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By Beth Hammett
Every April, students can celebrate Tell-a-Story Day, which occurs at the end of the month. This 16 page handout will help students with organizing and telling fact-based stories. Great for building oral communication, evidence/proof, and re-telling memories. Includes: Finding storytelling topics Graphic Organizers for planning stories in chronological order Setting up a storytelling event Designing advertisements/invitations Peer workshopping stories Links to multicultural, professional, international/national storytelling centers, storytelling videos and websites Can be used any time of the year! Students will enjoy sharing stories while learning how to use fact-based information. Fun and educational!
Edutainer Professional Development for Teachers
By Beth Hammett
Do you feel like part educator and part entertainer? Try this 32 slide, training presentation to encourage and empower first-year teachers, to revive veteran teachers, or to help students understand brain based learning. Activities include: Templates for active learning based classroom lectures Lecture vs. Active Learning Active vs. Passive Learning Speech Rates of Teachers Left/Right Brain Quiz Comprehension Postcards Connectors/Icebreakers Multigenre Connector Activitiy Find Someone Who Connector Finding Patterns Learning to Chunk Research Extensive Resources section Fun learning facts Excellent for professional development, implementing active learning strategies, and enhancing active learning libraries. Easy, fun, and educational!
Literary Analysis Writing Checklist
By Beth Hammett
Free checklist of parts of an introductory literary analysis for AP, Pre-AP, G/T, college level writers. Students are asked to locate: Hook--different kinds list Author's name Title of text Summary Area of literary analysis list Thesis, and write down your thesis Makes writing an introduction for a literary analysis easier to understand. Great for ELA test prep! Meets CCSS.
Fact-Based Discussion & Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
15 World War posters with ELA/SS/History writing activities or discussion starters for secondary students. Use as individual assignments or with small/whole group settings. Excellent graphics with 3 thought provoking prompts per each page.Includes: use: Propaganda (Definitions, Activity for defining, and application of) Critical thinking skills Analysis Explanation Illustrating Inferencing Designing Problem Solving Segregation and much more! Excellent for teaching fact-based, textual evidence with inferencing and critical thinking, as well as for standardized testing practice.
Peer Workshopping and Essays (Writing)
By Beth Hammett
What's it take to be a peer workshopper? This quick introduction to peer workshopping will help students understand the process and includes a Peer Workshopping Checklist, as well as an example, to get students started! Use with college prep, homeschool, flipped classrooms, upper level learners, higher ed, and teacher training/professional development programs to introduce what peer workshopping is and how to get started. Excellent prep for writing tests. Follows Common Core and State Assessment Writing guidelines.
Writing a Rough Draft (Grades 9+)
By Beth Hammett
What is a rough draft? How do you find a topic? How do you get started? How does it work in the writing process? All this is more answered as students work through the rough draft process for writing. Includes: "The first draft of anything is shit!" by Ernest Hemingway (Please review before showing this caption/image) Writers compose in different ways Writing process and overview Reflection activity Methods for starting: Chunk writing,Cluster/Map, Free writing, Outline Let's Practice activity Taking a risk with rough drafts Tips: Using your writing toolbox, taking a break between drafts, and Can you read this? Rough draft strategy slide and begin your rough draft Reminder of writing process for peer workshopping Everything needed to help students understand and begin their first rough drafts!
Analyzing Images Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
Do your students need help with analysis? Use these ten graphic organizers with images for analysis practice and writing a thesis. These exercises and graphic organizers help students springboard to analyzing more complex illustrations and essays for future coursework.
This easy to implement, step-by-step analysis guide for individual, small/whole group practice includes:
Full picture slides for whole group discussion and preview
10 Analysis Graphic Organizers with images
One Blank Analysis Graphic Organizer
Analysis categories include: Assumptions/Inferences, Year, Time, Season, Setting, Stereotypes, Characterization, Genre, Emotions, and Others
Writing a Thesis Statement
This step-by-step guide is simple to follow, great for test prep, and helps students uncover the process of analysis.
By Beth Hammett
Are commas alien to your students? Are there not enough or too many commas? This 31 slide presentation uses a color-coded approach combined with peer workshopping and comprehension checks. The mini-lesson presentation addresses and includes: Research slide Extra Resources with practices Comma Comprehension Checks Commas in a List and Series FANBOYS Appositives Directly Speaking to a Person Dependent Clauses Adverbs and Transitions Parenthetical Expressions Adjectives Dates Cities/States Can be used as individual mini-lessons or as review. Provides peer workshopping component and comprehension checks to increase comma skills and usage. Interactive approach is easy to follow and is self-explanatory. Meets Common Core Standards.
End Punctuation Marks and Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
Make end mark punctuation easy to use for students! 13 slide pdf has student examples, peer workshopping activities, tips for writer as reader, reading with emotion, clarity, and meaning, as well as dangling and misplaced modifiers.Includes "Dear Jack" letter as a fun punctuation piece and "That Is" to get students to think about how punctuation affects meaning.Also, comes with Peer Workshopping End Punctuation Mark Check List handout.Great for introducing basic skills for emergent writers or for reviewing basic skills for test prep. Meets CCSS ELA.
By Beth Hammett
An easy-to-follow, 14-page guide for understanding and writing literature analysis. Includes: Individual/Group activities Writing process approach Definitions Purpose Goal Options Terminologies for students to look up and define Steps for analyzing Critical thinking components Literary Prior Knowledge Handout Worksheet for Analyzing Literature Extra Resources (Video and more...) Interactive approach to understanding how to properly begin, write, and complete literary analysis essays. Be sure to build a class model!
Semi-Colons, Colons, Dashes, Hyphens (Writing)
By Beth Hammett
Introduce Semi-Colons, Colons, Dashes, and Hyphens with this 14 slide presentation. Includes: definitions examples practice sentences peer workshopping component comprehension checkpoint & answers extra resources This PowerPoint gives students everything they need to successfully use each of the "Other Punctuation Marks" within their essays! Easy to read and follow with color-coded examples. Can be used for ELL/GT/AP and flipped classrooms. Meets CCSS guidelines.
Commas (Using FANBOYS in Writing)
By Beth Hammett
Simple, to the point 5 slide presentation that walks students through using For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So (FANBOYS) in their writings. Includes: Rules Tips Practice Exercises Peer Workshopping Component Meets Common Core Standards for grammar usage.
By Beth Hammett
Reinforce word origins by having students come up with their own made-up words! Use compound words, foreign words, prefixes/suffixes, shortened words, sound words, rhyming words, etc...for this fun, visual activity. Includes: Directions Definition Example from Classic Poem Student Examples Application Activity Publishing Activities Meets CCSS, improves vocabulary, uses decoding skills, and visualization. Use for individual or group activity.
Publishing How-To Guide (Writing)
By Beth Hammett
A 15 page resource for student publishing of essays and written works includes: Guideline checklist Author Tips Cover Sheet/Query Letter Publishing Tips Where to Send Work: Online, local, regional, national... Books for Publishing Help Blogging Self-Publishing Publishing Checklist to Guide Students through the Process Publishing Summary List (Keep up with correspondence) Can be used individually, small/whole group, with flipped classrooms, homework, assessment of writing processes, for peer workshopping, grammar reinforcements, and as real life writing assignment. Easy to follow and implement in ELA/Journalism classrooms.
Writing: Academic, Creative, & Journalism
By Beth Hammett
Revised to include social media rules along with academic, creative, journalism. Help students categorize essays to determine what kind of guidelines to use. The 10 slide handout/presentation includes: Breakdown of 4 kinds of writing: academic, creative, journalism, and Texting When and How to use specific guidelines Easy Categorizing of essays Comparison of rules Printable Handout of Categories and Rules Activities Peer Workshopping Component Easy to understand and follow, great for standardized assessment strategies, and perfect for upper level/college bound students.
Introductions and Conclusions Writing
By Beth Hammett
An interactive introduction to writing beginnings/endings and conclusions/introductions. The presentation uses a peer workshopping approach to writing beginnings and endings. Includes: Techniques to "hook" readers: Action Description Dialog Emotion Quotation Setting Examples of each Techniques to write successful conclusions. Ambiguous Circular Humor Moral Quote Restate thesis: Examples of all techniques Word Search that includes all terminologies (project and solve as a group or use as individual handouts) Uses peer workshopping and group read-arounds to complete the activites. Easy for students to follow and easy to implement in the classroom.
Inferencing and Journalism Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
Become a news reporter and write your own daily column with these 22 inferencing, journalism writing activities. Newspaper format and great graphics are easy for students to work with. Uses writing process and peer workshopping strategies. Comes with two blank templates for creative fun and one lined page for extra writing space. Includes optional media and technology projects for differentiated classrooms. Excellent for use with relationship words, time order, fact vs. opinion, and more...Meets CCSS.
By Beth Hammett
Connect fact based, real life writing to process/patterned writing by having students "Write an Award Winning Business Letter". The 16 slide presentation includes: Parts of a business letter: date, inside address, greeting/salutation, body, closing, signature line Examples of 6 parts Checklist Extra resources Easy to follow and can be used with individuals,small or whole groups. Easily guides students through the process of writing business letters. Be sure to send letters once they are finished!
Spelling Confused Words A-I Game and Puzzles with Activities
By Beth Hammett
15 Commonly Confused Words A-I with engaging activities for students to learn. Includes:
A-I game with fill-in-the-blank, definitions, make your own
sentences/slides (individual/groups & competitive play)
2 Crossword puzzles with Commonly Confused Words
2 Word Searches with Commonly Confused Words
All answer sheets included
Directions and Suggestions with Extensions
Words used are:
1. accept except
2. aloud allowed
3. bare bear4. brake break
5. coarse course6. council counsel
7. desert dessert
8. dose doze
9. envelope envelop
10. forbear forebear
11. grisly grizzly
12. glance glimpse
13. hair hare
14. hole whole
15. ingenious ingenuous
Students will have fun learning these Commonly Confused Words.
Teaching Traditional vs. Contemporary Professional Development
By Beth Hammett
Student success becomes easier when teachers understand and use contemporary teaching methods..Evaluate the two styles and help students become participants in the learning process. This 19 page resource/presentation is complete with: Individual/group activities Holistic Learning Theory/pedagogy How students are taught vs. how they learn Student example Lots of resources Activities that reflect on learning and building skills Transactional Theory by Rosenblatt with article link Cognitive Process Extra Resources Great for parents who want to understand and apply teaching styles to student success, as well as for new teacher certification courses/programs, or review with veteran teachers to reinforce active learning strategies. Includes activities for active learning engagment.