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Outline of the Five Paragraph Essay - University of Maryland
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): paragraph writing (18), writing (305)
In the Classroom
Follow this exercise together as a class on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have the class create their own essays with this structure as you walk through the example. Peer editing at the end of the lesson the interactive whiteboard is a good reinforcement for this exercise. Ask students to find and highlight the essential elements of the essay in the student example (shared anonymously, of course). Use a consistent color-coding system for each of the elements, so you can ask students to label their own drafts in the same manner.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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IPL: Literary Criticism - U of Michigan; Drexel U
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): literature (208)
In the Classroom
You might choose an author and, using an interactive whiteboard or projector, have students find sources for that author and discuss their own ideas of his work in contrast to what others have said. Together, write a brief essay as an example. As a bonus, you get to show them how to cite the source correctly!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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ESL Reading Lessons - 5 Minute English
Grades
4 to 10tag(s): grammar (138), listening (95), pronunciation (33), reading comprehension (143), short stories (18), vocabulary (247)
In the Classroom
Use this site if you want your students to do additional reading. Project the topic, story, and questions on an interactive whiteboard or projector for group discussion. Have your students make up their own questions to go with the site. Have your students write up a similar subject relevant to their own culture and present it, along with questions to check for comprehension. This is a fabulous site to list on your class website for students to use for at-home practice.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Biography Maker - Jamie McKenzie and the Bellingham Public Schools.
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): questioning (34), writing (305)
In the Classroom
All material at this site is copyrighted, so it must be viewed online. For students who do best with step-by-step instructions, this site is a gem! You might have one group research authors from a particular country while others do artists, musicians, scientists, etc. A class report from each of these groups would do a good job of encapsulating a country or area of the world within any given time period. Teachers seeking independent projects for students who "test out" of a unit can assign this site's step-by-step instructions as a meaningful alternate activity.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips - QDTips
Grades
6 to 12The site includes ads and each podcast starts with a short commercial announcement. The transcript can be accessed online, sometimes with a short accompanying video that illustrates the grammar issue of the day. Grammar Girl tips can be heard as podcasts, which are played through an embedded online audio player. The podcasts can also be downloaded as Mp3 files and played through iTunes, QuickTime Player and RealPlayer installed on a local computer. You can get QuickTime and RealPlayer from the "Teachers First Toolbox page.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): grammar (138)
In the Classroom
Check with your Information Technology Department to make sure the site is unblocked at school. If it is blocked, consider installing the free iTunes, QuickTime Player or RealPlayer on a computer at home and downloading the Mp3 files to play later at school. External speakers connected to the computer will help broadcast the sound throughout your classroom. IMPORTANT NOTE: This site includes tools for blog users to interact with others. Any visitor can comment on the posts and podcasts or participate in Forums. There are also links to other tip blogs on the web page. Check your school policies on students posting comments, etc. to the web and whether they are permitted to do so anonymously and/or with name or initials. Extend the concept of Grammar Girls by having students write and produce their own Grammar Girls style podcasts to explain the grammar demons that haunt their writing.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Scratch - Lifelong Kindergarten Group, MIT Media Lab
Grades
1 to 12Material created can only be viewed within the program. Drawings are not saved as a JPG or pic file. However, a "snapshot" of the screen can be created by using these keys in Mac: apple, shift, and 4 and click/drag to surround the portion to save. In PC use: control/print screen. These snapshots can be uploaded or used as a picture in other applications.
tag(s): animation (58), coding (95), computational thinking (38), critical thinking (153), design (70), drawing (56), problem solving (246), STEM (333)
In the Classroom
Be sure to "play" with this program before you present it to students; or, you could have computer savy students in your class pair up with not so savy students to investigate together. There are many tabs, folders; and icons to investigate. You (or students) could click Create and in the center pane, click on the tutorial. To begin your creation follow the steps in the tutorial. Once you have the idea, choose your own features from the menu on the left, and on the bottom right are two more menus; Look for the cat icon and the backdrops. Different colors, pens, and materials can be used to create the background or an image can be brought in from your computer. Objects in Scratch are called a Sprite and can be added in by choosing the folders below the screen. By clicking the script tab, blocks can be moved in to create motion, add sounds (even record your own message), and change the look of the Sprite. Blocks are linked on to each other to create a series of events. A control block dragged to the top of the blocks control which key starts the event. Advanced options include adding variables and other controls.Be sure to check with your Technology Department, as many districts require authorization to download or install new applications. Projects can be shared online; however an account is required.
Work is saved to the computer itself and only shared online via an account. To avoid problems concerning content made by outsiders or issues with sharing, save the work locally and either create your own gallery on a supervised class website/wiki or set up a single account where you share the "best" projects online via your own log-in. Remind students of the school's Acceptable Use Policy and consequences of violations, if you do allow them to join/share. Images used should adhere to all copyright rules. Use pictures taken in class or those with Creative Commons licensing (and provide attribution!).
Practical tips: Students quickly catch on to this program when allowed to play and easily see what they can make from it. Provide a simple assignment with defined rules/tasks to learn the tools. Younger students may familiarize themselves more easily working with a partner. Have students use a storyboard to write down what they will do/draw/say in their creation in order to keep tabs on what students and their creations.
Possible uses: For the lower grades, Scratch provides unlimited possibilities. Use as a new way to show vocabulary usage. Use the paint program to add information to a picture from your class field trip or science experiment. Use Scratch to help in storytelling a concept in a new and unique way, such as how rocks are formed. In the upper grades, use Scratch to show complex material in a new way. For example, students can draw DNA and show replication, etc. through their drawings and storytelling. Draw the different movements of landforms in plate tectonics. Draw or illustrate solutions to Math problems.
Edge Features:
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Products can be shared by URL
Requires download/installation of software
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Ten Creative Writing Activities - Traci Gradner
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): creative writing (123), writing (305)
In the Classroom
These are great activities to have at the tip of your fingers for days when inspiration just runs dry or you are looking for a new approach to creative writing. You might have each student bring in one thing for your "found treasures" bag and then pull them out at random for a class story. The "jumble story" idea is also great because you can substitute current events or topical characters or settings.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Calibrated Peer Review - University of California
Grades
9 to 12In the Classroom
Use this site to teach students how to do peer editing. Besides allowing them to see their classmates' writings, it has a series of specific questions, called calibrations, which give them ways to make effective comments. After students make comments on others' essays by responding within a "calibration framework," they can read, respond to, and correct their own writings.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Dragon Writing Prompts - Joyce Fetteroll
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): creative writing (123), writing (305), writing prompts (57)
In the Classroom
Assign a small group of students to each kind of prompt category and create a writing contest for each week or month. You can create prizes, publish bulletin boards, or even create your own class online writing magazine wiki with the results.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Literature Board Games - Gary Brooks
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): literature (208)
In the Classroom
Using this idea as a "final" evaluation of text is a good way for students to remember. A more technologically advanced idea is for students to create a PowerPoint game or other multimedia presentation. Have the students share their projects on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Board games are also a more innovative way to have students do individual book reports, particularly if several students in the class are reading the same book.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Meg Cabot - Meggin Cabot
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): writing (305)
In the Classroom
Use this site to encourage daily writing. Help students improve their sentence structure and use grammar painlessly through frequent personal writing. ESL and ELL students will enjoy journal-writing as a safe place to practice without corrections. Some journal-writing can also take place on classroom blogs, though you may want to keep uncorrected student blogs behind passwords until students are comfortable with the more public setting.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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NaNoWriMo's Young Writers' Program - NaNoWriMo.org
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): creative writing (123), novels (32), writing (305)
In the Classroom
Engage your students with the free classroom kits, workbooks, and Common Core-aligned K-12 lesson plans. Teachers can use this challenge and the resources to get their kids writing. It also offers the chance to be published online. Use your interactive whiteboard or projector to get your students started filling in their profiles. Show students that they are to click "yes" whether or not there is a current challenge (they can still get started writing). Then have them click the link for detailed instructions for getting started.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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6+1 Trait Writing Lesson Plans - Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): fluency (31), rubrics (38), six traits of writing (3), writing (305)
In the Classroom
Use this site as a starting point to understand the 6+1 Writing Traits Model or as a refresher on your previous understanding. For more in-depth knowledge, be sure to visit the FAQ section on this site to find answers to many common questions related to implementing and understanding this writing model. As you introduce this writing model to students, share curated examples using the column features of Wakelet, or Padlet. Create a column for each of the seven traits and share highlighted examples of the use of the featured trait. As students create text to share, use the same method to share their work in each category. Ask students to share their work in a writing portfolio created with Seesaw. Include a self-reflection work of writing for students to reflect and share their growth in writing.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Kidlink - Kidlink
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): careers (195), communication (118), cultures (259)
In the Classroom
Students need not have their own email to use this site. Kidlink explains that they are permitted to use the teacher's email address (which allows you to monitor their activities, as well). You might want to use your "extra" email account. Set up accounts for your students to communicate in your world language class or as part of your study of other continents. With younger students, you may want to communicate as a whole-class activity, composing on a projector or interactive whiteboard.If your school policies limit your ability to use such a site, see the FAQ information and ready-to-go presentation explaining Kidlink. Share it with your principal and parents. ALWAYS get written parent permission when sharing student work/ideas online.
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Six Traits of Writing - Education Northwest
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): rubrics (38), six traits of writing (3), writing (305)
In the Classroom
Be sure you mention this site in your blog, class website, and class newsletter for easy explanation of the Six Traits model. Use this free website to help your students prepare for standardized writing tests. Team up with the science or social studies teacher and have students use the Six Trait Writing "across the curriculum" as they write essays or stories for other content areas.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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English literature: Lord of the Flies - BBC
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): literature (208)
In the Classroom
This is a great supplementary site for pre-reading or for reviewing. An especially nice extra is the inclusion of a sample essay question and answer. It sets up the question to be answered in a five-paragraph theme and offers possible topic sentences as an outline for writing that theme. Using the sample on a projector or interactive whiteboard is a good way to help students learn how to structure their own essay answers. Have students share and critique essays on the projector or interactive whiteboard.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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English Literature: Jane Eyre - BBC
Grades
10 to 12tag(s): literature (208)
In the Classroom
A great review before a test, this site is also good for pre-reading activities to build understanding of 18th century times and novels, particularly the views of women. The sample question takes students through a step-by-step writing of an outline for an essay. On a projector or interactive whiteboard, students might write their own collaborative answers to the sample outline and then compare it with the finished model given.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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English literature: Of Mice and Men - BBC
Grades
8 to 10tag(s): novels (32)
In the Classroom
The "sample question" is a great lesson to go over with on an interactive whiteboard or projector in class or have students work through individually or include in student blogs.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Wolf Quest - Minnesota Zoo
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): animal homes (50), animals (261), zoology (18)
In the Classroom
Introduce this free resource on interactive whiteboard or projector. The lesson plans and interactive activity are both perfect tools to drum up enthusiasm in biology class. The Game Info provides excellent descriptors and instructions for using this program. Be sure to check back for updated episodes. Include this website on your teacher web site (and the activities) as one of a set of activities on animals and their habitats to be done in class or outside. Then challenge your students to work together in documenting local animals and habitats in a class wiki or group science fair project.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Thoughtful Learning - Write Source: Writing Topics - Houghton Mifflin Co.
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): blogs (64), essays (18), writing (305), writing prompts (57)
In the Classroom
Have the students choose their own prompt from the list and then share their writing within a small group, with the class, or on their own blogs. Replace paper and pencil and have your younger students create a blog using Seesaw, reviewed here., while older students can use Telegra.ph, reviewed here. With Telegra.ph you just click on an icon to upload images from your computer, add a YouTube or Vimeo, or X (formerly Twitter) links. This blog creator requires no registration. Use the models and anonymous sharing on an interactive whiteboard to create a "safe" way for students to share writing as process and hear how others do it. Take this a step further and enhance student learning by having them use a collaborative writing tool like Google Docs. There is also the option of altering student learning and PUBLISHING student models with Book Creator, reviewed here, or Ourboox, reviewed here, as a motivator. Be sure to get parent permission!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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