Nine collaborative learning strategies to increase student collaboration in your secondary ELA class. Pictured are young students hands layered on top of one another as if ready to engage in a "team break" chant.

9 Collaborative Learning Strategies that Will Promote Rich Conversations Between Your Secondary ELA Students

Looking for collaborative learning strategies to implement in your secondary ELA classroom? These 9 strategies will promote rich academic conversations, build community, and foster effective communication for your students. The importance of effective communication in secondary ELA classrooms How do you promote collaboration in the classroom? In today’s ever-evolving educational landscape, fostering effective communication in Secondary ELA classrooms has become more crucial than ever before. Collaborative learning strategies have emerged as a powerful tool to encourage student engagement, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. This blog post walks you through nine collaboration strategies that can significantly enhance communication skills in ELA classrooms, which empowers students to express their thoughts and ideas confidently. By incorporating opportunities for collaborative discussions, teachers can create a dynamic learning environment that promotes active participation and encourages students to think critically and

Carina Assayed November 7, 2023

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

A photo of a woman's hands with yellow fingernail polish, she is holding a pen over an empty notebook. There is a a white border at the top of the image with pink and blue text that says "Writer's Workshop for Short Stories"

Host a Classroom Writer’s Workshop with Short Stories in 5 Easy Steps

Last fall, I did a Writer’s Workshop with my 9th graders to help them write their own short stories. We did this as part of our Dystopian unit, but the process works with any genre. In this post, I’ll cover the Writer’s Workshop process in my classroom, how I manage the reading load, and things I am still trying to improve. First of all, I combined my Writer’s Workshop with Dystopian Lit Circles last year and basically designed the unit to be a reading/discussion day and then a writing day. I thought I was breaking it up for the students and that they’d appreciate the break, but they told me that they felt like they couldn’t completely focus on one or the other. I think the solution would be to have students mostly finished with

Danielle Hall September 27, 2016

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9 Collaborative Learning Strategies that Will Promote Rich Conversations Between Your Secondary ELA Students

TED Talks for Young Writers

Host a Classroom Writer’s Workshop with Short Stories in 5 Easy Steps

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