GRAMMAR, SPELLING & VOCABULARY
 

ONLINE GRAMMAR REVIEW QUIZZES FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL:
Covering grammar principles and practices commonly taught in grades six through eight, find several online grammar review sequences for capitalization, punctuation, prepositions, complex sentences, modifiers, and more.

PUNCTUATION CAMPGROUND:
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/punctuation/index_pre.html
Students can practice punctuation skills in this online game, where they will have to correctly insert quotations, commas, colons, semi-colons, and end punctuation marks.

DAILY GRAMMAR LESSONS:
http://www.dailygrammar.com/
Start the day with these grammar worksheets for your remedial students, or give them as practice leading up to standardized testing. They can also be given out as homework. Over 400 grammar lessons and student worksheets are archived here.

INTERACTIVE SELF-STUDY GRAMMAR QUIZZES:
http://a4esl.org/q/h/grammar.html
Students who are having problems with writing and grammar can progress at their own pace with the interactive quizzes included here, covering articles, conjunctions, plurals, pronouns, sentence structure, prepositions, and more.

WRITING PROMPTS TO IMPROVE SPELLING:
http://www.everydayspelling.com/workout/prompts/promptsndx.html
Spelling skills are integrated into writing exercises across various formats with the writing prompts offered here; for grades one through eight.

SPELLING LISTS:
http://www.everydayspelling.com/lists/listindex.html
Do you want to make sure you've covered all the basic spelling lists for your grade level before proceeding to standardized testing? Here are list files to download for grades one through eight.

VOCABULARY SQUARES FOR READING:
http://www.englishcompanion.com/pdfDocs/vocabsquares.pdf
To ensure that your students are not simply skipping over any new vocabulary words, print out copies of these vocabulary squares for them to hand in once a week on their reading assignments.

EVERYDAY SPELLING STRATEGIES
http://www.everydayspelling.com/reference/refstrategies.html

VOCABULARY QUIZ:
http://www.vocabulary.co.il/
Improve student vocabulary with interactive practice using this online game, where numerous categories provide vocabulary instruction across all subjects and through a wide variety of games, quizzes, crosswords,or word searches.

WORD SCRAMBLER TOOL:
http://www.superkids.com/aweb/tools/words/scramble/
Enter your list of spelling words for the week, and then click to scramble the letters and create a student worksheet. Perfect for an extension activity to add to your regular spelling exercises.

VOCABULARY BUILDERS:
http://www.superkids.com/aweb/tools/words/
Many upper elementary teachers have trouble improving their students' limited vocabulary. Since vocabulary is a major focus of standardized testing each year, you may want to check the resources available here for increasing student vocabulary through online exercises and resources; several choices are available.

JABBERWOCKY GRAMMAR:
http://www.col-ed.org/cur/lang/lang04.txt
"Jabberwocky" is famous for making sense without using sensible vocabulary. How did its author achieve this feat? By using recognizable grammatical principles. Students will enjoy analyzing this poem for action and parts of speech, and then rewriting it into their interpretations of English.Challenge them to write their own "Jabberwocky" style poem and present them to the class.

UNDERSTANDING WORDS AND CONTEXT:
http://www.col-ed.org/cur/lang/lang27.txt
Comedy will most likely play a role in this class exercise, where students are asked to pick an object from a box and then find a completely different use for it than the one they are used to. The object is to see that dif-ferent interpretations are possible, and then convey that realization to the way an author uses words. This activity is also great for getting participation from all of your students.

GRAMMAR JOURNALS:
http://www.knownet.net/users/ackley/enggrammar.html
Make sentence revisions part of your daily curriculum by instituting these fairly simple grammar journals. The whole exercise can be completed by the time you start class, with a short weekly quiz to test comprehension on sentences and principles covered that week.

HANDS-ON GRAMMAR:
http://www.col-ed.org/cur/lang/lang75.txt
Most likely when you tell your students they are going to be diagramming a sentence, you're not going to stir up an awful lot of enthusiasm. This hands-on lesson plan offers an alternative method of attacking grammar, where students actually become parts of the sentence, and their various modifiers, helping verbs, etc. all have to line up correctly behind the subject or predicate, etc. This lesson plan could prove to be helpful for exam prep, especially for struggling students.

ONLINE GRAMMAR:
http://www.pitara.com/activities/wordplay/grammar.asp?QName=grammar2
Practice identifying prepositions, articles, pronouns, and more in this online grammar quiz.

ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS ENGLISH SPELLING:
http://www.say-it-in-english.com/SpellHome.html
Let's face it, the English language is not the easiest or most consistent language in the world. This resource might help. Students can find lists of spelling rule exceptions, review inconsistencies, and complete a chart for definitions and sentence usage.

PRINTABLE SPELLING WORKSHEETS:
http://www.spelling.hemscott.net/exlist.html
A multitude of spelling worksheets is available here, with practice in prefixes, consonant blends, games, using apostrophes, word endings, long vowel sounds, and more. Also find tips on how to become a better speller.

COMPREHENSIVE SPELLING EXERCISES:
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/Materials/ndakota/spelling/toc.html
More spelling practice online, with student exercises included with spelling rules. Topics cover commonly misspelled words, word endings, possessives, and homonyms, and include nine word lists.

2BEE OR NOTTOOBEE:
http://www.funbrain.com/verb/index.html
Students will practice their verb tenses in this online grammar game, choosing different levels for different skills and abilities.

GRAMMAR BLAST -- SENTENCES:
http://www.eduplace.com/cgi-bin/hme-quiz-start.cgi?Grade=8&Unit=1&Topic=The+Sentence&x=38&y=22
Choose the interrogative sentence, find the complete subjects, simple predicates, or compound subjects, and practice other grammar targets suitable for for upper elementary practice.

DAILY WORD PUZZLES:
http://dictionary.reference.com/fun/
Choose from an assorted and ample selection of word plays and puzzles, to practice both vocabulary and spelling. Cryptograms are also available, as are archives of past word searches, puzzles, hangman games, phrase invaders, slide solvers, and word mazes. Use the "free sample" box on the right side of the site to make your selection.

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/
A complete guide to grammar and writing rules

NOUNS, ADJECTIVES, AND ART:
http://www.eduplace.com/activity/pictures.html
Mix up the lesson plans with this creative project, where students will write interesting nouns and adjectives on index cards and enter them all into a box.They will then draw one noun card and one adjective card and create a piece of art based on a connection to those two words, according to the directions here.

SUFFIX CONNECT FOUR:
http://www.collaborativelearning.org/suffixconnect4.pdf
Is it a noun? Is it a verb? Is it a flying machine? Download and print out this spelling and vocabulary game for upper elementary students, whereby student teams must add suffixes to word lists to create nouns, verbs, and adjectives in order to connect four and win the game.

COLOR CODED PARTS OF SPEECH:
http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/grammar/partsofspeech.html
If your students are having problems distinguishing an interjection from a conjunction, or if you simply want a pre-testing activity, try this kinesthenic exercise with color coded parts of speech. Lots of action will help get the key elements across to all students; punctuation can also be added to the game.

GRAMMAR WHEELS:
http://www.teachersdesk.org/grammarwheels.html
Review the use of quotation marks, prepositional phrases, linking verbs, possessive nouns, conjunctions, etc. with this unique grammar game. Each day students will spin these grammar wheels to write a sentence containing four different elements.

READING & WRITING

A DICKENS OF A WORDSEARCH:
Is your class reading Charles Dickens' Christmas novel A Christmas Carol? Then try this challenging wordsearch to review terms, characters, and vocabulary. Even if you're not reading Dickens, students are very familiar with the tale and characters, and can still tackle the wordsearch.

ONLINE WRITING WORKSHOP:
Quick-Start Mini Lessons are included in this online Writing Workshop, with modules included for both teachers and students. The focus is on research papers, with tips for choosing topics and sample worksheets. Each stage of the writing process is covered; an online dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopedia are available to students, and a Teachers' Guide is included as well.

COMIC STRIP CREATOR:
We had a lot of fun playing with this interactive Comic Strip Creator. You can choose your background scene, add people, put in the text bubbles, add props... and when you're finished you just print it out. Students can use this Comic Strip Creator to animate a character or scene from the novel they're reading - a very creative way to incorporate creative reading responses. Consider also taking a character out of the novel and giving him or her a whole new setting and scene. After printing out their comic strips, students can add to the scenes by drawing more props or characters and adding color. They might even enjoy a weekly caption contest, putting unlikely props and characters together in a setting of their choice, and seeing, by a class vote, which student comes up with the winning caption. That student could then create the next caption contest.

RECIPE FOR A RESEARCH PAPER:
http://www.ckcolorado.org/units/8th_grade/8_RecipeForaResearchPaper.pdf
Middle school students will get a solid grounding in writing research papers with this resource. Seven lesson plans guide student efforts in outlining, using note cards, defining a thesis, citation methods, writing rough drafts, editing for accuracy and coherence, and writing their final copies. Student worksheets include handouts in directions for a library scavenger hunt, making different kinds of thesis statements, practice with outlines, and more.

SUMMER LICENSE PLATES:
http://www.theteacherscorner.net/seasonal/backtoschool/plates.htm
Consider adapting this lesson plan idea for an end-of-school year or beginning of summer activity, especially for graduating students. Have them define their goals, or who they plan to be, what they plan to study, etc., in only a few symbols and letters, with background illustration for their own unique license plates.

QUESTION CARDS FOR LITERATURE:
http://home.att.net/~teaching/litcircl/responseq.pdf
Try these printable question cards in a game format with your literature classes. Shuffle the deck, deal the cards, and sit in informal circles while each student gets the opportunity to discuss his or her perspective on the question presented, before opening it up to class responses.

100 THINGS TO DO WITH BOOKS:
http://english.unitecnology.ac.nz/resources/resources/books.html
You will more than likely need to discuss the characters of the books you read as a class, but how will you address those characters? How about inviting one to dinner? Or try decorating the main character's bedroom. Design a bookmark for the book, create a poster, or... Find one hundred excel-lent ideas here to explore the wonderful world of books in new and exciting ways.

POST-IT-NOTE READINGS:
http://www.nwrel.org/assessment/lessonplans.php?odelay=2&d=2&search=1&grade=3&trait=0&l=12
This lesson plan uses post-it notes as a strategy for taking notes and improving reading comprehension skills with middle school students; find directions here.

PERSONAL RESPONSES TO A NOVEL:
http://www.teachersdesk.org/readnovel.html
Get past your basic book report formulae with these unique takes on reading responses. Generally they all allow students to be creative, and to take an interest in further developing some aspect or element of the story they have read for class.

WHO'S THE AUDIENCE?
http://www.teachersdesk.org/writaud.html
Use the ideas listed here to help students explore the concept of writing to a specific audience. Also consider adding an activity whereby students would work in a team to consider an article they already determined was for one specific audience, and adapting it to another, very different audience.

CHART FOR REVISING AND EDITING:
http://www.une.edu.au/tlc/aso/pdf/revise.pdf
This printable chart will help students to review and refine their revision and editing skills for assigned writing projects, covering structure, content, and mechanics.

ONLINE WRITING WORKSHOP:
http://writingworkshop.edtec.unsw.edu.au/guide.html
Fifteen online modules guide students through the writing process, providing effective strategies. Modules include analyzing the topic, locating and evaluating materials, quoting and referencing sources, making strategic notes, writing paragraph by paragraph, mechanics and style in of writing, and editing final versions.

READING COMPREHENSION IN MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL:
http://abcteach.com/directory/reading_comprehension/middlehigh_school/informational/
Various informational topics are offered for reading comprehension exercises in middle and high school. Print out comprehension questions, activities on interpreting graphs & indexes, etc.

READING COMPREHENSION GRADES 4-6:
http://www.abcteach.com/directory/reading_comprehension/grades_46/
Find a great selection of themed reading passages here, including fiction, non-fiction, holiday, and seasonal excerpts. Each reading selection is accompanied by a student comprehension quiz.

READING COMPREHENSION PASSAGES:
http://education.jlab.org/reading/
The selections offered under these reading comprehension passages are all science-themed and interactive. Students will select their answers to review content, then submit for immediate correction.

TEACHING WRITING STRATEGIES:
http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/ela20/teach4.html
Teaching and learning strategies for the writing process are outlined and categorized in detail at this resource site. Look for a full development on each stage of the writing process, as well as a peer conferencing guide, mini-lessons, suggestions for writers' workshops, and portfolio and assessment checklists; quite a thorough resource on the writing process.

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES FOR WRITING:
http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/mla/write.html
Find several resources to build instructional units for writing assignments for your middle and high school classes. The writing process is explained, along with assessments for the different developmental stages of writing, pre-writing activities, and strategies for considering format, audience, and genre. Also find tips for peer and teacher conferences, and checklists for writing in progress.

THREE PART ESSAY:
http://matcmadison.edu/ald/writing/essay3part.htm
http://matcmadison.edu/ald/writing/topics.htm
Sometimes visuals can help students nail down their own writing processes. Find a short and to the point discussion here on the three part essay, along with a visual to describe the process: intro paragraph, two to three supporting paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph. Use the 2nd link above to access student essay writing prompts.

WINTER HOLIDAYS WORKSHEET & WRITING EXERCISE:
http://www.knownet.net/~ackley/paragraph/winterhol.html
Students will use this worksheet to gather information about a winter holiday they are not familiar with. Questions guide students in writing about their topic, and they will then go on to create their own narrative to inform the reader on how their own family celebrates the holidays. An excellent check-list helps to support their writing endeavors.

NAME THAT CHAPTER: ENHANCING READING COMPREHENSION:
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=197
Students will have to work collaboratively to propose and agree on chapter titles for class novels, while defending their title choices with reasons why they are appropriate. Of course, in order to have apt titles your students will have to have read chapters thoroughly, being able to comprehend, summarize, and paraphrase. Find further instructions here.

LITERATURE RESPONSES QUESTION CARDS:
http://home.att.net/~teaching/litcircl/responseq.pdf
Find several printable literature cards here to help students analyze and evaluate their reading assignments. Explore author's themes, reactions to characters, motives, and more. Many of these suggestions could be included in book reports or oral story presentations as well.

A TEACHER'S GUIDE TO THE HOLOCAUST:
http://fcit.usf.edu/holocaust/activity/activity.htm
Select either middle school or high school level lesson plans to find student activities and teacher resources for teaching the Holocaust. Student handouts are included.

WE REMEMBER THE HOLOCAUST:
http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/ylp/96-97/96-97_curriculum_units/Holocaust_KO_Malley/table_contents.html
This unit for fifth grade provides lessons across the curriculum, including writing and grammar, along the theme of examining issues surrounding the Holocaust.

TEACHING THE HOLOCAUST TO GRADES 4 - 12:
http://remember.org/educate/moretta.html
Find student activities, a set of lesson plans, a timeline, research on the internet, book report ideas, and vocabulary to explore the theme of the Holocaust in the upper levels classroom. Various literature selections accompany the different activities.

A CYBRARY OF THE HOLOCAUST:
http://remember.org/index.html
This site includes some very powerful tools for learning about the Holocaust, including survivor stories, poems, art, lesson plans, and more.

CITATION STYLES:
http://www.rpi.edu/web/writingcenter/apa.html
http://www.rpi.edu/web/writingcenter/mla.html
Use the above URLs to access information and sample entries to teach students how to properly document their citations in either APA or MLA style.

CYBERGUIDES FOR GRADES 6 TO 8:
http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/cy68.html
"The Bronze Bow", "Adam of the Road", "Across Five Aprils", "Hatchet", "My Side of the Mountain"... these are just a few of the titles included in this extensive resource for literature teachers, complete with numerous student activities on each novel.

TEACHING THE POLAR EXPRESS:
http://www.teachingheart.net/polar.html
Newly updated, this site offers reading activities, ticket templates, vocabulary, and games to accompany your class study of this wonderful book.

POLAR EXPRESS CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS:
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/educators.shtml
Find ideas across the curriculum to explore Chris Van Allburg's "Polar Express" with your class.

POLAR EXPRESS TEACHER'S GUIDE:
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/pdf/polarteachersguide.pdf
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/tg/polar.shtml
All aboard for a summary of teaching ideas, guided questions, timeline activities, and more with this Teaching Guide.

MIDDLE SCHOOL LANGUAGE WORKSHEETS:
http://worksheets.teach-nology.com/language_arts/vocab/eight/
Choices for eighth grade worksheets include cryptograms, vocabulary quizzes, word scrambles, word searches, and missing letters. Use these worksheets for ready-made homework pages or activities to reinforce classroom learning.

READING RECOVERY STUDY AIDS:
http://www.amihome.com/rrca/rrcarefer.htm#top
Download a wealth of files and resources here to help you with your own reading recovery program. Options include strategies and prompts, exercises with making and breaking words, ranking worksheets, reading analysis, daily list calendars, observation templates, and more.

READING STRATEGIES TO ASSIST CONTENT READING:
http://www.sarasota.k12.fl.us/sarasota/interdiscrdg.htm
Besides outlining the vital functions of reading text for content, this strategies guide offers activities for the processes before, during, and after reading.

READING AND ENJOYING IT:
http://yn.la.ca.us/cec/ceclang/ceclang.52.txt
While the author of this lesson plan for middle school reading suggests using the exercise at the beginning of the school year, it can really be implemented at any time, especially to "refresh" your reading curriculum. Students will be listening to "Sign of the Beaver" as you read it aloud. They can choose to identify with a character, a setting, a particular situation within the story, or some aspect of their own choosing. They will create a project of their own (allow them to work in groups for larger projects) to present to the class, offering a break in the usual reading responses or book reports, while promoting in-depth coverage of virtually all the story elements.

WRITER'S WORKSHOP:
http://english.unitecnology.ac.nz/writers/workshop.html
Find a good selection of writing aids at this online writing workshop for students. If stuck for ideas, they can click on story prompts or Story Builder. Also available here is a printable story planner to help organize prewriting notes.

INTERACTIVE READING:
http://yn.la.ca.us/cec/ceclang/ceclang.73.txt
Rekindling enthusiasm for reading lies at the premise for these interactive reading exercises, where students will be exploring the world of books through costume, acting, sound effects, and more. Let students reading the same books work in teams and surprise you with their hands-on, creative reading responses, demonstrating comprehension in the novel's key concepts and elements.

LISTENING AND READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS ONLINE:
http://www.esl-lab.com/
Use RealPlayer online for this huge collection of listening and reading exercises, with quizzes included. The collection, originally targeted to ESL classes, can be an excellent tool for beefing up student reading and listening comprehension skills, pre-standardized testing. Entries are organized along easy, medium, difficult, and very difficult categories in this cyber-lab.

PARAGRAPH SUCCESS:
http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/1427.html
Using literature as examples, this lesson plan analyzes the written paragraph in terms of story elements: introduction, rising action, climax, and denouement. Seeing a paragraph in terms of a story will help students to formulate their own paragraphs, while learning or reinforcing story elements at the same time.

THE POWER OF WORDS:
http://www.coreknowledge.org/CKproto2/resrcs/lessons/01_8_PowerWords.pdf
Use this unit to focus student awareness on the power of both the written and spoken word. Your class will examine speeches from John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and texts/essays by Rachel Carson and E.B. White. Through careful examination of excellent examples, the process of writing, and writing tools and techniques, students should be able to recognize the power and strength produced by the medium of words, and then apply those techniques to their own writings.

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES FOR WRITING:
http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/mla/write.html
Find several resources to build instructional units for writing assignments for your middle and high school classes. The writing process is explained, along with assessments for the different developmental stages of writing, pre-writing activities, and strategies for considering format, audience, and genre. Also find tips for peer and teacher conferences, and checklists for writing-in-progress.

PRE-WRITING PLANNING CHART:
http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/pdf/planning.pdf
These printable planning charts will help students to organize their thoughts for pre-writing exercises, no matter which format the written assignment takes.

THE FIVE PARAGRAPH ESSAY:
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Atrium/1437/index.html
Strategies and tips, instructions for writing and editing, and writing prompts are all contained in this resource for perfecting the five paragraph essay. Find sample lessons and teaching suggestions as well for all essay formats.

INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S DIGITAL LIBRARY
http://www.icdlbooks.org/
Funded by grants to the University of Maryland and the Internet Archive, the International Children's Digital Library is being developed to provide worldwide access to a wide range of children's literature from all over the globe. Currently there are 200 books available from 27 countries in 15 languages. Plans are underway to expand this to over 10,000 books from 100 cultures. Just use the pictorial based index to find a book by choosing either Find Books by Category or Find Books in the World.

TURN A BOOK INTO A MOVIE:
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/02/lp288-05.shtml
In this novel response to reading selections, high school students will choose well-known actors for the characters of the book, design movie posters, write a screenplay for one scene, and then write movie critic reviews. Let your students work in teams on the same novel and then compare the different results--fun for an end-of-school-year project.

PLANNING TO WRITE:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/revisewise/english/writing/09_act.shtml
Students can sometimes get stumped in the planning stage of the writing process. This online exhibit helps students to organize their thoughts for prewriting, and includes an online test and student worksheet.

http://www.readinga-z.com/
Guided reading books, lesson plans and worksheets to download and use in your Guided Reading instruction to small groups.

http://www.readwritethink.org/
High quality lessons designed to improve student reading and writing.

WRITING PROMPTS:
http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/prompts.html
Wow--here's a considerable list of writing prompts, including Thanksgiving-themed starters. Use them as journal topics, prompts for creative writing, or as ideas for the various essay formats.

THANKSGIVING WITH ADJECTIVES AND PERSUASIVE WRITING:
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr296.shtml
Not only will this lesson plan teach your students how to effectively pen a persuasive essay, but it will demonstrate the value of a well-chosen adjective to make their writing come alive. This writing exercise is centered around a Thanksgiving theme--in particular, a dynamic, enticing menu.

THE WRITE SITE TEACHER'S GUIDE AND LESSON PLANS:
http://www.writesite.org/html/xtraxtra.html
Learn how to incorporate newspapers into your language arts curriculum with the extensive resources available here. Four units explore the writing process (organization, prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing), news leads and identifying ideas and issues, research and evaluation strategies, and finally, presenting a point of view in writing. Editorials, cartoons, images, and captions are all included, as well as reproducible graphic organizers, checklists, task cards, and ninth grade correlation outcomes.

SCROOGE FOR MAYOR WEBQUEST:
http://www.coollessons.org/Dickens.htm
Students will examine daily life as presented in Dickens' "A Christmas Carol". They will be looking for issues for Ebenezer Scrooge to support in his new bid for mayor, role-playing as reform strategists and campaign managers to create a campaign poster, a PowerPoint presentation, a newspaper article, and an election brochure. (Students will need to research some links or use reference materials to complete this webquest.)

RHYMING DICTIONARY AND THESAURUS:
http://www.rhymezone.com/
Here's a wonderful little tool on the web that you and your class will use often--plug in the word you need to rhyme and voila, you'll receive options you never knew you never knew.

WRITE A BOOK REVIEW ONLINE WORKSHOP:
http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/bookrev/index.htm
Can your students confidently write a critical review of a book they have read? Are you happy with the book reports they submit? If not, then try this online book review workshop, with tips, challenges, and revision strategies. A Teacher's Guide and extensions are also offered.

PARAGRAPH WRITING RUBRIC GENERATOR:
http://teachers.teach-nology.com/web_tools/rubrics/paragraph/
First select a graphic, then click to generate a printable writing rubric. Assessments include topic sentences, supporting sentences, details, legibility, and mechanics and grammar, all on a numbered scale with space for teacher comments.

ONLINE WRITING LAB HANDOUTS:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/index2.html
If you are teaching writing in middle and/or high school, then you will want to visit this site for its vast wealth of student handouts--on all writing topics.

LITERACY LAB:
http://www.csos.jhu.edu/tdhs/pdf/literacy.pdf
Designed specifically for students reading at two or more grade levels behind, find suggestions to use center components and rotations in a strategic reading course.

POETRY

CREATING FOUND POETRY FROM PICTURE BOOKS:
Doesn't the title alone sound like a fun lesson plan? Found poetry is the concept explored here, with markers and poster boards, and children's books. Have fun with this creative lesson plan!

A GLOSSARY OF POETIC TERMS:
Here's the biggest and best of them all - an interactive poetic terms glossary, letter by letter and term by term. Keep it handy for National Poetry Month.

POETRY DAILY:
Each day, find a new poem to explore with your class for National Poetry Month, along with a featured poet, a brief bio, and a look at the poet's works.

30 DAYS OF POETRY:
http://www.msrogers.com/English2/poetry/30_days_of_poetry.htm
This collection provides thirty different lesson plans, each with its own format for students to experiment with and "discover" that they actually enjoy this genre of creative writing. Many of the formats contain templates, making it easy for reluctant writers to commit themselves to the task.

POETRY STUDY UNIT:
http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/mla/poetunit.html
Rather than a simple dry study of poets and their works, the suggestions here ask that poetry be experienced-- that it be heard and enjoyed. Students will be keeping a poetry journal, collaboratively selecting specific poems for a themed anthology, conducting oral readings or Reader's Theater for poetry, participating in sound experiments, and performing poetry, among many other creative activities.  

AUTO-BIO POEMS:
http://www.col-ed.org/cur/lang/lang24.txt
Students usually do very well with these poems, with often stunning results. Here is the format to follow; these poems can usually be completed within one class period.

IDEAS FOR WRITING POETRY IN THE CLASSROOM:
http://www.netaxs.com/~katz/teachers.htm
A great little twist on the usual acrostic poem format is included here; be sure to give it a try. Also find instructions for Sixers, Object Poems, Chant Poems, Lunes, and more. Celebrate poetry month by writing some of your own.

WRITING POETRY:
http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/karla_home.htm
This online workshop, hosted by poet Karla Kuskin, demonstrates to upper elementary students the power of choosing the exact word to describe or to tell. Students will follow guidelines and samples to learn how to write their own descriptive poem.

POETRY TERMS QUIZ:
http://www.quia.com/tq/100093.html
Test your middle school students with this online poetry terminology quiz. Eleven multiple choice questions are accompanied by an answer sheet.

INTRODUCING POETRY:
http://www.theteacherscorner.net/writing/poetry/reading.htm
How do you teach a poetry unit to middle and high school students and have them love it? Try the suggestions here; your students won't even realize they're studying poetry.

INTERNET POETRY ARCHIVE:
http://www.ibiblio.org/ipa/
Seven major poets are featured in this internet archive, and best of all, you can listen to them reading from their own works. RealAudio Player is required.

PERFORMING POETRY -- A GUIDE FOR TEACHERS:
http://www.poetryteachers.com/poetclass/performpoetry.htm
As Poetry Month continues, suggest to your students that they host their own performance day. Here are some tips for readings, emphasis, pitch, and timing, to help them learn to properly present their poems. Examples are included, but practice makes perfect on students' own work.

HEADLINE POEMS:
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~leslieob/headlines.html
Students will work in groups to comb newspaper headlines for prevalent themes. They will choose a topic, collect headlines, and then rearrange them to create their own brand of newspaper poetry, adding punctuation and capitalization where appropriate.

http://www.gigglepoetry.com/
The number one choice for poetry for kids on the Net

                            MISCELLANEOUS

Games and quizzes – www.quia.com

Beyond the Burning Time - interactive
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/97/salem/

Exploring English - www.shared-visions.com/explore/english/ 

Title: Fairground Spells
URL: http://www.channel4.com/learning/microsites/F/fairground/
Fairground Spells provides a variety of practice tools for language arts skills. There are a number of fun games to try out and play for prizes and bonuses for rides on the Ghost Train. The Dodgems game works with suffixes and prefixes. The Fruit Machine emphasizes spelling and the Whack a Moley is a game similar to hangman. The Ferris Wheel includes vowel pairs and Grabber Grammar works on punctuation.
On a score of 1 to 5, this site scores a 10. It is just so awesome and neat. Just type in a word and word, its meanings and related synonyms. These maps are not just static, you can rotate them in 3D and examine the clusters of meanings. Besides just synonyms, other relationships can be mapped including verb tenses. Switching to another root word is as simple as clicking on one of the words or typing in a new word. If you need help understanding the workings of this 3D word map,
Punctuation Made Simple: Now doesn't that sound The solution to every student's nightmare... In fact, this website does exist and its aim is to help writers develop a feel for the various punctuation marks and their use in communication. For those of you that are used to having to learn a whole series of grammar rules about every little thing, this book will be an eye-opener. Knowing the primary purpose for each punctuation mark will put you way ahead

LANGUAGE ARTS CLIPART:
http://school.discovery.com/clipart/category/lang1.html
Need some extra inspiration for your homework pages, book report assignments, or student grammar worksheets? Try this language arts themed clipart collection for a wide variety of creative images.

CITE YOUR SITES:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20010629friday.html
This lesson plan for grades six through eight teaches students the downfalls of incorrect citation, and using the APA and MLA source guides, introduces proper bibliographic techniques. Discussion questions and student activities are included.

SUBJECT AREA: ONLINE PROJECT
Title: Virtual Field Trips
URL: http://www.field-trips.org/vft/index.htm
Let's face it. Students love field trips. They just can't get enough of them! Unfortunately, schools don't always have the resources to provide them. But with this site, you can take your students around the world and back without spending a cent or oversleeping from jet lag. Virtual Field Trips for every subject and standard will whisk your class away with a click of a button, via TourMaker software, which you can download with a free trial and create your own field trips. You can even print Virtual Permission Slips for parents to sign.

STUDY SKILLS SELF-HELP:
http://www.ucc.vt.edu/stdysk/stdyhlp.html
Who couldn't use some great guidelines for various aspects of study skills? Your students can use this site independently as needed, selecting from topics such as tips for concentration, strategies to use with difficult questions, how to read difficult books, time scheduling tips, vocabulary assistance, or reviews for various writing processes.

http://www.webenglishteacher.com/
The best of online K-12 English/Language Arts teaching resources: lesson plans, Web Quests, videos, biography, e-texts, criticism, jokes, puzzles, and classroom activities.

http://www.kidsloveamystery.com/
A bright, interesting site where kids get to solve mysteries and write their own.

http://www.dositey.com/
Free interactive lessons, exercises and worksheets, educational games, open-ended questions in Math and Language Arts, and more.

http://www.funbrain.com/
Each day, over 25,000 kids enhance their math and grammar skills while playing games at FunBrain.com

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