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Guided Reading Lesson Plan & Activities Grades KG-12 (13-Book Bundle)
By Bright Classroom Ideas Marketplace
Guided Reading is a research-based instruction process whereby the teacher works with small grouping of students being equal in a particular reading achievement level. The teacher provides for each reader's development of effective reading competencies. However different than in the earlier days of reading groups, small and temporary groups are flexible and dynamic. The observance and evaluation of the progress of readers are done by teachers on a systematic basis. Thus, grouping and regrouping students is based on the strengths of students and the intense changing needs throughout their reading development.
In the 1960s in New Zealand, Guided Reading was developed. It was enhanced over the years after it arrived in the United States thanks to educators like Gay Su Pinnell and Lesley Fountas. In 1996, Fountas & Pinnell published their enormously influential book, Guided Reading: Good First Teaching for All Children (Heinemann). This book changed how reading was taught, and it is still taught today to over a million teachers worldwide. The aim of Guided Reading lessons is to develop effective readers.
A set of 13 books is bundled together with all 13 worksheets of the Guided Reading series for grades KG-12. There are lesson plans and different activities for every grade, with the answers in the end section of the worksheet.
Flying Lessons and Other Stories BUNDLE OF LESSONS FOR ALL STORIES + BONUS
By Ms. J's ELA
This bundle includes lessons for all stories in the book Flying Lessons and Other Stories edited by Ellen Oh. The stories are not included in this resource. Lessons are focused on the following stories:
- How to Transform an Everyday, Ordinary Hoop Court into a Place of Higher Learning and You at the Podium by Matt De La Peña
- The Difficult Path by Grace Lin
- Sol Painting, Inc. by Meg Medina
- Secret Samantha by Tim Federle
- The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn by Kelly J. Baptist
- Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains by Tim Tingle
- Main Street by Jacqueline Woodson
- Flying Lessons by Soman Chainani
- Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents by Kwame Alexander
- Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push by Walter Dean Myers
Each lesson includes WORKSHEETS and a PRESENTATION. Worksheets come in color and b/w. Presentations include answer keys.
Each lesson contains:
- Pre-reading journal prompt
- Story vocabulary (except Main Street)
- Tiered reading questions
- Questions focused on one particular ELA standard
- Answer keys
BONUS ESSAY WRITING PROMPTS ARE INCLUDED!
If you teach 90 minute block classes, you would likely get through one lesson per day. If you teach 50 minute classes like I do, each lesson could take two days. This bundle could last from 2 weeks to 4 weeks depending on your schedule.
Back to School Poetry Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our Back to School Poetry Escape Room.
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! Now, you can facilitate our popular Back to School Poetry Escape Room at home for distance learning or in the classroom with this meticulously-crafted resource. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they are learning about poetry while trying to escape!
How does it work?
The ghosts of Emily Dickinson, 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.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
This escape room is suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal at the beginning of the school year or any time during your poetry unit without modification. Students will need to know definitions of poetic devices and terms in order to complete the activity. Some of the terms covered: stanza, enjambment, simile, oxymoron, alliteration, rhyme scheme, personification, tone, sonnet, haiku, limerick, acrostic...
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Valentine's Day ELA Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our highly popular Valentine's Day ELA Escape Rooms!
There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our Valentine's Day ELA Escape Room in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing with these activities!
How does it work?
Your students are stuck in your [digital] classroom on Valentine's Day and cannot leave until they solve 5 challenging Language Arts skills-based tasks about the holiday of love!
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
*Note that this is the digital version of the Valentine's Day Escape Room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*
Suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal during the month of February.
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Also, check out more great Valentine's Day products by Language Arts Excellence:
⭐ Valentine's Day "Love Talk" Lesson Plan
⭐ Valentine's Day Collaborative Writing Activity
⭐ Valentine's Day Figurative Language Practice
⭐ Valentine's Day Love Song Figurative Language BUNDLE
⭐ Valentine's Day Mad Libs
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Can't get enough escape rooms? Check out more by Language Arts Excellence here:
⭐ Halloween ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Thanksgiving ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Christmas ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ New Year's ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ St. Patrick's Day ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Easter ESCAPE ROOM
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Cask of Amontillado Activity Bundle
By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of revenge, The Cask of Amontillado. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!
Included in this Bundle:
The Cask of Amontillado Literature Guide: This 25-page literature guide features a Common-Core aligned mini-unit for the story. It provides basis for comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, and reader response for The Cask of Amontillado and encourages students to think critically about Poe's use of irony, foreshadowing, literary elements, and symbolism. A full answer key is provided along with one bonus student-tested lesson plan. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of and appreciation for one of the most horrifying tales in American literature.
The Cask of Amontillado ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Cask of Amontillado. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Because this is a skills-based escape room, it is the perfect way to review the story for the final quiz or test. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
The Cask of Amontillado Socratic Seminar: This resource features lesson plans and materials to conduct a formal set of Socratic Seminars for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of insult and revenge. Socratic Seminars (or "Fish Bowl" Conversations as referred to in this resource) are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding the short story, The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe... and no preparation is required by you at all.
The Cask of Amontillado Family Crest Activity (also included within Literature Guide): This product features a thoughtful and engaging supplemental activity for the story. In this mini-project that can be done in class or as homework, students will closely examine Montresor's family crest (or is it!?), then create their own symbolic family crest using meticulous instructions and the template provided. They will also need to thoroughly explain what they have included on their family crest. A detailed lesson plan is included for use on the following day that allows students to showcase and explain their family crests using an imaginative teaching method. This is a great activity to get your students to think symbolically and to reflect upon the ideals of their own families. Your students will thank you for offering such a thoughtful activity to go along with their reading of The Cask of Amontillado!
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By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of all of our best-selling lesson plans, materials, and activities for Veronica Roth's best-selling dystopian novel, Divergent. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the novel's themes, characters, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. You will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words in this bundle; instead you will find materials that will bring the novel to life!
Included in this Bundle:
⭐ Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint & Crossword
This resource features an engaging, interactive, editable PowerPoint Presentation for introducing or reviewing Dystopian Fiction to your students! The PowerPoint Presentation runs through an entire lesson from warm-up to explanation, application, and summarizer. Also included are 2 pages of "guided notes" so that you may differentiate your lecture for all levels of students. Recently, a fun dystopia crossword puzzle has been added to help reinforce knowledge of the lesson. Since utopias and dystopias are intrinsically motivating for students, this lesson is always a fun one and gets students excited about the upcoming unit on Divergent.
⭐ Divergent "Silent Conversation" Quote Pass Activity
This product features a thoughtful and engaging activity for use during your study of Divergent. Centering around 5 different provocative passages from the book, this lesson provides your students with a chance to think, reflect, and respond to their peers without ever saying a word. This creative approach is a great way to differentiate instruction among your students and allows even your most quiet students to shine. I am confident that this no-prep lesson will become a must-do activity within your unit on Divergent!
⭐ Tattoos of Divergent Character Symbolism Lesson Plan
This powerpoint explores the symbolism behind the character's tattoos. It is a fantastic opening mini-lesson to an activity in which students choose their own "symbolic" tattoos. My students LOVE this activity - just be prepared to share what symbolic tattoo you would get - they WILL ask!
⭐ Divergent Faction Acrostic Poem Assignment
This product contains an assignment for students to create their own acrostic poem for their favorite faction from Divergent. This is the perfect assignment to give after conducting a mock ceremony in your classroom.
⭐ Divergent Fear Landscape Assignment
This resource contains two separate assignments for creating a fear landscape so that you may differentiate among your figurative and literal thinkers. The first is more appropriate for students who can think symbolically (typically end of eighth grade and above) while the second is better suited for your literal thinkers (sixth-seventh grade). No matter which assignment you give, this is an engaging project that will urge students to consider their deepest fears and connect with Tris and her Dauntless friends in Divergent.
⭐ Divergent Mock Choosing Ceremony
This product contains everything you need to conduct your very own true-to-the-book Choosing Ceremony for Divergent in your classroom! This is one of my favorite activities I do with my students all year as I truly get insight into who they are and what they believe. The Choosing Ceremony will be an emotional challenge for some but very well-worth it!
⭐ Divergent Worksheet Bundle
This product includes a crossword puzzle, faction knowledge worksheets, a Freytag's Pyramid worksheet for entire novel, character review worksheet, and full answer keys.
⭐ Divergent Socratic Seminar Lesson Plan and Materials
Socratic Seminars are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class text. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you. This packet includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding the novel.
⭐ Divergent Final Project - Long Lost Sixth Faction
This project instructs students to create their own faction. They must create everything from faction name, symbol, jobs, and manifesto to a propaganda poster, initiation process and more! This comprehensive project takes students about 1 week to complete. Because it is such an incredibly engaging activity, it truly runs itself and is the perfect way to conclude your study of Divergent.
⭐ Divergent Unit Test
This comprehensive test includes 46 well-written questions: character matching, plot-level multiple choice, faction knowledge chart, vocabulary, and short answer along with full answer key.
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Thanksgiving ELA Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our escape rooms to review ELA skills on Thanksgiving!
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. Now, you can facilitate our popular Thanksgiving ELA Escape Room in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of these games!
How does it work?
Your students are stuck in your classroom and cannot leave for Thanksgiving break until they solve 5 challenging Language Arts skills-based tasks about Thanksgiving!
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
*Note that this is the digital version of the Halloween Escape Room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*
Suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal during the month of November.
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End of Year ELA Escape Room Bundle
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our End of Year ELA Escape Room!
There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our End of Year ELA Escape Room in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing with these activities!
How does it work?
Your students must escape your digital classroom by solving 5 different Language Arts skills-based puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.
Digital Resource Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Digital Student Workbook
- Digital Teacher Answer Keys
Paper Version Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklet
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity
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Can't get enough escape rooms? Check out more themed escapes by Language Arts Excellence here:
⭐ Spring Break ELA Escape Room
⭐ Back to School ELA ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Halloween ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Thanksgiving ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Christmas ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ New Year's ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Valentine's Day ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ St. Patrick's Day ESCAPE ROOM
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⭐⭐⭐For the escape room enthusiasts out there, you can now build your own bundle at 20% off the cover price of 3 or more escape rooms! Click the link to check out all of the escape rooms Language Arts Excellence has to offer: Build Your Own Escape Room BUNDLE⭐⭐⭐
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The Pit & the Pendulum Escape Room Bundle - In-Class and Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our Pit & the Pendulum Escape Rooms!
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. Now, you can facilitate our popular Pit & the Pendulum Escape Rooms in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours run smoothly from start to finish. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they've learned about the short story.
How does it work?
In this escape room, students will try to escape out of the Inquisitor's dungeon of gloom and doom by solving 5 different puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklet
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Visual "Keys"
- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity
- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity
Digital (Paperless) Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and worksheets
- Digital Student Answer Booklet
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
*Note that this is the digital version of the escape room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*
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By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of exciting presentations, lesson plans, and materials to supplement your unit on dystopian literature. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement with any dystopian short story or novel. In this bundle, you will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words; instead you will find material that will bring dystopias to life (well not literally!) in your classroom.
Included in this bundle:
⭐ Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint: This resource features an engaging, interactive, editable PowerPoint Presentation for introducing or reviewing Dystopian Fiction to your students! PowerPoint Presentation runs through an entire lesson from warm-up to explanation, application, and summarizer. Also included are 2 pages of "guided notes" so that you may differentiate your lecture for all levels of students. Since utopias and dystopias are intrinsically motivating for students, this lesson is always a fun one and gets students excited about the upcoming unit on whatever dystopian novel or short story you'll be reading!
⭐ Escape from Dystopia ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Dystopia Escape Room. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
⭐ Dystopian Literature Socratic Seminar: This resource features everything you need in order to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom for any dystopian short story or novel. It is the PERFECT addition to any dystopia unit for middle or high school students! Socratic Seminars are high-order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you!
⭐ Dystopia Quote Posters: Make your classroom pop with this set of 25 posters featuring provocative quotes about dystopia. Each 7.5 x 7.5 (square) PDF poster contains a quote either about dystopias or from dystopian literature imposed over a stunning photograph to spruce up your ELA classroom during your dystopian unit. The square format makes for an eye-catching arrangement on your wall or bulletin board and serves as a great conversation starter. I suggest laminating the posters so that you can use them year after year!
Purchasing this bundle saves more than 20% off the cost of the resources for your unit on dystopia.
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By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's famous poem of a man spiraling into madness, "The Raven." Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the poem's themes, vocabulary, poetic devices, and figurative language. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides a week's worth of material to bring the poem to life!
Included in this Bundle:
The Raven Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for use while reading Edgar Allan Poe's arguably most famous work, "The Raven." The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition and encourages students to think critically about plot structure, literary elements, and figurative language within the poem. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged as they contemplate the meaning of nevermore.
The Raven Socratic Seminar Lesson & Materials (also included within Literature Guide): Socratic Seminars are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class text. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, I have done the work for you! This packet includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding "The Raven."
The Raven ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for "The Raven." Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. It is the perfect activity for Halloween or any day you want to shake it up with your students without sacrificing learning. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
The Raven Figurative Language Challenge: This resource includes a meticulously-detailed lesson plan using warm-up, explanation, application, and synthesis, and a one-of-a-kind game that will get your students excited about identifying the copious amount of figurative language that pervades the poem. This is the perfect lesson plan for a Friday, on Halloween, or any time you need to amp up the energy in your classroom without sacrificing learning... and of course, it is Common Core aligned!
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Emergency ELA Lesson Plan BUNDLE
By Language Arts Excellence
Why is it that calling out sick can actually mean more work as you scramble to come up with a plan for your substitute teacher?
This product features a bundle of 6 (mostly) print & go emergency lesson plans that are ideal for days prior to and returning from vacations, between units, emergency sub plans, or simply those days when you just "can't." (And let's face it, we've all been there!)
Each lesson plan maintains a high standard for student learning and engagement with minimal preparation on your end. Plans are varied yet cohesive and allow for differentiation within your classroom. It is recommended that you read through each lesson plan prior to the start of class to make sure that you have all materials ready as photocopying and in some cases moderate set-up is required. While plans work well for substitutes, you may find that they are so much fun that you will want to experience them with your students yourself!
Purchasing these resources as a bundle saves 20% off the cover price!
Products included in this bundle:
⭐ "Still I Rise" (Angelou) Lesson Plan & Materials -- A best-selling product!
This lesson plan on Angelou's poem can be used in a variety of ways throughout the school year. For instance, the lesson is the perfect jumpstart for your unit on slavery, Civil Rights, poetry, or Women's Rights in America. It can also be used as a stand-alone lesson to get your students to reflect upon and discuss overcoming their own personal obstacles. Given the theme of the poem, the lesson even acts as a great medium for discussing how to to rise above bullying in a society where bullying is sadly so prevalent. These meticulously laid-out materials and lesson plan will have your students thinking, speaking, reading, and writing all in one class period and interacting deeply with one of the most beautiful and resounding works of American poetry.
⭐ We Didn't Start the Fire Activity
This step-by-step two-day lesson plan encourages students to consider what defines their generation and then create their own lyrics to Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire." Every year, this lesson has been a huge hit with my students especially on the last two days of school. Your students will appreciate your taking the time to allow them to step back and reflect upon their world. You will love it because no preparation is needed at all for this very memorable activity!
⭐Shakespeare's "Death Lines" Activity
In this full-length lesson plan, students will closely examine the final lines of Shakespearean characters before their deaths (if you know Shakespeare, there are quite a few!). Following a mini-lesson on the importance of these final words, students will take part in the classic game, Mafia, with a unique, Shakespearean twist. I invented the take on this game several years ago and it has become one of my students' and my favorite days of the whole school year. There is truly nothing like seeing students having a great time while studying Shakespeare. I am confident that your students will love it too!
⭐"Literature Talk" Lesson Plan
This product features an engaging "Literature Talk" activity that will have your students thinking, writing, speaking, and moving all in one class period. In this activity, they must choose between 6 different quotes about books and articulate why the quote aligns with their own perspective. They will have a chance to discuss their opinions in small groups and as part of a full class discussion. The full-length lesson plan can literally be used any day of the school year and is sure to spark thoughtful discussion among your students.
⭐Collaborative Writing Activity
"Collaborative Story Time" is a communal story-telling activity in which students practice using Freytag's Pyramid plot structure in their own narrative writing. In this activity, each student begins a story inspired by a unique evocative photograph. They are prompted to write the exposition of the tale by introducing the setting and main characters. After the allotted amount of time, the story is then passed to another student who is prompted to write the inciting incident or conflict and begin to detail the rising action. The paper is passed from student to student twice more until the story is resolved. When the stories are finished, the worksheet is returned to the original student who can then make edits and is responsible for producing a final draft.
⭐Poe's Annabel Lee Poetry/Song Pairing
Who in the world knows more about love and loss than Edgar Allan Poe? This resource features a full-length lesson plan and accompanying materials for a song/poem pairing of "Annabel Lee" by Edgar Allan Poe and popular song, "Sad Beautiful Tragic." Lesson plan is Common Core aligned and centers around rhyme scheme, repetition, figurative language, and theme. This student-tested activity is the perfect addition for any unit on Edgar Allan Poe and is guaranteed to enlighten your students on the timelessness of Poe's poetry in an engaging and contemporary way.
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Shakespeare Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our Shakespeare Escape Room.
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! Now, you can facilitate our popular Shakespeare Escape Room at home for distance learning or in the classroom with this meticulously-crafted resource. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they are learning about the Bard while trying to escape!
How does it work?
In order to escape from Elizabethan England and return to the present day, your students must escape your classroom by solving 6 different puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 6 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 6 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
**Please be aware that both escape rooms are designed for use with internet access. The purpose of the escape rooms are to learn about Shakespeare, his plays, and the Globe Theater and therefore many aspects will not be common knowledge. It is therefore highly recommended that computers or tablets are available for student use.**
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Poetry Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our Poetry Escape Room.
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! Now, you can facilitate our popular Poetry Escape Room at home for distance learning or in the classroom with this meticulously-crafted resource. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they are learning about poetry while trying to escape!
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 cool with students these days... probably making TikToks) 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.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
This escape room is suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal any time during your poetry unit. Students will need to know definitions of poetic devices and terms in order to complete the activity. Some of the terms covered: alliteration, imagery, free verse, internal rhyme, tone, mood, stanza, stress, onomatopoeia, allusion, hyperbole, syntax, extended metaphor, haiku, oxymoron....
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Lamb to the Slaughter Activity Bundle
By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Roald Dahl's ironic tale of an enraged housewife, Lamb to the Slaughter. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!
Included in this Bundle:
⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for the study of the story. The numerous activities provide an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about literary elements, theme, and a great emphasis on irony. A social media activity will encourage your students to bring the story to modern day and a formal open response question is included to ensure deep thinking and close reading of the text. Of course, a full answer key is provided for all lessons and worksheets. The wide range of activities in this literature guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of this cheeky tale.
⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Escape Room: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game.
⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Anticipation Guide & Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features an anticipation guide and a meticulously-explained lesson plan that I believe is the absolute best way to approach a new story. Using a non-intimidating method called "Numbered Heads", this activity will get your students thinking, writing, conversing, and reporting about themes you will be encountering during your study of Lamb to the Slaughter and your overall short story unit. I am confident that your students will enjoy this thoughtful, engaging activity and beg you to begin reading this creepy yet cheeky tale.
⭐ BONUS {FREE} FILE: Lamb to the Slaughter & The Black Cat Compare Contrast Essay: For this assignment, students will need to think critically and specifically about the similarities and differences between the two famous stories of marital strife taken to the extreme. A comprehensive chart is provided to prompt students to take a close look at both tales and to think beyond the obvious (like the fact that they are written by different authors) and consider the deeper similarities and differences (plot structure, mental state of the narrators, and elements of suspense, etc.) between them. These thoughtfully-constructed materials will help students develop exemplary compare/contrast essays that they can be proud of!
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Halloween ELA Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our escape rooms to review ELA skills on Halloween!
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. Now, you can facilitate our popular Halloween ELA Escape Room in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons on a sugar-filled holiday, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of these games!
How does it work?
Your students must work to escape the haunted house by solving 5 different skills-based puzzles, discovering hidden messages, and finding clues along the way.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklets (small and large options)
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
*Note that this is the digital version of the Halloween Escape Room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*
Suitable for middle and high school students and is ideal during the month of October or any time you want to give your students a fright!
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By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of four exciting lesson plans, activities, and classroom decor for your unit on the hero's journey. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. You will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words in this bundle; instead you will find materials that will allow your students to understand and connect with the hero's journey on a deeper level.
⭐ Hero's Journey Anticipation Lesson Plan:
This product features an engaging introductory lesson plan that will have your students thinking, writing, speaking, and moving on the first day of your hero's journey unit. In this activity, they must choose between 6 different quotes by famous figures about what makes a hero, articulate why the quote aligns with their own perspective, then share their findings with the rest of the class in a fun, non-intimidating way.
⭐ Hero's Journey Socratic Seminar:
This resource features everything you need in order to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom for any novel that follows the model of the hero's journey. Socratic Seminars are high-order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. They are also a great way for students to work together and build upon one another's ideas without the assistance of a teacher. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you and you will have several days of student-led learning during your unit on the hero's journey!
⭐ Hero's Journey ESCAPE ROOM:
Though your students have been learning about the 12 stages, 8 archetypes, and countless examples of the hero's journey through literature and film, it is time for them to become heroes themselves by escaping your classroom! In order to do this, they must work in small teams to solve 5 different puzzles related to the hero's journey, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.
⭐ Hero's Journey Quote Posters:
Make your classroom pop with this set of 25 posters featuring provocative quotes about the hero's journey. Each 7.5 x 7.5 (square) PDF poster contains a quote about heroes imposed over a stunning photograph to spruce up your ELA classroom during your unit on the hero's journey. The square format makes for an eye-catching arrangement on your wall or bulletin board and serves as a great conversation starter. I suggest laminating the posters so that you can use them year after year!
Purchasing this bundle saves more than 20% off the cost of the four resources for your hero's journey unit.
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Also, check out these great products for your unit on the hero's journey by Language Arts Excellence:
⭐ The Alchemist
⭐ Divergent
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The Lottery Escape Room Bundle - In-Class and Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our The Lottery Escape Rooms!
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. Now, you can facilitate our popular The Lottery Escape Rooms in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours run smoothly from start to finish. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they've learned about the short story.
How does it work?
In this escape room, students will try to escape the picturesque American town with a dark secret by solving 5 different skills-based puzzles, deciphering an encrypted message, and finding clues along the way.
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklet
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity
- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity
Digital (Paperless) Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and worksheets
- Digital Student Answer Booklet
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
*Note that this is the digital version of the escape room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*
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By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's gruesome tale, The Tell-Tale Heart. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides more than a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!
Included in this Bundle:
The Black Cat Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for use while reading Edgar Allan Poe's creepy classic tale, The Black Cat. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about plot structure, literary elements, figurative language, and the superstitions within the story. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of one of the most highly regarded tales of American literature.
The Black Cat Socratic Seminar: A Socratic Seminar (or a "Fish Bowl" Conversation as I like to call them with my students) is a higher order way of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource was created to include everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe... with very little preparation required on your end.
The Black Cat ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. It is the perfect activity for Halloween or any day you want to shake it up with your students without sacrificing learning. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
Unreliable Narrator of The Black Cat Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features a full-length lesson plan and accompanying materials that asks students to delve into the crazed mind of the narrator of Poe's The Black Cat. Through an engaging "True/Untrue Storytelling" activity, precise mini-lecture on the unreliable narrator, guiding questions, and follow-up assignment, your students will be able to understand the sometimes daunting concept of the unreliable narrator and discuss how a story is affected when told through the eyes of one. This lesson plan opens up a new world for students as they realize that many of the books, movies, and tv shows that they have read or seen in the past may have been influenced by an unreliable narrator. Thus, not only is this lesson important, it is intrinsically fascinating to students and the "oohs" and "aha" moments that tend to arise from the discussion make it a blast to teach! I am confident that you and your students will love this lesson as much as mine have for years.
**BONUS FILE: Intro to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint: This product features a highly-engaging introductory PowerPoint Presentation for the Father of Horror himself, Edgar Allan Poe. A unit of study on Poe is not complete without learning the gory and heartbreaking details of his life and what made him into the master poet and writer whom we continue to marvel at today. This 20-slide powerpoint runs through his tragic family life and childhood, relationships, early occupations (before he was the Poe that you know), synopses of some of his most famous works, death theories, and current pop culture references. It concludes with a 10 question quiz to see how well students listened... and trust me, they will be hanging on your every word! This powerpoint encourages class participation, is fully editable to suit your class' needs, and lasts about 30-40 minutes to run through. I suggest presenting this on the very first day of your unit on Edgar Allan Poe. Enjoy and let the horror begin!
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Spring Break ELA Escape Room Bundle - In Class & Digital
By Language Arts Excellence
This bundle includes the in-class and digital versions of our Spring Break ELA Escape Room!
There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our Spring Break ELA Escape Room in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing with these activities!
How does it work?
Your students are trapped in your classroom and cannot leave for spring break until they solve 5 Language Arts skills-based tasks about spring!
In-Class Escape Room Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Sheet
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity
Digital Escape Room Includes:
- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive
- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and supplementary materials
- Digital Student Worksheets
- Digital Teacher Answer Key
These escape rooms are suitable for middle and high school students and are ideal for any day from March through June as the sun begins to shine a little brighter and the crocuses peep their heads out from the soil.
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Can't get enough escape rooms? Check out more themed escapes by Language Arts Excellence here:
⭐ End of Year ELA ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Halloween ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Thanksgiving ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Christmas ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ New Year's ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Valentine's Day ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ St. Patrick's Day ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Back to School ELA ESCAPE ROOM
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