This unit gives teachers the flexibility to create their own writing units using different writing formats. There are editable templates, writing mini-lessons, and graphic organizers, and more! There are more than 135 pages which include: Writing Topics (60+) Printables: ★ Making Strong Claims ★ Concluding Statement ★ Argumentative Leads ★ Counterarguments ★ Bias ★ Writing a Thesis ★ Writing Hooks ★ Flashbacks ★ Foreshadowing ★ Dialogue and Quotations ★ Descriptive Language ★ Point of View ★ Perspective ★ Mood and Tone ★ Character Development ★ Character Traits & Consistency ★ Developing a Protagonist ★ Developing an Antagonist ★ Character Response to Situations ★ Myth Writing ★ Fable Writing ★ Uncovering the Theme ★ Cornell Notes Writing Activities (10+)

This unit will help students and teachers take on the ever elusive theme, which is a difficult concept to teach. This unit also delves into students writing constructed responses to text, which is aligned to Common Core Standards. There are more than 65 pages in this unit, which include posters, graphic organizers, half page graphic organizers, and practice questions (spanning multiple common core standards). Literature Passages: • The Boy Who Cried Wolf (Aesop fable) • The Lion and the Mouse (Aesop fable) • The Tortoise and the Hare (Aesop fable) • The Princess and the Frog (Fairy Tale) • Rapunzel (Fairy Tale) • Marie and the Brilliant Fish (African fable) • The Helping Hand (Short Story) • Diamond in the Rough (Short Story) • the drum by Nikki Giovanni (poem) • Same Song by Pat Mora (poem) (5) Theme Posters (6) Graphic Organizers (16) Half Page Task cards

My beginning and end of the year resources include a variety of resources that will keep students engaged and reflecting on their year. There is an activity (or two) for each letter of the alphabet that gives teachers the creativity to decide how and when to use each activity. NOTE: This is a discounted, BUNDLED pack of resources! The activities included in this bundle are the same as the ones in the individual units listed below: {End of Year A to Z Activities: 34 Activities and Memory Book} There are so many activities to choose from. You can have students spell words and complete the activity for the word or create an end of the year countdown that uses one activity a day! {Beginning of the Year A to Z: Activities, Minibooks, and More!} This is an amazing beginning of the year resource pack that is LOADED with resources to kick off the school year and a strong class culture.

This is a complete novel study using the book Rules. The book is a Newberry Honor Book and explores themes of friendship, family, and students with disabilities. The entire unit focuses on the Common Core Standards and shift to getting students to use evidence from the text to defend their responses. You will notice a mix of multiple choice questions and short answers where students are required to give specific evidence to explain their answers. More importantly it unites ELA with reading, writing, and vocabulary. This unit is also perfect for guided reading groups. This unit also includes a guide for implementing collaborative conversations with your students that aligns to the Speaking and Listening Common Core State Standards. Included: 17 Print and Go/Editable Lessons (Student work, exit ticket, homework) 18 Vocabulary words that are explored for deeper meaning 1 Student Collaborative Discussion booklet

This is a unit has been completely updated for formatting and content. It is a complete novel study using the book Bud, Not Buddy. The entire unit focuses on the Common Core Standards shift to getting students to use evidence from the text to defend their responses. It includes: • Overview with Suggested Objectives aligned to the text • Explanation of Lesson Components • Daily Reading Summary • Daily Vocabulary Words • Six Mini-lessons • Daily "Active Reading" Lesson that aligns to Common Core Standards with an Exit Ticket • Daily Homework Questions • Writing Component All lesson parts are in Word formatting that can be easily edited for classroom needs. There are Word version AND PDF files for ease of printing.

These activities are prefect for engaging your entire class in a quick game of “I have…Who has…?” The game promotes listening and speaking skills. My students love doing a timed edition where I compete between classes for the class that can get to 100% without errors in the shortest amount of time. This product includes: • 24 figurative language game task cards • 24 context clues game task cards • Response keys • Guidance for playing the game

This craftivity is perfect for helping students think through taking risks and goal setting. It can be used at the beginning of the year, but also has the flexible to be used in conjunction with other units. Penguin template and insert templates are EDITABLE using textboxes in PowerPoint. This resource includes: • Teacher Guide • Step by Step Instructions with Pictures • Penguin Template • Penguin Inserts on Taking Risks • 1 page informational about penguins • Penguin Writing Template • First Penguin Award

This resource is a compilation of reading literature graphic organizers that I have created for my students through the years. They are perfect for any fictional text and focus on students digging into the text to find specific details and deeper meaning for the Reading Literature Common Core standards. There are 43 original organizers that can be used with students in grades 4-6 and Common Core alignment is discretely noted on each organizer. This resource also includes six sample completed organizers aligned with the short story “Thank You Ma’am” and suggested implementation for these organizers. These organizers can be used in whole group lessons, literature circles, novel studies, homework assignments, and/or small groups. My personal favorite includes using these organizers to hold students accountable for their independent reading books.

This is a set of 26 half page task cards about famous African Americans. There are 3 questions for each card, an answer key, and student response form. This activity is perfect for centers or small groups! An intentional focus was place on introducing students to a variety of celebrated African Americans. Marian Anderson Mary McLeod Bethune Cab Calloway Dr. Charles R. Drew Duke Ellington Ella Fitzgerald Althea Gibson Matthew Henson Rex Ingram Mae Jemison Ulysses Kay Alaine Locke Constance Baker Motley Kwame Nkrumah Jessie Owens Colin Luther Powell Benjamin Quarles Wilma Rudolph Betty Shabazz Sojourner Truth Leslie Uggams Denmark Vesey Ida B. Wells Malcolm X Whitney Young Jr. Shaka Zulu

The use of graphic organizers is a research based strategy for building comprehension and engagement with complex text. This resource is for all “graphic-FANantics” and those interested in using graphic organizers with their class. This a rich collection of 50 original organizers aligned to Common Core Informational Text standards. They are perfect for any informational text and focus on students digging into the text to find specific details and deeper meaning. There are 50 original organizers that can be used with students in grades 4-6 and Common Core alignment is discretely noted on each organizer. These organizers can be used in whole group lessons, homework assignments, during skill lesson, and/or small groups. My personal favorite includes using these organizers to hold students accountable for independent reading.

This poetry resource includes 35 pages that are sure to supplement any poetry unity. There are templates for students to create poetry mini books, planning posters, publishing papers, and poem posters for each poem. Two versions of mini-book covers Full Page Graphic Organizer for Publishing Posters with poem definitions Common Core analysis for Haiku, Limerick, and Free Verse Editable template for you to add additional pages Poems in this Unit: • Haiku • Limerick • Cinquain • Free Verse • Acrostic • Couplet • Diamante Each type of poem includes: • Mini-book student copy of the definition and example of poem • Mini-book activity using the poem • Mini-book space for students to create a poem

This is a complete novel study using the book Locomotion by three time Newberry Honor winner Jacqueline Woodson. Locomotion is a Coretta Scott King Book Winner that is told in 60 poems. The poems are written through the perspective of 11-year old Lonnie who uses poetry to emote. This Novel unit has 10 additional poems embedded into the lessons and its great for not only introducing students to poetry, but also in getting them to develop their own poetry. In addition to being embedded the poems are formatted to be used as standalone resources for students. This item is also in my store if you want to preview before purchasing. Poetry Analysis Resource The entire unit focuses on the Common Core Standards and shift to getting students to use evidence from the text to defend their responses. Each lesson includes a copy of student work with answer key, vocabulary word of the day, daily exit ticket, and homework.

Characters Booklet This “booklet” will assist students in keeping track of characters in the books and/or stories they are reading. This is an excellent resource if you are working on character analysis as students are required to analyze multiple characters from the text by detailing when they are introduced, key quotes, and explain their importance to the text. The book also includes a list of character traits to help students think through how to accurately describe characters. The booklet includes: *Character Comparison Graphic Organizer *Character Change Graphic Organizer *Character description Graphic Organizer *Character Review writing component Directions for how to print this booklet are included as it is intended to be copied double sided and folded in half.

This resource is a combination of all of my poetry resources which include: • Locomotion Novel Unit • Poetry Resource Unit • Poetry Analysis Resource • Poetry Resource Pack: Mini-books, Templates, Graphic Organizers

This is a sample from my Beginning of the Year A to Z resource pack. It includes one activity for the letters B, G, H, N. Please note there are additional resources for these letters should you decided to purchase the full unit. If you like this resource, please check out the full resource with over 100 pages.

I love teaching poetry and this includes the poems that are included in all my resources and many more!This resource is just a list of poems from various poets. Share them on National Poem in Your Pocket Day by folding them up and putting them in your pocket. Enjoy!

This is a free lesson that focuses on Common Core Standard RL.5.2 The file uses the poem "Same Song" by Pat Mora (obtained on a free public domain) to help student analyze the main idea or topic that that the author is describing. This activity can be used as review, homework, or a supplemental component for the aligned standard. This file is saved as a PDF, but can be printed out and used with students in it's current format. I am working to create additional products for my store and appreciate any feedback on this lesson.

This resource demonstrates how I use graphic organizers in my classroom. It includes: - Informational Text - Lesson Plan/Overview - Prereading Graphic Organizer - Main Idea Graphic Organizer w/ Response Guide - Common Core Aligned Comprehension Questions w/ Response Guide

This is an activity that can either be used as a homework activity, in class independent activity, or used with a small group of students. The passages are taken from npr.org and biography.com and are both easily accessible. Links to the article are included in the packet. The entire file is in Word so that it can be edited to your needs and the answers are included in the file as text boxes that can be easily deleted when sharing with your students. I am in the process of completely revamping my store to include more Common Core aligned resources that focus on the strategies of close reading and using evidence from the text.

This lesson focuses on Common Core Standards RL.5.1 and RL.5.2. The file uses the poem "Something Told the Wild Geese" by Rachel Field (obtained on a free public domain) to help students make inferences about the meaning of the poem and analyze how the speaker feels about a topic. This resource can be used as review, homework, or a supplemental component for the aligned standard.