8th Grade English Language Arts Lesson

15 Minute Composing Challenge (Freebie)

Bring creativity and excitement into your classroom with this fast-paced, Gothic-themed writing challenge!

This 15 Minute Composing Challenge (Freebie) introduces students to the Gothic genre through engaging timed writing tasks. Perfect for middle school and high school students, this free resource gives a taste of the full 15 Minute Composing Challenge while helping students improve their creative writing skills in a fun and structured way.

Students will plan, write, and review their stories using Gothic quotes to inspire suspenseful narratives. Whether working individually or in groups, this quick exercise promotes critical thinking, creativity, and reflection—all in just 15 minutes!

What’s Included:

• Task cards with Gothic quotes for students to use in their writing
• Structured timing: 3 minutes to plan, 10 minutes to write, and 2 minutes to review
• Teacher instructions to pace the activity and guide students

Use this freebie to spark student interest in creative writing, or as a warm-up to more detailed lessons. If you enjoy this free resource, explore the full version for more prompts and activities!

This freebie offers just a taster of what the complete resource provides. If you found these prompts engaging, the full version includes more quotes, a wider range of activities, and extra tools to deepen your students' exploration of Gothic literature. Check out the full version with 5 different prompt cards, plus 3 beginner prompt cards and 2 extension prompt cards: 15 Minute Activity: Gothic Creative Short Story Writing Prompts & Activity

P.S. Follow EduHive Learning Resources for more creative teaching tools, and feel free to share your feedback—I would love to hear from you! Bee

Keywords: creative writing, composing challenge, Gothic literature, writing prompts, middle school writing, high school writing, ELA activities, quick writing exercise, free TeachShare resource, teacher, educator, homeschooling/homeschool, tutoring/tutor.

15 Minute Composing Challenge (Freebie)

Bring creativity and excitement into your classroom with this fast-paced, Gothic-themed writing challenge!

This 15 Minute Composing Challenge (Freebie) introduces students to the Gothic genre through engaging timed writing tasks. Perfect for middle school and high school students, this free resource gives a taste of the full 15 Minute Composing Challenge while helping students improve their creative writing skills in a fun and structured way.

Students will plan, write, and review their stories using Gothic quotes to inspire suspenseful narratives. Whether working individually or in groups, this quick exercise promotes critical thinking, creativity, and reflection—all in just 15 minutes!

What’s Included:

• Task cards with Gothic quotes for students to use in their writing
• Structured timing: 3 minutes to plan, 10 minutes to write, and 2 minutes to review
• Teacher instructions to pace the activity and guide students

Use this freebie to spark student interest in creative writing, or as a warm-up to more detailed lessons. If you enjoy this free resource, explore the full version for more prompts and activities!

This freebie offers just a taster of what the complete resource provides. If you found these prompts engaging, the full version includes more quotes, a wider range of activities, and extra tools to deepen your students' exploration of Gothic literature. Check out the full version with 5 different prompt cards, plus 3 beginner prompt cards and 2 extension prompt cards: 15 Minute Activity: Gothic Creative Short Story Writing Prompts & Activity

P.S. Follow EduHive Learning Resources for more creative teaching tools, and feel free to share your feedback—I would love to hear from you! Bee

Keywords: creative writing, composing challenge, Gothic literature, writing prompts, middle school writing, high school writing, ELA activities, quick writing exercise, free TeachShare resource, teacher, educator, homeschooling/homeschool, tutoring/tutor.

Dive into the timeless world of S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders with my engaging PowerPoint Presentation and Note-Taking Sheets FREEBIE!  This resource is perfect for teachers and students alike, designed to complement your literature curriculum and enhance students’ understanding of the novel.  The PowerPoint slides provide a comprehensive overview of key themes, character analysis, plot summaries, and important quotes, while the accompanying note-taking sheets encourage students to actively engage with the material, track their thoughts, and organize their insights.  Whether used in the classroom or for remote learning, this resource makes studying The Outsiders interactive and enjoyable.

Please leave a review if you enjoy this resource.

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What Educators Are Saying:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Easy ELA with AD Bee (TeachShare Seller) September 23, 2024

Super cute and cool resource. My students loved the character's pictures because it helped them remember who they were writing about.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Matheme by Mariela & Diana (TeachShare Seller) September 22, 2024

The note-taking sheets are a game-changer, encouraging my grandkids to engage with the material actively and organize their insights. I highly recommend it, it makes studying The Outsiders enjoyable.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Mr Cuvs Chemistry Class (TeachShare Seller) September 22, 2024

Big easy homeschooling mom never disappoints! Thank you so much for making this resource and I look forward to more items from this creator!

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Thank you for your support!

Tina – Big Easy Homeschooling Mom

Social Media Links:  http://linktr.ee/bigeasyhomeschoolingmom

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This product is made for:

• adapting instruction
• differentiating instruction
• on level learners
• ESL/ENL/ELL
• Deaf Education
• Homework
• Classwork
• Homeschooling
• Bell Work
• Virtual Instruction
• Remote Instruction
• Struggling Readers
• Struggling Writers

In this packet, students will write 20, 10 or 5 definitions from their spelling word list, write all 20, 10, or 5 of the syllables in each spelling word, and write all 20, 10, or 5 of the sounds they hear in each spelling word. This product provides three templates of each for students who require adapted instruction or do not have 20 spelling words, but may have 10 or 5.

If you download this product and like it, please leave me a quick positive review! :)

In this product, students will identify nouns, common/proper nouns, singular nouns, singular possessive nouns, plural nouns, and plural possessive nouns.

Full Product Link:

In this product, students will identify nouns in sentences, proper/common nouns, singular form of plural nouns, plural form of singular nouns, identify the difference singular nouns, singular possessive nouns, plural nouns, and plural possessive nouns, and rewriting sentences is required throughout this product to help student's improve grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling skills.

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Nouns-Grammar-Review-9721577

You may also be interested in the following:

Sentence Grammar Worksheets:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Sentence-Grammar-Practice-Worksheets-9721071

In this product, students will identify sentence and sentence fragments, write the correct end punctuation for each sentence, label each sentence declarative, imperative, interrogative, or exclamatory, identify each simple subjects and simple predicate.

Full Product Link:

In the full product, students will identify sentence and sentence fragments, write the correct end punctuation for each sentence, label each sentence declarative, imperative, interrogative, or exclamatory, identify each complete subject and compete predicate, simple subjects, simple predicate, identify conjunctions in a paragraph, rewrite short sentences as compound sentences and use conjunctions in sentences, and correct run on sentences.

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Sentence-Grammar-Practice-Worksheets-9721071#show-price-update

You may also be interested in the following:

Singular and Plural Nouns Sentences Workbook Review

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Singular-and-Plural-Nouns-Sentences-Workbook-Review-12448362

Parts of Speech Vocabulary and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Nouns Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Pronouns Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Pronouns-Vocabulary-Word-and-Sentence-Review-Workbook-12236270

Adjectives Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Verbs Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Adverbs Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Prepositions Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Conjunctions Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Interjections Vocabulary Word and Sentence Review Workbooks

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Adjectives Sentence Review:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Adjectives-Grammar-Review-9724906

Adverbs Sentence Review:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Adverbs-Adapted-Grammar-Worksheets-9727137

Verbs Sentence Review:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Verbs-Grammar-Review-9723072

Contractions Grammar Practice:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Contractions-Adapted-Grammar-Worksheets-9732371

Sentence Grammar Worksheets:

https://www.TeachShare.com/Product/Sentence-Grammar-Practice-Worksheets-9721071

Want to create your own made-to order bundle of my products that fits the needs of your classroom? Choose any 5 or more products (individual, not already bundled) and save 20%. Just follow these 4 simple steps:

1. Choose 5 or more products you want to bundle.
2. Contact me using the TeachShare "Ask a Question" tab and list the products you want bundled. (excludes existing bundles)
3. I will notify you when your custom bundle is ready (usually within just a few hours).
4. You can purchase by clicking on the "Build your own bundle" custom category (in the left margin of my TeachShare store.

For more details, download the free file. I hope to hear from you soon :)

***This offer does not include bundles.

A quick, two page review of Grammar Tips (sentence variety with examples and reader as writer instructions) along with a five-step format for structuring standardized essays. Easy to follow with color-coded examples.

"Baseball in April-the Short Story" by Gary Soto: this introductory lesson provides digital pre-reading information for the author, genre, and setting. The lesson also includes vocabulary study, practice, and assessment.

GOAL: to prepare each student to read rigorous literature by front-loading story elements critical to comprehension and aligned to standards

AUDIENCE: whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual classrooms

PDF FILE. Plus, each ZIP file comes with a PDF folder containing 8 printable worksheets to be used with the PPT lesson! These printables include Connotation and Grammar sort, Word Study, and Vocabulary Quiz with optional word bank and answer key.

POWERPOINT:

1. **Author Bio:** To connect vocabulary with real-world context, we provide author biographies related to each short story. This adds depth to the lesson, allowing students to appreciate the words in the context of the author's life experience.

2. **Setting**: highly informative slides include maps, historical images and intriguing video links to prepare students to have a deeper understanding of the location and time period in which the story takes place. This is a crucial element when preparing students to read outside their own worldview.

3. **Vocab with Concise Definitions :** Our PowerPoint lesson provides clear and concise definitions for challenging vocabulary words, ensuring that students understand the meaning of each word in context as it appears in the text. Vocab slides(grunt, reassurance, foul, obnoxious, winced, resentful, confidence, bleacher, accurate, spite, grounder, taunted)

4.**Bold Photos:** Visual learners will thrive with our visually appealing slides, featuring bold and relevant images that help reinforce vocabulary concepts and make learning more engaging.

5.**Parts of Speech:** Understanding the parts of speech is crucial for effective language comprehension. Our lesson includes sections dedicated to identifying the part of speech for each vocabulary word.

6. **Grammar Review & Sort** Strengthen language skills with integrated grammar review sections, ensuring students can apply the vocabulary words correctly in their own writing and communication.

7. **Connotation Review & Sort** Dive deeper into vocabulary nuances by exploring the connotations of words, helping students grasp the subtle shades of meaning and usage.

8.**Context Clues Sentences:** Our lesson includes carefully curated sentences that employ context clues, enabling students to decipher word meanings from surrounding text. This fosters independent comprehension skills. These worksheets can be used for practice or assessment.

9.**Quizlet Practice:** Reinforce learning and encourage self-assessment with Quizlet practice sets tailored to the vocabulary words covered in the lesson. This interactive tool allows students to review and quiz themselves.

10**PDF file** 9 organizers, activities, and quizzes

11 **Fun Fact** photos and video links are inserted throughout to bring important elements of the story into context and aid comprehension

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story
· Provide backstory to text
· Stimulate group discussion
· Create predictions about text
· Use as distance learning resource
· Post on webpage for review
· Add to electronic notebooks
· Provide test review
· Prompt Writing or Research assignments
· Grammar study / parts of speech
· Discuss Word Connotation

PRINTABLE USES: word walls and interactive notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

*NOTE* This product is included in the Baseball in April bundle. Purchase the bundle to receive this lesson PLUS 11 additional short story lessons by Gary Soto! Click below.

Baseball in April by G. Soto Bundle-PREREADING ACTIVITIES& VOCAB FOR 12 STORIES (TeachShare.com)

Enjoy -from Kiwious About Vocab!

Engage your students with a comprehensive Pre-Reading Historical Introduction to Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. This Digital PowerPoint Lesson seamlessly presents this novel’s significant setting with critical world events of the time. This resource greatly improves comprehension while aligning to standards, ensuring a richer literary experience for all learning styles.

For use with whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual/homeschool classrooms

PowerPoint Slides:

1. **Author Photo and Short Biography** Providing students with a personal connection to the author, enhancing their engagement and understanding of the writer’s influence behind the story.

2. **Historical Fiction Genre** Preparing students to critically analyze how real-world events of the time-period are portrayed through creative storytelling.

3. **Audio Link to Book**Providing an additional resource to support diverse learning styles and ensuring all students can access and engage with the text.

4. **Location Facts, Photos, and Maps** Providing students with a concrete understanding of the setting, enriching their grasp of the historical and geographical context of the story.

5. **Time-period Facts, Photos and Links** Helping students visualize and comprehend the novel’s historical context, deepening their understanding of the events and culture depicted in the story.

6. **Link to Time-period Music** Immersing students in the cultural atmosphere of the era, promoting an emotional connection.

7. **Links to Historical Video Clips** Bringing history to life, providing visual imagery and helping students better understand the events and people of the time-period.

8. **List of Books Written by this Author** Reading other books by the same author is important because it allows students to explore similar themes and styles, fostering a greater interest in literature and a deeper connection with the author's body of work.

9. **Pre and Post Printable Assessments and Answer Key** Crucial for the digital introduction lesson helping to gauge students' initial knowledge and track their progress, ensuring their understanding of the novel.

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide factual backstory to historical fiction text

· Stimulate group discussion

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage

· Add to electronic notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This lesson is also available in Google Slides.

Enjoy!

-From Kiwious About Vocab

Engage your students with a comprehensive Pre-Reading Historical Introduction to Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. This Digital PowerPoint Lesson seamlessly presents this novel’s significant setting with critical world events of the time. This resource greatly improves comprehension while aligning to standards, ensuring a richer literary experience for all learning styles.

For use with whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual/homeschool classrooms

PowerPoint Slides:

1. **Author Photo and Short Biography** Providing students with a personal connection to the author, enhancing their engagement and understanding of the writer’s influence behind the story.

2. **Historical Fiction Genre** Preparing students to critically analyze how real-world events of the time-period are portrayed through creative storytelling.

3. **Audio Link to Book**Providing an additional resource to support diverse learning styles and ensuring all students can access and engage with the text.

4. **Location Facts, Photos, and Maps** Providing students with a concrete understanding of the setting, enriching their grasp of the historical and geographical context of the story.

5. **Time-period Facts, Photos and Links** Helping students visualize and comprehend the novel’s historical context, deepening their understanding of the events and culture depicted in the story.

6. **Link to Time-period Music** Immersing students in the cultural atmosphere of the era, promoting an emotional connection.

7. **Links to Historical Video Clips** Bringing history to life, providing visual imagery and helping students better understand the events and people of the time-period.

8. **List of Books Written by this Author** Reading other books by the same author is important because it allows students to explore similar themes and styles, fostering a greater interest in literature and a deeper connection with the author's body of work.

9. **Pre and Post Printable Assessments and Answer Key** Crucial for the digital introduction lesson helping to gauge students' initial knowledge and track their progress, ensuring their understanding of the novel.

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide factual backstory to historical fiction text

· Stimulate group discussion

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage

· Add to electronic notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This lesson is also available in Google Slides.

Enjoy!

-From Kiwious About Vocab

This NONFICTION PowerPoint lesson provides digital pre-reading , historical background info, vocabulary word study, practice, and assessment for the text "The Drum Major Instinct" by Martin Luther King Jr.

*PDF LINK INCLUDED

GOAL: to prepare each student to read rigorous literature by front-loading story elements critical to comprehension aligned to standards

AUDIENCE: whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual classrooms

PDF FILE. Plus, each ZIP file comes with a PDF folder containing 8 printable worksheets to be used with the PPT lesson! These printables include Connotation and Grammar sort, Word Study, and Vocabulary Quiz with optional word bank and answer key.

POWERPOINT:

1. **Author Bio:** To connect vocabulary with real-world context, we provide author biographies related to each short story. This adds depth to the lesson, allowing students to appreciate the words in the context of the author's life experience.

2. **Setting**: highly informative slides include maps, historical images and intriguing video links to prepare students to have a deeper understanding of the location and time period in which the story takes place. This is a crucial element when preparing students to read outside their own worldview.

3. **Vocab with Concise Definitions :** Our PowerPoint lesson provides clear and concise definitions for challenging vocabulary words, ensuring that students understand the meaning of each word in context as it appears in the text.

4.**Bold Photos:** Visual learners will thrive with our visually appealing slides, featuring bold and relevant images that help reinforce vocabulary concepts and make learning more engaging.

5.**Parts of Speech:** Understanding the parts of speech is crucial for effective language comprehension. Our lesson includes sections dedicated to identifying the part of speech for each vocabulary word.

6. **Grammar Review & Sort** Strengthen language skills with integrated grammar review sections, ensuring students can apply the vocabulary words correctly in their own writing and communication.

7. **Connotation Review & Sort** Dive deeper into vocabulary nuances by exploring the connotations of words, helping students grasp the subtle shades of meaning and usage.

8.**Context Clues Sentences:** Our lesson includes carefully curated sentences that employ context clues, enabling students to decipher word meanings from surrounding text. This fosters independent comprehension skills. These worksheets can be used for practice or assessment.

9.**Quizlet Practice:** Reinforce learning and encourage self-assessment with Quizlet practice sets tailored to the vocabulary words covered in the lesson. This interactive tool allows students to review and quiz themselves.

10**PDF file** 9 organizers, activities, and quizzes

11 **Fun Fact** photos and video links are inserted throughout to bring important elements of the story into context and aid comprehension

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:
· Introduce new story
· Provide backstory to text
· Stimulate group discussion/prediction
· Create predictions about text
· Use as distance learning resource
· Post on webpage for review
· Add to electronic notebooks
· Provide test review
· Prompt Writing or Research assignments
· Grammar study / parts of speech
· Discuss Word Connotation

PRINTABLE USES: word walls and interactive notebooks

***Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

Enjoy -from Kiwious About Vocab!

Engage your students with a comprehensive Pre-Reading Historical Introduction to Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. This Digital Google Lesson seamlessly presents this novel’s significant setting with critical world events of the time. This resource greatly improves comprehension while aligning to standards, ensuring a richer literary experience for all learning styles.

For use with whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual/homeschool classrooms

Google Slides:

1. **Author Photo and Short Biography** Providing students with a personal connection to the author, enhancing their engagement and understanding of the writer’s influence behind the story.

2. **Historical Fiction Genre** Preparing students to critically analyze how real-world events of the time-period are portrayed through creative storytelling.

3. **Audio Link to Book**Providing an additional resource to support diverse learning styles and ensuring all students can access and engage with the text.

4. **Location Facts, Photos, and Maps** Providing students with a concrete understanding of the setting, enriching their grasp of the historical and geographical context of the story.

5. **Time-period Facts, Photos and Links** Helping students visualize and comprehend the novel’s historical context, deepening their understanding of the events and culture depicted in the story.

6. **Link to Time-period Music** Immersing students in the cultural atmosphere of the era, promoting an emotional connection.

7. **Links to Historical Video Clips** Bringing history to life, providing visual imagery and helping students better understand the events and people of the time-period.

8. **List of Books Written by this Author** Reading other books by the same author is important because it allows students to explore similar themes and styles, fostering a greater interest in literature and a deeper connection with the author's body of work.

9. **Pre- and Post- Printable Assessments with Answer Key** Crucial for the digital introduction lesson helping to gauge students' initial knowledge and track their progress, ensuring their understanding of the novel.

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide factual backstory to historical fiction text

· Stimulate group discussion

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage

· Add to electronic notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This lesson is also available in PowerPoint.

Enjoy!

-From Kiwious About Vocab

Engage your students with a comprehensive Pre-Reading Historical Introduction to Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. This Digital Google Lesson seamlessly presents this novel’s significant setting with critical world events of the time. This resource greatly improves comprehension while aligning to standards, ensuring a richer literary experience for all learning styles.

For use with whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual/homeschool classrooms

Google Slides:

1. **Author Photo and Short Biography** Providing students with a personal connection to the author, enhancing their engagement and understanding of the writer’s influence behind the story.

2. **Historical Fiction Genre** Preparing students to critically analyze how real-world events of the time-period are portrayed through creative storytelling.

3. **Audio Link to Book**Providing an additional resource to support diverse learning styles and ensuring all students can access and engage with the text.

4. **Location Facts, Photos, and Maps** Providing students with a concrete understanding of the setting, enriching their grasp of the historical and geographical context of the story.

5. **Time-period Facts, Photos and Links** Helping students visualize and comprehend the novel’s historical context, deepening their understanding of the events and culture depicted in the story.

6. **Link to Time-period Music** Immersing students in the cultural atmosphere of the era, promoting an emotional connection.

7. **Links to Historical Video Clips** Bringing history to life, providing visual imagery and helping students better understand the events and people of the time-period.

8. **List of Books Written by this Author** Reading other books by the same author is important because it allows students to explore similar themes and styles, fostering a greater interest in literature and a deeper connection with the author's body of work.

9. **Pre- and Post- Printable Assessments with Answer Key** Crucial for the digital introduction lesson helping to gauge students' initial knowledge and track their progress, ensuring their understanding of the novel.

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide factual backstory to historical fiction text

· Stimulate group discussion

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage

· Add to electronic notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This lesson is also available in PowerPoint.

Enjoy!

-From Kiwious About Vocab

"Baseball in April" by Gary Soto: this introductory Google Slide lesson provides digital pre-reading information for the author, genre, and setting. The lesson also includes vocabulary study, practice, and assessment.

GOAL: to prepare each student to read rigorous literature by front-loading story elements critical to comprehension aligned to standards

AUDIENCE: whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual classrooms

PDF FILE. Plus, each ZIP file comes with a PDF folder containing 8 printable worksheets to be used with the PPT lesson! These printables include Connotation and Grammar sort, Word Study, and Vocabulary Quiz with optional word bank and answer key.

Google Slides:

• Opening slides

-genre, genre video, author photo, short bio and author video

-Prereading discussion questions

-Baseball video

• Setting slides

-Location photos with map

-Video of Fresno, California

-Time period photos with live link to period music clip!

• Vibrant Vocab slides: (grunt, reassurance, foul, obnoxious, winced, resentful, confidence, bleacher, accurate, spite, grounder, taunted)

-photo appearing without word for inference making

-vocab word which 'slides in' so photo can be first WITHOUT the word

-part of speech

-concise definition

• Differentiated Worksheet/Answer Key-used as a pretest, posttest, or practice

• Quizlet link

• Part of speech sort

*Connotation sort

*Vocabulary organizer

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide backstory to text

· Stimulate group discussion/prediction

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage for review · Add to electronic notebooks

· Provide test review

· Prompt Writing or Research assignments

· Grammar study / parts of speech

· Discuss Word Connotation

PRINTABLE USES: word walls and interactive notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This product is also available in PowerPoint!

"The Marble Champ " by Gary Soto: this introductory Google Slide lesson provides digital pre-reading information for the author, genre, and setting. The lesson also includes vocabulary study, practice, and assessment.

GOAL: to prepare each student to read rigorous literature by front-loading story elements critical to comprehension aligned to standards

AUDIENCE: whole group, small group, or independent work for regular ed, learning support, ESL or virtual classrooms

PDF FILE. Plus, each ZIP file comes with a PDF folder containing 8 printable worksheets to be used with the PPT lesson! These printables include Connotation and Grammar sort, Word Study, and Vocabulary Quiz with optional word bank and answer key.

— PDF LINK TO TEXT INCLUDED

Google Slides:

1. **Author Bio:** To connect vocabulary with real-world context, we provide author biographies related to each short story. This adds depth to the lesson, allowing students to appreciate the words in the context of the author's life experience.

2. **Setting**: highly informative slides include maps, historical images and intriguing video links to prepare students to have a deeper understanding of the location and time period in which the story takes place. This is a crucial element when preparing students to read outside their own worldview.

3. **Vocab with Concise Definitions :** Our PowerPoint lesson provides clear and concise definitions for challenging vocabulary words, ensuring that students understand the meaning of each word in context as it appears in the text.

Vocab slides: (commotion, glumly, quivering, reluctantly, rummaged, chanced, slate, nerves,instinct, association, privacy)

4.**Bold Photos:** Visual learners will thrive with our visually appealing slides, featuring bold and relevant images that help reinforce vocabulary concepts and make learning more engaging.

5.**Parts of Speech:** Understanding the parts of speech is crucial for effective language comprehension. Our lesson includes sections dedicated to identifying the part of speech for each vocabulary word.

6. **Grammar Review & Sort** Strengthen language skills with integrated grammar review sections, ensuring students can apply the vocabulary words correctly in their own writing and communication.

7. **Connotation Review & Sort** Dive deeper into vocabulary nuances by exploring the connotations of words, helping students grasp the subtle shades of meaning and usage.

8.**Context Clues Sentences:** Our lesson includes carefully curated sentences that employ context clues, enabling students to decipher word meanings from surrounding text. This fosters independent comprehension skills. These worksheets can be used for practice or assessment.

9.**Quizlet Practice:** Reinforce learning and encourage self-assessment with Quizlet practice sets tailored to the vocabulary words covered in the lesson. This interactive tool allows students to review and quiz themselves.

10**PDF file** 9 organizers, activities, and quizzes

11 **Fun Fact** photos and video links are inserted throughout to bring important elements of the story into context and aid comprehension

DIGITAL USES IN THE CLASSROOM:

· Introduce new story

· Provide backstory to text

· Stimulate group discussion/prediction

· Create predictions about text

· Use as distance learning resource

· Post on webpage for review · Add to electronic notebooks

· Provide test review

· Prompt Writing or Research assignments

· Grammar study / parts of speech

· Discuss Word Connotation

PRINTABLE USES: word walls and interactive notebooks

Please be sure to view the preview and watch the video for detailed images and descriptions of the lesson.

This product is also available in PowerPoint!

Introduce your students to the world of Idiomatic Expressions. They will be intrigued to learn of the history behind these strange sayings. Multiple Common Core Standards emphasize the importance of literary devices and figurative language in the areas of Reading, Writing, and Language.

This digital lesson presents 12 idioms with strong historical connections. The idiom is presented with a historical photo supporting the backstory of the saying. A brief historical explanation is provided along with today's interpretation of the expression.

A QUIZLET LINK is included for review or assessment.

Students find the history behind the idioms quite interesting...

Toot Your Own Horn

White Elephant Gift

Nose to the Grind Stone

Burn Your Bridges Behind You

Bury the Hatchet

Sleep Tight

Hit the Hay

Throw in the Towel

Kick the Bucket

Beat Around the Bush

Barking Up the Wrong Tree

Hold Your Horses

Introduce your students to the world of Idiomatic Expressions. They will be intrigued to learn of the history behind these strange sayings. Multiple Common Core Standards emphasize the importance of literary devices and figurative language in the areas of Reading, Writing, and Language.

This digital lesson presents 12 idioms with strong historical connections. The idiom is presented with a historical photo supporting the backstory of the saying. A brief historical explanation is provided along with today's interpretation of the expression.

A QUIZLET LINK is included for review or assessment.

Students find the history behind the idioms quite interesting...

Toot Your Own Horn

White Elephant Gift

Nose to the Grind Stone

Burn Your Bridges Behind You

Bury the Hatchet

Sleep Tight

Hit the Hay

Throw in the Towel

Kick the Bucket

Beat Around the Bush

Barking Up the Wrong Tree

Hold Your Horses

This resources features the first task of our popular Poetry ESCAPE ROOM. Check out this freebie to get a feel for how our escape rooms operate!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct the first task of our Poetry ESCAPE ROOM in order to get a feel for what our escape rooms are like. The activity involves creative thinking, logic, and collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying (and the number of poems they have analyzed) in the playing of this game!

How does it work?

The ghosts of Walt Whitman, Edgar Allan Poe, Langston Hughes, William Shakespeare, and Maya Angelou have risen from the grave to lock your students inside your classroom. They are upset because they believe that students spend too much time talking about (fill in the blank with whatever is hip with students these days) and not enough time reading and writing poetry. Students cannot escape until they complete 5 poetry-based tasks to show these ghosts of poets past that they do in fact know their poetry. This resource features task 1 of the escape room:

• Match 'Em Up: In this task, students must match up poetic terms and devices with their definitions. Letters intersected by the lines between the terms and definitions will reveal their code.

Product Includes:

• Task Sign
• Task Instructions
• Match 'Em Up Worksheet
• Answer Key

This task is suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal any time during your poetry unit.

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Get the full escape room here: Poetry ESCAPE ROOM

More poetry escape rooms by Language Arts Excellence

⭐ Digital Poetry Escape Room

⭐ Back to School Poetry Escape Room

⭐ Halloween Poetry ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ Thanksgiving Poetry ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ Christmas Poetry ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ Poetry Escape Room Bundle

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Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

Increase critical thinking skills with this Thanksgiving-themed Costa's Levels of Inquiry activity! Students will categorize questions based on Costa’s Level 1, 2, and 3, promoting deeper understanding of Thanksgiving traditions and ELA skills. Perfect for engaging middle and high school students in critical analysis and creative thinking during the holiday season!

What's Included

• 10 Thanksgiving-themed questions for categorizing into Costa's Level of Questioning
• Answer key

Find this in...

✨AVID Bundle

✨Costa Bundle

✨November Early Finisher Packet