This editable PowerPoint gives 20 slides of facts about hedgehogs. There are no graphics, but plenty of information. Feel free to add your own touches! The slides are attractive with borders, but more importantly, chock-full of facts about the East African Hedgehog. I have included all of the facts on a Word document for your convenience. Thanks!

This 26- slide PowerPoint gives great background biographical information of America's beloved writer, O. Henry. Paired with a worksheet, you may use as an example of any historical figure for a research project. This resource can serve as a great introduction for any class studying O. Henry's short stories. The accompanying worksheet will assure students follow along with the PowerPoint presentation. The answer key is included. This is perfect to use as an example of a finished project- when students are assigned to make a PowerPoint on a historical figure.

This lesson includes an EATS lesson plan, 3 worksheets, answer keys, discussion questions, and a PowerPoint for the classic short story that includes O. Henry's trademark twist! Focusing on CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.3 and 6.5, students will describe how the main character changes as the plot moves toward a resolution & analyze how a particular sentence contributes to the development of the plot. (Similar seventh-grade and eighth-grade standards are provided. The PowerPoint for "Retrieved Reformation" by O. Henry guides the class in activating activities, defining vocabulary, discussing key details, and answering the essential question. A sample answer to the E. Q. is provided for the class to critique (and use as a model for students to answer the E.Q. at the end of the lesson!). This is a great short story for students to enjoy! Thank you!

This is a complete lesson for the short story "What Do Fish Have To Do With Anything?" by Avi. No prep! This product includes: ---Lesson Plan in EATS format including an activating strategy, teaching strategies, and more. ---Five printable worksheets, which include comprehension questions, exit ticket, and more… ---Answer Keys ---Powerpoint, which includes Essential Questions, PALS reading strategy, Essential Question Sample Answer, and more… This lesson is Common Core aligned to : CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.3 Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution. Thank you!

This is a complete lesson for the short story "After 20 Years" by O. Henry. No prep! This product includes: ---Lesson Plan in EATS format including an activating strategy, teaching strategies, and more. The focus includes uncovering the theme ---Three printable worksheets, which include comprehension questions, exit ticket, and more… ---Answer Keys ---Powerpoint, which includes Essential Questions, PALS reading strategy, Essential Question Sample Answer, and more… -- Bonus Freebie PowerPoint of O. Henry. (20 slides of Biographical information) Included for Differentiation: A Writing Assignment (this is not an in-depth writing assignment, just a suggested culminating activity that is aligned with the Writing Common Core Standards This lesson is Common Core aligned to : CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.1 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text. Thank you!

High School Exit Tickets (a.k.a. Exit Slips) are based on Common Core Standards and can be used with any selection, any day! Just print, cut and distribute! You can use each of the twenty tickets with EACH of the selections you assign. Although these are titled “Exit Tickets,” they can be used as Activating strategies, homework slips, prompts for extemporaneous speeches, task cards… The uses are MANY. I have found these cards to be very successful with collaborative pairs as an informal assessment. Each of the 20 printable pages has four Exit Tickets. If you need 40 exit tickets, make 10 copies. Simply print and cut along the lines. You may choose to laminate and keep them in a Ziplock bag to use more than once. (Since they work with any selection, students will benefit from repeated practice!) Two Exit Tickets that are included in this product: “How did one character develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot? (based on CCSS) If the main character transported to the past (or the future), how well would s/he endure? (based on Bloom’s Taxonomy) Each card will be the same size (easy collecting and stacking!). A box at the bottom of each card is provided for the score (easy grading!). Thank you! Exit Slips are the students' tickets to get out of the door!

Middle School Exit Slips are based on Common Core Literature Standards and can be used with any selection, any day! Just print, cut, and distribute! CCSS Aligned You can use each of the twenty-one tickets several times throughout the year with different literature selections. Although these are titled “Exit Tickets,” they can be used as activating strategies, homework slips, prompts for extemporaneous speeches, task cards… The uses are MANY. I have found these cards to be very successful with collaborative pairs as an informal assessment. Each of the 21 printable pages has four Exit Tickets. If you need 40 exit tickets, simply make 10 copies. Print, then cut along the lines. You may choose to laminate and keep them in a Ziplock bag to use more than once. (Since they work with any selection, students will benefit from repeated practice!) Two Exit Tickets that are included in this product: *How did the main character change during the story? (based on CCSS) *How might the story change if the ending was different? (based on Bloom’s Taxonomy) Each card will be the same size (easy collecting and stacking!). A box at the bottom of each card is provided for the score (easy grading!). I have also added 14 Bonus Exit Ticket ideas (common core aligned) that are more specific- PLUS a blank Exit Ticket page. Write in your own idea! These bonus tickets might not work well with every story, but when you find one that works for your selection, simply: cut, paste, and print! Exit Slips are the tickets to get out of the door. They help students process what they've learned by allowing them to reflect and summarize. Thank you!

This graphic organizer will help students figure out the difference among Possessive, Plural, and Plural-possessive nouns. What's the difference? This product answers just that. Worth its weight in gold for my students! For some reason, this was a difficult concept. Even ADULTS confuse plurals and possessives. Think about how many Christmas cards you get from the Smith's or Jones's? (There is NO apostrophe on plurals, guys!) This printable shows the difference between plural, possessive, and plural- possessives. The clip art proves to be a valuable tool for student understanding! The 1-page printable is copied 4 times: once as a printable, once as a black and white printable, once as a fill-in-the- blanks graphic organizer and once as a graphic organizer without images. This product will easily help your students LEARN plurals and possessives! Thanks!

This powerpoint will help you discuss animals, their fur, hair, shell... and the functions of these "wrappers." A picture of a covering is shown. Students guess which animal belongs to the covering.The next slide shows the answer- with a picture of the animal. Later, students hear a riddle and guess which animal is described. The answer slides follow. The format of the 45 slide PowerPoint is: 2 slides to discuss wrappers/ coverings 5 coverings 5 movements (example: Spider- fingers crawl on arm) 3 more coverings 5 more movements (designed to keep students involved!) 2 more coverings a conservation message "Pick up trash" etc. 7 animal riddles- with answer pictures to follow and 3 bonus animal pictures w/ animal facts This is a PowerPoint only. No lesson plan or worksheet is attached at this time. Thank you!

Brain Breaks for your older students are physical activities that give your students a quick break so they return to the lesson with a better focus.    No prep: Just print and cut  Less than 4 minutes  Easy for Teacher and Students  Stress Reliever If a few of your students are hesitant to join in, offer to give the best participant one extra point on the current assignment. After the initial motivation, you will notice that students enjoy- and request brain breaks. Option 1 (SLIDES 4-10) Cut and pass out cards to individual students (four to a page). Option 2 (SLIDES 11-38) Show the entire class the PowerPoint slide. There are 28 brain breaks. Notes** Cards 1- 21 are for individual student movement. Card 22 requires 4 paperclips for each student. Card 23 requires an item for each student such as a pencil or piece of paper. Cards 24-28 are whole class activities and require teacher interaction. **You may want to listen to the pronunciation of the word on Card 26 before you begin (the pronunciation is available on Dictionary.com.) If you have any suggestions, please contact me at luckykroll@hotmail.com. Thank you! ~Kim

Context Clues Task Cards for High School and Middle School Secondary students will learn how to determine the meaning of unknown words using the surrounding text. Definition, example, antonym, and details are the 4 strategies used to guess the definition in this NO PREP product. This NO PREP product uses the 4 strategies of definition, example, antonym, and details. Included: -- Preview Activity with 4 sample task cards -- Preview PowerPoint, with sample answers for discussion --24 Task Cards with a mystery word and a context clue-filled sentence. Print, cut, and go! -- Answer Key (in two formats) -- Bonus: Creating Context Clue-Filled Sentences Directions and Blank Cards -- Bonus: Creating Context Clue-Filled Sentences 20 Mystery Words with Definitions The Preview Activity allows students to try their hand at context clues before they are graded. This will be especially useful if this product is not being used immediately after a Context Clues lesson. The four sample cards work as a review to remind students of the four main strategies (definition, example, antonym, and details) for context clues. The class will use the PowerPoint to check their answers and generate a discussion if they have questions. Task Cards can also be used as Entrance Tickets, Differentiation, Homework, Comprehension Check, Exit Tickets … the possibilities are many! Simply print and cut. Laminate for years of use.

Author's Purpose Task Cards for High School and Middle School (two sets of 20 each) Based on Common Core.RI.6.6 , 7.6, 8.6, and 9-10.6, these task cards present a reading selection for which students select the correct author’s purpose. Included are: 2 SETS of 20 original Task Cards (There are 40 cards total- both sets use the same 20 cards strong>, but have different multiple choice selections. The second set is more rigorous- and most closely resembles the selections found on standardized tests.) Answer sheets Answer Keys Set 1: Students read a selection on each card and decide if the author's purpose is to: Persuade, Inform, or Entertain. Set 2: Students read a selection on each card and determine the author's purpose from more rigorous options, such as: A) to present an argument using facts, B) to narrate a scene using sensory details, etc. These cards are an easy way to check student comprehension, but can be used in many more ways: Entrance Tickets, Exit Tickets, Differentiation, Comprehension Check, Homework… They might also be used as a springboard for discussion of how the author accomplishes his/ her purpose. One of my favorite ways to use is as follows: Make copies of each slide, but do not cut apart. Each student will answer all four items on one page. The next day, as students enter the room, they will receive the next page. Continue until all answers are completed. On the fifth day, students pair up and check answers. Give students time to re-read any that are different from their partners. Turn in for a grade. Have students write on – or laminate and use them more than once. Focus: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.6.6 Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.6 Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author distinguishes his or her position from that of others. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.6 Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9-10.6 Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.

This is a PowerPoint, lesson plan, several worksheets and activities on phrases and clauses. An EATS lesson plan (tied to the Common Core Standards) as well as two graphic organizers are included. Complete with an essential question, activating strategy, vocabulary, teaching strategies, and an exit ticket, students learn the difference between phrases and clauses. In Part 1, students are shown examples of each phrase type: Noun phrase Verb phrase Adjectival phrase Adverbial phrase Participial phrase Prepositional phrase Absolute phrase The class will fill out a graphic organizer, practice with partners and practice individually using different phrases. In Part 2, students are shown examples of each clause type: Independent Clause Dependent Clause Noun Clause Relative Clause Adjectival Clause Again, the class will fill out a graphic organizer, practice with partners, and practice individually using different clauses. In Part 3, students get a chance to review. There are opportunities for differentiation in the activities. For example, on the PPT, students are asked to create example sentences. To challenge students, teachers may opt to ask students to use a topic. On Worksheet #5, students are challenged to identify phrase/clause types. Lastly, students will complete an exit ticket. This is a complete lesson- ready for your classroom. Thank you!

Secondary students will get a task card and determine the text structure of a passage. Cause and Effect, Compare and Contrast, Description, Problem-Solution, Sequence, and Chronology are the structures used in this NO PREP product. Twenty-one original reading selections are showcased. Focus: CCSS ELA-LITERACY.RI.6.5, 6.6, 7.5, 7.6, 8.5, 8.6, 9-10.5, 9-10.6 Included: ---- 21 original text structure Task Cards ---- Answer keys ---- Answer sheets ---- optional “Your Turn” activity ---- 6 “Your Turn” Task Cards ---- Text Structure printable worksheet --- Lesson/ Notes Just print, copy, and distribute. It's that easy! Students read a selection on each card and decide if the text structure is: Cause-Effect, Compare-Contrast, Description, Problem-Solution, Sequence, or Chronology. These cards are an easy way to check student comprehension, but can be used in many more ways. Try them as Entrance Tickets, Exit Tickets, Differentiation, Comprehension Check, or Homework… They might also be used as a springboard for discussion of how the author accomplishes his/ her purpose. One of my favorite ways to use is as follows: Make copies of each slide, but do not cut apart. Each student will answer all four items on one page. The next day, as students enter the room, they will receive the next page. Continue until all answers are completed. On the fifth day, students pair up and check answers. Give students time to re-read any passages that received a different answer from their partner. Turn in for a grade. Have students write on the task cards- or the provided answer sheets.

24 letters of the alphabet using American Sign Language 24 letters of the alphabet using American Sign Language, black and white 4 letters (A, B, C, and D) with a box around (for using with multiple choice items!) 1 PowerPoint slide that includes all 24 letters on one slide- easily printable as a handout. I LOVE using sign language with multiple choice items. Students enjoy holding up their answer in sign language, too! SO easy Terms of Use: Feel free to use as you see fit- in personal or commercial products. Please do not share this clip art. The purchase covers YOUR use. Credit is not necessary, but genuinely appreciated. A simple "Clip Art by Kim Kroll" found on your last slide is worth a great deal to me. It is not necessary to secure your product, but it does prevent others from lifting what they have not paid for. Each 300 dpi image is saved in a png file. Original drawings.

Teaching Parallel Structure to 9th and 10th graders CAN be enjoyable! This resource was created to make teaching this Common Core Standard easy! I have included: -an EATS lesson plan -the content standard -essential question -vocabulary: Parallel and Structure -an activating strategy -collaborative activities -individual activities -a printable exit ticket -POWERPOINT -WORKSHEETS TASK CARDS -challenge activity -optional homework practice and answer keys This works really well with my 9th graders! You can also use with grades: 7, 8, 11 or 12th grade, but it was built specifically for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.9-10.1.a (Use parallel structure). The Essential Question is: How can I create and correct sentences that have parallel structure? This lesson is accompanied by a PowerPoint (included) that goes with the EATS lesson plan- and makes teaching very easy. I hope you enjoy this lesson! Thanks!- Kim Kroll

This lesson is on the short story "Miss Awful," by Arthur Cavanaugh. Please make sure you have a copy of the text in your anthology. ✓ This set includes a PowerPoint, 2 Worksheets, Written Response (Essay Prompts), Vocabulary Worksheets, Vocabulary Quiz, Final Test, Exit Tickets, and Answer Keys. ✓ The EATS lesson plan includes: Essential Question, vocabulary, activating strategy, teaching strategies, and an Exit Ticket. ✓ The lesson plan and worksheets are a time-saver. Just print and go! Answer keys are included. ✓ The PowerPoint will help with pacing the lesson (especially if you are getting observed!) and will help students focus on the most important components of the lesson. I has also answered the essential question (using "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" example) so that students will be able to discuss how to critique an effective response. Teachers can display this sample answer when students are completing the exit ticket. The Common Core Focus is: CCSS.ELA-RL.6.1/ 7/1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Thank you!

Grass, Grass Clumps, and Bushes 16 pieces of clip art 5 grass strips in color 3 bushes in color all 8 pieces also in black and white SO easy Terms of Use: Feel free to use as you see fit- in personal or commercial products. Please do not share this clip art. The purchase covers YOUR use. Credit is genuinely appreciated. A simple "Ox and Emu" found on your last slide is worth a great deal to me. It is not necessary to secure your product, but it does prevent others from lifting what they have not paid for. Each 300 dpi image is saved in a png file.

This printable allows students to cut and glue the different components of the food chain. All three pages are in black and white. Page 1- Students color, cut, and paste the animals in the correct order of the food chain. Page 2- Students color, cut, and paste the animals in the correct order of the food chain. Students also cut and paste the labels for four of the links in the chain (Producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer). Page 3- This completed page can be used as an answer key, as a coloring page, or as a poster in your classroom.

This Literary Terms Match-Up Game is effective, fun, and can be used over and over in the classroom! Accompanied with an EATS lesson plan and following the Common Core RI.7.4., the "board" gives 28 definitions. Literary terms included are: Dialogue, Figurative language, Plot Inference, Genre, Suspense, Imagery, Theme, Flashback, Irony, Effect, Omniscient, Point of View, Fiction, Cause, Paraphrase, Retelling, Conflict, Setting, Climax, Foreshadowing, Predict, Stanza, Tone, Mood, Main idea, Resolution,Character, Drama, Non-fiction, Narration, Onomatopoeia. The answer key is provided not only to make life easier, but to allow students to check their own work. At the beginning of the year, have students work in groups to match the term to the definition. As the year progresses, use it as a review to see if the students learned the material. Eventually, students will complete the activity individually. It is a great activity for the end of the year, too. You will be impressed how much the students have learned. What took them 20 minutes at the beginning of the year now takes 5 minutes for many students! Throughout the year, I use this as a "filler" when the power goes out or a bomb threat is called in (Yes, it happens!) without wasting students' time. Once, my principal unexpectedly visited my classroom while the students were working on this activity- and he asked if I made this myself. He was impressed. Yay! (The happiness we teachers get from a pat on the back...) I suggest making copies of the game pieces with colored paper so the words stand out more. (Mine was printed on colored paper- in the picture. Laminating the game board and pieces (hint: BEFORE you cut them apart) is a really good idea as well! I also print out copies and give at Open House or at conferences. My students' parents were very grateful!