We create engaging English language arts resources that help teachers save time! We are full-time teachers and have taught in a middle school for over 20 years. Our goal is to create high-quality resources focused on grades 5-9.
We create engaging English language arts resources that help teachers save time! We are full-time teachers and have taught in a middle school for over 20 years. Our goal is to create high-quality resources focused on grades 5-9.
Book clubs are a great way to differentiate and offer students choices in what they read. We’ve been teaching them for years and there’s no better way to establish a respectful community of readers. We are offering this freebie to help other teachers get started with book clubs.
Included in this FREEBIE…
Our book club (or literature circle) record sheet will help you manage and organize several groups across several classes.
Our clear and detailed rubric will help you set clear student expectations.
Our example of a completed record sheet will give you an idea of how this tool can help you assess student comprehension.
This FREE resource includes:
Punctuation rules reference sheet
Dialog tag reference sheet
Three activity sheets (print and digital format)
This is great for substitute plans and can also be used as part of a narrative writing unit.
Build a community of readers by getting your students to talk about the books they read! This book review activity is a fun and relaxed way for students to create a book review slide (poster) to share with their classmates. It also helps teachers create a student-driven book list that helps when students are struggling to find their next book to read.
Included in this FREE Resource…
A Book Review Lesson
An Example of a Book Review
A Google Slides Assignment Template to be Shared with Students
A Printable Book Review Activity Page
This novel study unit for City Spies by James Ponti has everything you need to support your students as they read Ponti’s mystery/thriller novel.
in this novel study for City Spies, you will find:
Chapter summaries presented in two ways-one for teacher use and another one for student use.
Supplemental information presentation (created in Google Slides).
Student discussion question pages (print and digital formats)
Comprehension activities (print and digital formats)
Vocabulary lists
Vocabulary quizzes
2 Extension question writing activities
End-of-Book, multiple-choice assessment (in print and Google form version).
Answer keys
Learning targets
Character list
Another resource you might be interested in:
Mystery Genre Study Unit
Point of View and Perspective can be challenging to teach because each term is often used interchangeably. To make teaching easier and a little less stressful, we’ve created this 48-page, low-prep resource. Inside, you’ll find a slide show that has clear definitions and simplified examples to help you introduce students to the concepts of point-of-view and perspective.
Here’s what you get…
A day-by-day week-long lesson plan
An editable Google slide presentation providing an overview of the five types of point-of-view as well as an overview of perspective and its influencing factors
A note-taking sheet to keep students engaged during the presentation
A point-of-view practice sheet
A quiz to help students understand the factors that influence perspective
A comprehension practice sheet that prompts students to identify and analyze a character’s perspective
A fifteen-question multiple-choice assessment in both print and self-correcting Google form formats
This novel study unit for THE LAST CUENTISTA by Donna Barba Higuera has everything you need to support your students as they read Barba Higuera’s science fiction novel.
In this The Last Cuentista novel study, you will find:
**Chapter summaries **formatted for teacher use & distribution to students.
Supplemental Information SLIDES presentation
Student discussion question pages
Comprehension activities
Vocabulary lists
Vocabulary quizzes
End of Novel, Multiple Choice Assessment (in Google form version too)
Answer Keys
This is unit is offered in a print and digital format so you can upload digital student sheets to a learning management system.
The structure of this resource allows for easy differentiation to help you support your students in class.
Other resources you might be interested in:
Science Fiction Genre Study
Unwind by Neal Shusterman Novel Study Unit
December is full of holidays and this unit will help you explore them with your students in fun and engaging ways while meeting the standards. Start each class with a bell ringer then follow that up with a group writing activity centered around a holiday-themed prompt. Your students can spend a class designing a toy and telling a story from that toy’s point of view. They’ll also have the opportunity to work on nonfiction reading comprehension with five original informational articles about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, Christmas in America, and Christmas in Australia. Each non-fiction article comes with a corresponding assessment featuring multiple-choice and constructed response questions.
These activities are designed to give teachers choices. Activities last anywhere from 10 minutes to multiple classes. Each activity stands on its own or works as part of the mini-unit. If you teach one grade level or multiple grade levels across many sections, we’ve got you covered!
Inside this Resource…
Story Starter Activity
Write-Around Activity
The Secret Life of a Toy Writing Activity
5 Informational Articles Featuring:
Hanukkah
Christmas in the U.S.
Kwanzaa
Las Posadas
Christmas in Australia
Assessments: Multiple-choice/Constructed response (print & digital)
Five Fun Bell Ringer Writing Prompts
Story Writing Rubric
Prompt Response Sheets
Links to Digital Files
Answer Keys and More!
Another resource you might be interested in:
End of (School) Year Activities
This novel study unit for “The Door of No Return” by Kwame Alexander has everything you need to support your students as they read Alexander’s important new novel.
In the The Door of No Return novel study, you will find:
Chapter summaries formatted for both teacher use & distribution to students
Supplemental information presentation
Student discussion question pages
Comprehension activities
Vocabulary lists
Vocabulary quizzes
Extension essay question
End of Novel, Multiple Choice Assessment (also in Google form version)
Answer Keys
Unlock the secrets of literature with our literary devices bundle! This product contains engaging lessons on mood, tone, symbolism, theme, motif, perspective, and point of view.
Each lesson is crafted to provide clear explanations in a thought-provoking manner.
By incorporating these resources into your curriculum, you’ll help your students develop critical thinking skills, and foster a deeper appreciation for literature all while helping them to improve their overall reading comprehension.
Purchase this bundle and transform your classroom into a center of literary exploration!
Included in this Bundle:
Lesson Presentations That Teach Each Literary Device (75 Slides)
13 Student Practice Activities
3 End-of-Unit Assessments With Answer Keys
3 Pacing Guides
Student Information Pages
15-20 Total Instructional Days
Our Tone and Mood resource contains informative slide shows, writing activities, practice sheets, and assessments that help teachers save time as they teach students to understand the similarities and differences between these concepts.
What’s inside…
An editable Google Slides lesson presentation that clearly explains mood and tone
Pacing guide
4 Student practice sheets
Identifying the Mood graphic organizer (can be used with choice reading book)
A visual writing prompt to practice Creating a Mood
Identifying the Tone of a passage
Adding Tone writing activity
A student information page
3 Assessments on mood
Answer keys
This novel study unit for Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds has everything you need to support your students as they read Reynolds’ award winning novel.
In this Look Both Ways novel study, you will find:
Chapter Summaries formatted for teacher use & distribution to students.
Discussion Questions
Comprehension Activities
Vocabulary Quizzes
Three Multiple-Choice Assessments (one every 3-4 chapters) and a comprehensive end-of-the-unit multiple-choice assessment.
Student Discussion Question Worksheets
End of the novel essay question
Answer Keys
Teacher Information pages
Each chapter contains multiple leveled questions allowing the teacher to differentiate for all students.
Another resource you might be interested in:
Ghost by Jason Reynolds Novel Study Unit
Take the stress out of teaching pronouns with this engaging, student-centered, standards-aligned unit. This resource is a result of the many years we’ve spent refining the way we teach pronouns in our middle school classrooms. We’ve learned teaching grammar is a balance between introducing new concepts at a level most middle school students can grasp (without overwhelming them) while reinforcing their understanding of the fundamentals. Through the years, we have learned that when we get this balance right, grammar study really helps our students become knowledgeable, confident, and successful writers. (It can also be fun!) This resource helps students understand pronoun case, indefinite singular pronouns, relative pronouns, as well as reflexive and intensive pronouns.
INSIDE THIS RESOURCE, YOU WILL FIND…
A List of Standards/Learning Objectives
Teacher Background Information Pages for all Concepts
A Noun Review Lesson Presentation
An Engaging, Editable, 27-slide Lesson Presentation Covering:
possessive, subjective, and objective cases
indefinite singular pronouns
reflexive and intensive pronouns
relative pronouns
Fifteen (15) Printable Student Practice Pages
Five (5) Printable Quizzes
End- of-Unit Assessment in Print and Google™ Form Versions
Answer Keys
Links to Presentations and Digital Assessments
Other resources you might like:
Understanding Phrases and Clauses
This engaging grammar resource is the product of many years refining the teaching of phrases and clauses in a middle school classroom. These activities get students to the point where they are able to identify phrases and clauses, use phrases and clauses effectively in writing, and punctuate correctly. It really helps our students become knowledgeable, confident, successful writers too!
INSIDE THIS RESOURCE, YOU WILL FIND…
A List of Standards/Learning Objectives
Teacher Information Pages
5 Editable, Review Lesson Presentations:
Nouns
Verbs
Prepositions
Conjunctions
Subject/Predicate
Printable Student Practice Pages Connected to all Presentations
PRE and POST Assessments in Print and Google™ form Versions
Review Quiz
Editable, Step-by-Step Phrases and Clauses Slide Presentation
More Printable Student Practice Sheets
Punctuation Guidelines Page
Answer Keys
Links to Presentations and Digital Assessments**
Teach verbals, voice, and mood with this engaging, student-centered, standards-aligned unit. We’ve spent years refining the way we teach these grammar topics in our middle school classrooms and learned teaching grammar is a balance between introducing new concepts at a level most middle school students can grasp (without overwhelming them) while reinforcing their understanding of the fundamentals. Through the years, we have learned that when we get this balance right, grammar study really helps our students become knowledgeable, confident, and successful writers. (It can also be enjoyable!) This resource helps students understand gerunds, infinitives and participles, passive and active voice as well as the various verb moods.
INSIDE THIS RESOURCE, YOU WILL FIND…
A List of Standards/Learning Objectives
Teacher Background Information Pages for all Concepts
Student Reference Sheet
A 15-Slide Review Lesson Presentation on Verbs, Subjects, and Predicates
An Engaging, Editable, 20-Slide Presentation Covering:
gerunds, adjectival participles, and infinitives
passive and active voice
five verb moods
15 Printable Student Practice Pages
5 Review quizzes
End-of-Unit Assessment in Print and Google™ form Versions
Answer Keys
Links to Presentations and Digital Assessments
Other resources you might like:
Understanding Phrases and Clauses
Understanding Pronouns
If you’re looking for a low-prep, flexible, vocabulary unit to help you teach academic vocabulary to your students, this resource is for you! You can teach in a “word a day” format or in a full-time, multi-week format. We’ve included three different pacing guides to help you decide.
Academic words are traditionally used in academic dialog and texts. Because these words are not common in everyday conversation, it’s very important to teach them directly to students. This will help students better understand directions, assignments and tests and comprehend text across different subject areas.
Inside This (165+ Page/Slide) Resource You Will Find:
Three Pacing Guide Options
Word Lists
4 Twenty-Word Lesson Presentations (80 words in total)
-contains the word, definition, sentence, synonym, image
Student Notes Pages
Activity Sheets for Every Word List (5 words each list)
-includes 4 Writing Activities in Print and Digital Formats
4 Multiple Choice Assessments in Print and Google Form Versions
4 Fill-in-the-Blank Assessments
Answer Keys
“Print and Cut” Display Words
Links to Digital Files
Other resources you might be interested in:
Phrases and Clauses Unit
[Pronouns Unit]https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-13062700)
Verbals, Voice and Mood Unit
This novel study unit for Refugee by Alan Gratz has everything you need, including chapter summaries, to support your students as they read Gratz’s acclaimed novel.
In this Refugee novel study, you will find:
Chapter summaries formatted for teacher use & distribution to students.
Detailed background information pages
Comprehension questions
Vocabulary lists
Vocabulary quizzes
Answer keys
Comprehension practice sheets
Analyzing figurative language
Using context clues
Understanding the setting
Character traits
Character growth
Visualization
Connections
Student Discussion question pages
End of Novel Multiple-choice assessment in print and self-correcting Google form version.
Link to digital files.
Other resources you might be interested in:
TWO DEGREES by Alan Gratz Novel Study Unit
The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander Novel Study Unit
This resource helps you teach students how themes enrich the story, how symbols can add depth, and how motifs can enhance the overall meaning of a text. These engaging activities and readings will help students sharpen their analytical skills and develop a deeper appreciation for the art of storytelling.
Inside this resource, you will find…
A day-by-day lesson pacing guide
An editable Google slide presentation providing an overview with examples of symbolism, motif, and theme
9 total practice sheets for all three concepts
A fifteen-question multiple-choice assessment in both print and self-correcting Google form formats
This novel study unit for Trash by Andy Mulligan has everything you need, including chapter summaries, to support your students as they read Mulligan’s exciting novel.
In this Trash novel study, you will find:
Chapter summaries in two formats, one for teacher use and the other to hand out to students if needed.
Discussion questions that are organized by the reading strategies that make it easy for teachers to conduct book club meetings.
Student Discussion Question Pages
Comprehension Activity Sheets
Vocabulary Quizzes
Multiple Choice Quizzes for Each Section of the Book
End of Unit Assessment
Print and Digital versions of all quizzes, student discussion sheets, and comprehension activity pages!
Answer Keys
Character traits and character analysis can be fun to teach in middle school with this low prep easy to use unit!
This unit will help you engage your students as they examine character traits and perform character analysis using examples from interesting YA novels.
Lesson Presentations Focus
How Authors Reveal Characters
Identifying Character Traits (Using Evidence to Support Inferences)
Character Types
Character Changes
Included in the Resource
**What’s inside this 110 page/slide resource: **
Teacher pacing guide and explanation
Learning targets
Links to 4 editable Google SLIDES lesson presentations
15 Student activity sheets (with links to digital versions)
A word list of over 100 character traits
Character Archetype Information Page (used for enrichment)
Assessments
Identifying and supporting character traits
End of Unit multiple-choice assessment in print and self-correcting Google form version.
Answer Keys
Other resources you might be interested in:
Tone and Mood Literary Device Resource
Symbolism, Motif, Theme Literary Device Resource
Point of View and Perspective Literary Device Resource
Literary Devices Bundle
This novel study unit for Ghost by Jason Reynolds has everything you need, including chapter summaries, to support your readers as they read Reynolds’ award winning novel.
In the Ghost novel study, you will find:
*** Chapter Summaries** formatted for teacher use & distribution to students.
Discussion Questions
Comprehension Activities
Vocabulary Quizzes
5 Multiple Choice Assessments presented in both print and self-correcting Google form versions
Student Discussion Question Worksheets
End of the novel questions/activities
Answer Keys
Teacher Information pages
Another resource you might be interested in:
Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds Novel Study Unit