7 Diverse & Powerful Poems to Teach Tone

Looking for FRESH and diverse poems to teach tone? Teacher friends, I’ve rounded up a good one today! Below, I have 7 poems to teach tone that are not typically taught in the mainstream ELA curricula (but should be!). They are all written from diverse authors and publishing dates range from 1995 to 2022. Want to know the best part? These poems are totally teacher-approved through CommonLit, and you can access them for free. You don’t need a district-paid account to access the poems, guiding questions, and other basic features. 7 Poems to Teach Tone Before you dive in, using daily poetry bell ringers and/or an introductory video like this one might strengthen your student’s understanding of tone analysis in poetry. You can also use the engaging activities in this stellar poetry bundle to introduce,

Carina Assayed October 3, 2023

Unlock Academic Success with our Secondary ELA Vocabulary Bundle

Unlock your students’ academic success with our comprehensive Secondary ELA Vocabulary Bundle. It will save you time planning and support your students in succeeding! Want your students to quickly define literary devices? Want your students to identify figurative language AND provide efficient examples? Want your students to use drama vocab to discuss scripts and plays? These objectives and more are all met in this comprehensive ELA vocabulary bundle! Click the image to visit the resource and add it to your cart 😉 What is INCLUDED in your Secondary ELA Vocabulary Bundle? ⭐ 7 lists of terms and definitions ⭐ Interactive Notebook foldables ⭐ A BINGO! review game for each topic (two sets of 34 cards each) ⭐ 7 print-and-go quizzes with matching, examples, and a short response ⭐ Editable quizzes (.doc) ⭐ Digital versions of quizzes and BINGO games

Carina Assayed September 19, 2023

5 songs with literary devices by AAPI artists to analyze in secondary ELA is written with a blue overlay of a DJ turntable

Diversifying education with music: 5 popular songs with literary devices by AAPI artists

Looking for a fresh way to introduce students to AAPI creative works? Examine these five diverse songs with literary devices by AAPI artists and make learning more engaging in secondary ELA classrooms! We’re all about using songs as a tool to teach valuable literary concepts, especially with figurative language. My kids always have their headphones in their ears anyway, so why not try to make their learning more attuned to their interests? Here are some easy tips to keep in mind when incorporating music into your curriculum:1. Use it as an opportunity to elevate voices of color and their experiences 2. Keep it appropriate (I’m going to age myself by saying…”the music nowadays,” but it’s true) 3. Make it purposeful – don’t incorporate music just to do it. Figure out what skill you want them

Carina Assayed April 26, 2023

This image is a photo of a field of flowers, with a big sunflower in the foreground. At the top there is a white border with pink text that reads "Figurative Language in Short Stories"

Teaching Figurative Language with 3 Intriguing Short Stories

Looking for new, free texts for teaching figurative language? This post has short stories, and other short texts your students will love! Today I have figurative language on my mind: specifically simile, hyperbole, and personification. We don’t have to wait until we’re teaching poetry to share these fabulous poetic devices! Here are some non-poetry texts to use for teaching figurative language. PSST…if you’re looking for short texts to help students strengthen their analysis skills, our 15 Pop Culture Analysis Activities resource has got you covered! You get detailed lesson plans aligned with each of the 15 different short texts (i.e. songs, short films, and more!). Short Stories for Teaching Figurative Language “The Girl with the Blue Lantern” by Tess Sharpe This short story follows a poor girl, responsible for keeping her family fed, as she

Leila Hobbs August 17, 2021

15 More Songs for Teaching ELA

Song lyrics can be so versatile in the classroom: Creative writing inspiration, making non-fiction more engaging, etc. Here are 15 more songs for teaching ELA, and suggestions on how to use them. Ask and you shall receive! My other post, 15 Songs to Use in ELA has gotten so much positive feedback that I decided to make a sequel 🙂 Like before I am linking to these songs on YouTube, but it’s not necessary for students to watch the videos. And as always, not all songs for teaching ELA will be appropriate for all classrooms; you know your students best 🙂 I also have a new resource (2023) that has 15 lesson plans analyzing pop culture short texts, like songs, TV episodes, short films, and more! Check out the 15 Pop Culture Analysis Activities resource

Danielle Hall September 5, 2019

A girls hand writing in a journal with the overlaid text "TED Talks to inspire Young Writers"

TED Talks for Young Writers

Have you ever used videos to inspire your students to write? Here are some TED talks for young writers you’ll be able to use at different moments in your curriculum. As I‘ve mentioned before on this blog, I love the Writer‘s Workshop model! Each day includes a focusing mini-lesson, time to write and ponder, and time to share or conference. Videos can be an excellent opportunity for students to choose a concept they’ll focus on in their writing that day. If you enjoy using short texts, like TED Talks, I also have a new resource (2023) that has 15 lesson plans analyzing pop culture short texts, like TV episodes, songs, short films, and more! Check out the 15 Pop Culture Analysis Activities resource here. TED Talks for Young Writers Nnedi Okorafor – Sci-fi stories that

Danielle Hall June 6, 2019

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