Less than $5 Homeschool ELA Test Prep Activities (by date, latest first)

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

A low-prep lesson designed to help learners master the author’s voice in a fun and structured way within the Fiction Genre.

➡️ Why You Will Love

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

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

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

⭐Flexible Format to integrate into any curriculum. 

⭐Differentiated small group instruction cards to help you reach every learner in your classroom. 

➡️ What’s Included

• Detailed Mini-Lesson Plan

• Warm Up

• Anchor Chart

• Real-World Connections

• Interactive Adventure Google Lesson Slides

• Teacher Model Text

• Guided Notes

• Guided Practice with key terms

• Differentiated Small Group Instruction Cards

• Student Activity: Scavenger Hunt

• Exit Ticket

➡️ How to Use Suggestions

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

Your students will love the adventure lesson, variety, and engagement provided in this resource! Bring the Author’s Voice to life with this resource! 

➡️ LET’S CONNECT

Follow ELA Vibes to get updates on new resources!

➡️ Additional Supports

Mini-Lessons

Activity Packs

STAAR Prep

Short and Extended Constructed Responses

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

A low-prep lesson designed to help learners master text structure in a fun and structured way within the Fiction Genre.

➡️ Why You Will Love

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

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

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

⭐Flexible Format to integrate into any curriculum. 

⭐Differentiated small group instruction cards to help you reach every learner in your classroom. 

➡️ What’s Included

• Detailed Mini-Lesson Plan
• Warm Up
• Anchor Chart
• Real-World Connections
• Interactive Adventure Google Lesson Slides
• Teacher Model Text
• Guided Notes
• Guided Practice with key terms
• Differentiated Small Group Instruction Cards
• Student Activity: Cut and Paste
• Exit Ticket

➡️ How to Use Suggestions

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

Your students will love the adventure lesson, variety, and engagement provided in this resource! Bring Text Structure to life with this resource! 

➡️ LET’S CONNECT

Follow ELA Vibes to get updates on new resources!

➡️ Additional Supports

Mini-Lessons

Activity Packs

STAAR Prep

Short and Extended Constructed Responses

Engage 3rd-5th graders with a central idea and key details fiction lesson: bell ringer, guided notes, ELA STAAR practice, activities, anchor chart, model passage, and exit ticket—ideal for intervention, stations, STAAR prep, and independent reading comprehension work!

A low-prep lesson designed to help learners master the main idea and details in a fun and structured way within the Fiction Genre.

➡️ Why You Will Love

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

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

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

⭐Flexible Format to integrate into any curriculum. 

⭐Differentiated small group instruction cards to help you reach every learner in your classroom. 

➡️ What’s Included

• Detailed Mini-Lesson Plan

• Warm Up

• Anchor Chart

• Real-World Connections

• Interactive Adventure Google Lesson Slides

• Teacher Model Text

• Guided Notes

• Guided Practice with key terms

• Differentiated Small Group Instruction Cards

• Student Activity: Scavenger Hunt

• Exit Ticket

➡️ How to Use Suggestions

• Begin with a warm-up to spark curiosity and introduce the day’s focus.

• Teach with the anchor chart, lesson slides, model text, guided practice, and guided doodle notes, encouraging students to make connections.

• Engage students with a story-driven adventure lesson. 

• Provide scaffolded practice using small group instruction and independent activities.

• Wrap up with an exit ticket to assess understanding and inform future lessons.

• Use Google Slides and Adobe to assign or download resources.

Your students will love the adventure lesson, variety, and engagement provided in this resource! Bring Main Idea to life with this resource! 

➡️ LET’S CONNECT

Follow ELA Vibes to get updates on new resources!

➡️ Additional Supports

Mini-Lessons

Activity Packs

STAAR Prep

Short and Extended Constructed Responses

Transform Writing with Engaging Figurative Language Lessons

Boost your students’ writing skills with this comprehensive Figurative Writing Resource Pack, designed for Grades 3-6. Teach similes, metaphors, and personification using vivid presentations, hands-on worksheets, and editable Google Slides/PowerPoint. Perfect for whole-class instruction, small groups, or independent learning, this resource is fully aligned with Common Core, TEKS, and the UK National Curriculum.

Save time with ready-to-use materials and differentiated tasks for all abilities. Featuring step-by-step guidance, interactive activities, and creative writing challenges, this pack helps students craft vivid, descriptive pieces while building confidence and autonomy. Proven effective in classrooms, it delivers an engaging, curriculum-aligned learning experience for teachers and students alike.

What’s Included? 

✏️  Print Materials: Worksheets, Answer keys, PDF of slides

✅✅ Digital Content: Part-Editable Google Slides/PowerPoint Presentation

What’s Inside?

✔️ 20 pg PowerPoint Presentation/Google Slides

✔️ 7 Worksheets

✔️ Student Directions

✔️ Teacher Answer Key

✔️ Teacher Directions, Tips and Differentiation

✔️ Learning Objective

✔️ Success Criteria

✔️ Lesson Route

Perfect for Grades 3-6!

Why You’ll Love This Resource:

✏️ No Prep

✏️ Print and Go

✏️ Cross-Curricular

✏️ Aligned with Common Core, TEKS, and UK National Curriculum.

✏️ Highly Engaging

✏️ Great for whole-class instruction, small groups, or independent work

✏️ Classroom-tested 

When to use this? 

✅ Literacy ELA Lesson (1-2 hour lessons)

✅ Sub Plans

✅ Review

What Do You Need?

✏️ Pencils

✏️ Computer

✏️ Projector for slides (Slides are in PowerPoint format and can be uploaded to Google Drive to open as Google Slides)

Skills Used:

✔️ Identifying figurative language

✔️Creative writing

✔️ Reading comprehension

✔️ Vocabulary development

✔️ Critical thinking

✔️ Independent learning

Curriculum Alignment

This resource meets several educational standards, including:

Common Core State Standards (CCSS):

• RL.4.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases, including figurative language.
• W.4.3: Write narratives with descriptive details and clear event sequences.

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS):

• 110.5 (ELA): Analyze how authors use figurative language to create meaning.
• 110.5(b)(20): Write literary texts using figurative language.

UK National Curriculum (Years 3-6):

• Writing Composition: Create vivid descriptions using figurative language.
• Reading Comprehension: Discuss words/phrases that capture the reader’s imagination.

Bonus Benefits:

✅ Encourages Creativity

✅ Promotes Self-Learning

✅ **✅**Addresses Common Misconceptions

Extra Perks:

• Earn TeachShare Credit: Leave a review to earn credits for future purchases.
• ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ We Strive for 5 Stars! If you have any questions, use the Q&A tab before leaving feedback.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LOVE ♥️…

• Sensory Writing 
• Show, Don't Tell - Slides & Worksheets
• Descriptive Writing Independant Worksheets

Inspire your students to write with flair and confidence. Grab this versatile, high-quality resource today!

In this product, you will find 12 unique worksheets covering all things introduction to nouns. From what is a noun, to common and proper nouns, you will have all the resources you need with just a simple click and print. There are a variety of worksheet types included to keep all students engaged. These are perfect for assessments or small group activities as well as end of class activities. Answer Keys are included as well to make your life even easier!

This is the perfect game for centers or just extra practice. The goal is to get students sorting parts of speech. Say goodbye to boring cutting and pasting exercises! Students will be begging to sort words and have a great SNOWBALL BATTLE! This set even includes ideas for differentiated instruction! You get 8 regular parts of speech cards, 8 differentiated instruction parts of speech cards with definitions, and 18 sheets of snowball words to sort. That is a total of 108 snowball words! Your students will love practicing with this game!

If you enjoyed this activity, try some of my other products:

Switcheroo: The fun and exciting review game for any subject

Christmas Countdown Writing Prompts

Create a Story Picture Prompts

Vivid Word Choice Activities Bundle

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.

What is multigenre writing, and how can you use it in your classroom? This Common Core, across-curriculum, interactive presentation includes: Fact-based/non-fiction or fictional Defining: "Multi" and "Genre" Student examples of multigenre projects Interactive small group activity for introducing multigenre Research and extra resources on multigenres 2 levels of assignments: lower and upper Brainstorming Topics chart Find Your Topic graphic organizer Multigenre list for choosing types of writings Peer Workshopping guide Supplemental Resources Works Cited Ready to use with students, and a great way to re-visit an old topic or to revive research essays, whether using non-fiction or fiction. Can be used to introduce topics or as assessment for unit or research for any discipline.. Multigenre activities are engaging, educational, meaningful, and fun.

What are readability levels, how do you turn on the function in MS Word, and how can knowing the information help student writers? These questions are answered in this interactive presentation that uses screenshots and step-by-step directions to turn on readability and check sentences and passages. Benefits of knowing and using readability levels include: Understanding Audience Understanding Computerized Testing Scoring Understanding and Using Types of Sentences Understanding and Using Syllable Counts Building and Using Higher Level Vocabulary Objectives are: Build vocabulary through synonyms Identify and use sentence clarity Identify and use sentence variety in writing Understand audience and their reading levels Understand computerized essay tests grading Understand syllable counts within words Easy to follow and assessment included! Excellent for anyone about to take a computerized standardized graded essay or who will be focused on addressing and writing to specific target audience grade levels. Great for AP students, flipped classes, GT, homeschool, Pre-Ap, and college level students.

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.

10 hyperbole images for students to engage with! Includes: 10 black and white coloring images 10 hyperboles Definition Directions Example Write Your Own Illustrate Your Own Extra Activity: Decipher classmates' hyperboles Hyperboles included: I had a ton of homework. Her smile brought out the sunshine. I am so hungry I could eat a horse. It is raining cats and dogs. She cried for days. He runs faster than a race car. I was so thirsty I drank an ocean. Grandma seems older than time. He was stronger than an elephant. He would move mountains for her. Meets ELA state guidelines. Fun and engaging! Follow Educator Helper for FREE weekly products at www.bethhammett.blogspot.com

Introducing Super Star Synonyms – the ultimate Synonym and Antonym game that brings fun to literacy centres! Perfect for Years 3-6, this exciting game transports students onto the red carpet as they learn synonyms and antonyms in an engaging and interactive way. Up level those literacy centres!

As students move along the game board, they’ll land on Hollywood stars, pick up star cards with words, and record their synonyms on the included recording sheet. For an added challenge, they can also write down antonyms to further expand their vocabulary skills. That's right, working in synonyms AND antonyms! The goal is to reach the end of the board while mastering key vocabulary concepts!

Whether you're using it in the classroom or for small group activities, Super Star Synonyms is a fantastic resource for reinforcing vocabulary in your literacy centres. This game not only builds synonym and antonym knowledge but also encourages collaborative learning in a fun, Hollywood-inspired setting.

Key Features:

• Hollywood theme with stars, red carpet, and movie-related words
• Includes recording sheets for synonyms and antonyms
• Perfect for Years 3-6 literacy centres
• Fun and engaging way to practice vocabulary skills

Add some Hollywood glamour to your literacy centres with Super Star Synonyms and watch your students shine as vocabulary superstars!

Follow along on the blog Captivating Kids blog

Your students will love this engaging way to practicing inferencing skills with Rod Serling's The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street!
Coming Soon: The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street Text Evidence Task Cards!

What it Contains:

• Set of 10, print & go TEKS/STAAR-aligned Task Cards
• Two Answer Document Variations
  -One Full-Sized Page (8.5 x 11)
  -One Page w/ Half Sheets (5.5 x 8.5)
• Answer Key

These Task Cards are TEKS/STAAR aligned and are perfect for: Teacher Table/ in small group instruction, class station rotations, collaborative groups/partner work, or as a flexible independent formative assessment.

Terms of Use

This resource was created by Amanda Robinson of Mandy in the Middle (March 2022). This product is intended for use by the original purchaser only. Teachers may distribute this product digitally to their students ONLY as long as the site is password protected. (In other words, do not place this product online in a place where it can be freely accessed and downloaded.) If you would like to share this resource with teammates or other teachers, please purchase additional licenses from TeachShare. Thank you so much for respecting the terms of use as they are outlined here.

Working on nouns? Working with collective nouns can be both fun and frustrating at the same time! If your students need extra practice with identifying collective nouns, then this double set of task cards is just what you need! There are 64 task cards included in this product - 2 sets of 32 cards. Set one is multiple choice, set 2 asks students to identify and write the collective noun from the sentence. There are 4 bonus practice pages included!

Time to work on grammar! Are your students learning to identify prepositions and prepositional phrases in sentences? This of ELA grammar task cards for identifying prepositional phrases will do the trick! You get 36 task cards - with a variety of styles of MC questions for working with prepositional phrases - ranging from choosing the correct phrase to finding sentences that use prepositional phrases within a paragraph. You also get 3 bonus worksheets - great for homework, extra practice, independent seatwork, and a tangible paper for a grade! Find more grammar related items here at Sassycat Corner! Buy the Task Card Bundle! More Sentences Task Cards! Identify Complete Subjects and Complete Predicates Writing descriptive sentences Sentence Fragments, Run-ons, and Complete sentences Identify Types of Sentencese If your students enjoyed this activity, feel free to leave feedback! It feeds the educational muses!

Time to work on grammar! Are your students learning to identify prepositions in sentences? This of ELA grammar task cards for identifying will do the trick! You get 36 task cards - with three different styles of MC questions. the first 12 ask you to choose the preposition(s) from a list of words. The next section has students choose the best preposition for the sentence. The final section has students identify which word in the sentence is the preposition. You also get 3 bonus worksheets - great for homework, extra practice, independent seatwork, and a tangible paper for a grade! Find more grammar related items here at Sassycat Corner! Buy the Task Card Bundle! More Sentences Task Cards! Identify Complete Subjects and Complete Predicates Writing descriptive sentences Sentence Fragments, Run-ons, and Complete sentences Identify Types of Sentencese If your students enjoyed this activity, feel free to leave feedback! It feeds the educational muses!

Hoping to deepen your students' knowledge of figurative language? Eager to equip your students with the tools and techniques for analyzing figurative language in Shakespeare's plays?

This FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE STATIONS activity is a fun and effective method for giving students practice at analyzing the most important types of figurative language. Students will develop the skills not only to identify types of figurative language but also to explain how figurative language contributes to the meaning of a literary text!

This stations activity focuses on the 8 types of figurative language that are used most frequently in William Shakespeare's plays: metaphor, simile, metonymy, personification, apostrophe, paradox, oxymoron, and hyperbole. It features over 120 quotations from Shakespeare's best plays. Students will learn about figurative language while gaining exposure to the most profound and thought-provoking lines from the world's greatest playwright!

Here's what you'll find inside this 40-page resource:

• Stations Worksheets (x8): This resource includes a total of 8 worksheets focused on 8 types of figurative language. Each worksheet challenges students to explain the meaning or effect created by the same figure of speech found across 6 quotations from Shakespeare's plays. The quotations include some of the most profound and thought-provoking lines from Shakespeare's best plays: Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Twelfth Night, As You Like It, Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, The Tempest, and more. There are a total of 48 quotations from over 15 plays! (8 pages)

• Answer Keys to Stations Worksheets (x8): The answer keys explain how the figures of speech found across 48 quotations contribute to the meaning of Shakespeare's plays. (8 pages)

• Station Placards (x8): The 8 placards can be folded and placed on the desks that correspond to the 8 stations. The placards add a splash of colorful decoration to this activity. (8 pages)

• Literary Devices Glossary: This 1-page glossary features the 8 types of figurative language that are used most frequently throughout Shakespeare's plays. The glossary includes definitions of the 8 types of figurative language as well as one or two examples of how each figure of speech gets used in one of Shakespeare's plays. Students can use the glossary to study for the quizzes on figurative language. (1 page)

• Quiz on Metaphors & Similes: This quiz focuses only on metaphors and similes; it challenges students to identify the figures of speech used across 15 quotations from Shakespeare's plays. Includes answer key. (2 pages)

• Quiz on 8 Types of Figurative Language (x2): These two quizzes focus on all 8 types of figurative language. The first quiz challenges students to identity the figures of speech used across 25 quotations. The second quiz is similar but features 20 longer quotations; it could be used as a make-up quiz or extra-credit quiz. Includes answer keys. (8 pages)

Here are the types of figurative language featured across the 8 stations:

1. Metaphor

2. Simile

3. Metonymy

4. Personification

5. Apostrophe

6. Paradox

7. Oxymoron

8. Hyperbole

This entire 40-page unit will come to you in two separate formats: a Word doc *and* a PDF. Because the Word doc is editable, you'll be able to customize the materials to suit the skill levels of your students. If you don't have Microsoft Word, you'll still be able to access the entire unit as a PDF — which is easy to navigate and quick to print!

If you have any questions, please don't don't hesitate to get in touch. As a full-time teacher who is currently teaching a year-long Shakespeare elective, I'm eager to do everything I can to ensure that you have an amazing experience with the swan of Avon!

Thank you for stopping by Rigorous Resources!

Happy teaching!

Adam Jernigan, Ph.D.

adamjernigan@gmail.com

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