you to please make it stop (but they will know how to use these three important punctuation marks!)

Included:

• Short review page for self-guided learning
• 50 sentences that need semicolons & commas
• 40 sentences that need colons & commas
• 2 quizzes with 10 questions each for the skills they've practiced
• 2 Self-grading Google Form Quizzes
• Word Doc
• PDF

BUNDLE & SAVE: ELA Test Prep, Study Guide & Activities Bundle (new)

Check out these other resources!

• All Things English For Middle & High School Students (best seller)
• Once Upon A Crime
• Revising & Editing Workbook
• Revising & Editing for Group Lessons
• Bell Ringers for the Semester
• Everything Writing

I spent two weeks teaching my students revising skills explicitly before it hit me... all the answer choices had SOMETHING to do with knowing how to use a comma!

It's an area where students feel the least confident and it can be fixed. Before your students go into a test or a state exam, make sure they know how to use a comma.

• A short "teach" page is included for self-guided learning.
• Re-teach page for struggling students
• All areas divided by comma usage

INCLUDED: 13 self-grading Google Form Quizzes, Word Doc, PDF!

BUNDLE and SAVE: ELA Test Prep, Study Guide & Activities Bundle

Check out these other resources!

• All Things English For Middle & High School Students (best seller)
• Once Upon A Crime
• Revising & Editing Workbook
• Revising & Editing for Group Lessons
• Bell Ringers for the Semester
• Everything Writing
• Intermediate Advanced ELL/EB Practice with 100s of Common Words
• ELL/EB Newcomer Essential Phrases & Vocabulary