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You're in the right place for action steps and take-aways if you're a busy Middle School ELA teacher who prefers personal family time over prepping for class. You want to teach with confidence while also leaving at a very decent time each day. On that note, welcome to the library where I only share the kind of recommendations + advice that'll uplevel your classroom without taking away from your personal life.
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Latest from the Blog
3 Tips to Get Your Middle School ELA Students to Show Growth
Learn how to get your Middle School ELA students to show growth—and not just in the “data-driven” areas.
Hopes & Dreams Middle School ELA Lesson Plan
Click the link below to download the lesson plans! You can also click here if Google Drive is easier 🙂 Do you crave full, complete, bell-to-bell lesson plans 100% done for you all year long? Learn more about how I serve super-busy middle school ELA teachers by giving them back
How to Use Poetry to Teach Grammar: A Guide for Middle School ELA Teachers
Due to the unique structure and form of poetry, leveraging punctuation, grammar, and mechanics provides a way for students to interact authentically and realistically without “teaching grammar” per se. Here’s an example: This is a poem I wrote myself (be nice—I tried!) because when I set up my monthly stations,
Teaching Regular and Irregular Verbs: A Guide for Middle School ELA Teachers
Understanding the Importance Knowing the difference between regular and irregular verbs is crucial for clear and effective communication. Regular verbs follow a predictable pattern when forming the past tense, while irregular verbs have unique past tense forms. Mastering these concepts will help your students write with precision and clarity. Regular
Teaching Sentence Variety in Middle School ELA
The playful way I teach sentence variety using stations When you’re tired of reading student writing that feels like a monotonous drumbeat of simple sentences. . . When you want to inspire your middle schoolers to write with more flair and sophistication. . . This is the place for ideas
Teaching Appositives in Middle School ELA
The sneaky way I teach grammar without “teaching grammar” A little trick I love using with my students when I teach a new or unfamiliar (or boring) grammatical concept is that I have them practice, play with, and use that grammar concept without even telling them what it’s called (I
Top 10 Amazon Tech Tool Necessities for Classrooms
10 Tech Tool Necessities Every Middle School English Teacher Needs As a Middle School English teacher, I’m constantly searching for simple, sturdy tech tools that make my job easier and my teacher life more doable. I can’t live and teach without THESE 10 necessary tools that I personally love and
Top 10 Back to School Amazon Organization Favorites for Teachers
10 Back-to-School Essentials Every Middle School English Teacher Needs As a Middle School English teacher, I’m constantly searching for tools that make my job easier and my whole teacher life more efficient. Here are 10 essential tools that I personally love and use in my own classroom. From organization to
Planning Middle School Expository Units: Similarities and Differences in the Common Core State Standards
If you’re swimming in confusing standards as a result of changing grade levels or content areas, you may wish you had a quick-reference cheat sheet that just laid it all out for you in one place. Introducing the Expository Reading & Writing Unit Cheat Sheet for our dynamic 6th, 7th,
How to Teach Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in Your Middle School ELA Expository or Argument Unit
Ethos, pathos, and logos are rhetorical strategies often used in persuasive writing and speech to appeal to an audience’s emotions, credibility, and logic, respectively. Understanding and analyzing these rhetorical strategies can help students become more critical readers and effective writers, enabling them to identify persuasive techniques in texts and use
Planning Your Middle School Expository Unit: 6 Types of Expository Reading for Engaging Students
First things first (especially if you’re new to Middle School English) → In middle school ELA classrooms, teachers often incorporate various types of expository reading to engage students and develop their comprehension and critical thinking skills. Some of the most common types of expository reading materials teachers use to round
Planning Middle School Narrative Units: Similarities and Differences in the Common Core State Standards for 6th, 7th, and 8th Grade
When designing narrative reading and writing units for 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade students aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), there are distinct differences (and some similarities, of course) tailored to the developmental progression and academic expectations of each grade level. I crafted a quick “cheat sheet” of sorts
Crafting Compelling Narrative Units: A Middle School ELA Teacher’s Guide to Dynamic Reading & Writing Instruction
Welcome, Middle School ELA teachers! 📚✨ I’m assuming you’re here because you’re looking to simplify the process of planning a narrative reading and writing unit. Welp, you’re in the right place! Let’s navigate this journey together, armed with practical strategies to streamline your planning process, saving you time and reducing
Top 10 Year-End Essentials for Teachers From Amazon
LEARNING GAME NECESSITIES The first three essentials in my year-end toolkit are games I love using in my classroom across pretty much all grade levels. They save my sanity when we have weird schedule issues at the end of the year, like when half the class is gone for a
How to Teach Students to Write A Constructed Response (Short Answer Version)
For Middle School Writing Teachers: Whether you’re prepping your students for an upcoming test, or simply looking for hands-on examples to use all year long that teach the constructed response, I’ve got you covered. When it comes to standards that require students to use text evidence to write a “short
3 Test Taking Steps for Middle School Reading & Writing Teachers to Help Their Students
“But I’m stuck!” “They’re trying to trick us!” “I have, like, NO idea!” “None of the answer choices makes sense!” “I think all the answer choices could be the right one.” Do any of those^ frustrating comments from students sound familiar? They’re the complaints that come from students when they
Two No-Prep Reading Strategies for Struggling Students >> Middle School Test Review Edition!
As middle school reading teachers, we’re often told to “meet them where they are” and to “close the gaps” regarding students who read (sometimes far) below grade level. When middle school students struggle with reading comprehension—which limits their ability to analyze, build connections, and develop their own thoughts about what
