Art Of Effective English Writing Pdf For Middle School

ELA & Language Lesson Plans

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One of the groups for the lesson. 20kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:56 AMDan Black
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This is one group of students will be dealing with simile and metaphors. What the lesson does is create three different centers/ tiers where the students get separate poems and different levels of complexity to deal with similes and metaphors. 29kv. 3Apr 15, 2009, 3:56 AMDan Black

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THis is the explanation of the lesson. 21kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:56 AMDan Black
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Another group for the lesson. 20kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:56 AMDan Black
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This is a RAFT assignment that Ryanna used in a lesson connected to the study of Malcom X. There are actually 2 types of RAFTs that the students can fill out because Ryanna created two tiers of activities based on their current writing skills in ELA. 103kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:54 AMDan Black
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This is the Agenda lesson that the group observed in March. Included in this file are all the things the students need to complete for their research project. Jackie then organized the students where they are at based on completion for the Agenda lesson we all observed. 247kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:10 AMDan Black
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This is the description of the lesson that Jackie provided,. 25kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:10 AMDan Black
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This is a rubric created by City Island that helps to assess students. 31kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:26 AMDan Black
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This is an example that Helen shared from PS 175 that is a way to use Persuasive Writing tasks and tiered lessons together. 378kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 6:13 PMDan Black
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This is a tiered assignment from PS 175 for an activity with doing Romeo and Juliet. 58kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:35 AMDan Black
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These are all the handouts and ideas for creating multiple paths for after the Inca article as well as all the tools that PS 175 uses in doing reciprocal teaching. 921kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 6:05 PMDan Black
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This is another copy of the reciprocal teaching lesson as well as ideas for creating multiple paths. 62kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 6:07 PMDan Black
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This is a series of about 7 different types of choice boards, RAFTS, and creative ways to do menus that Ms. Maurice has developed for her ELA classroom. 305kv. 3Mar 24, 2009, 5:59 PMDan Black
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This is one choice board that Ms. Maurice created for her class based on the text she is using in her class. 41kv. 2Mar 24, 2009, 5:59 PMDan Black
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This is a learning contract that Karima created for a group of students that were very successful on her unit pre-assessment. These students get to detach from the rest of the class and work on their learning contract activities based on how successful they were on certain skills from the pre-assessment. 500kv. 2May 26, 2009, 11:40 AMDan Black
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This is the pre-assessment that Karima used in her class as a set up for an upcoming unit. The entire preassessment is included as well as what Karima will use to break down the results by students. 488kv. 3Apr 15, 2009, 3:12 AMDan Black
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This is an ELA lesson developed by Mr. Melville on cause and conflict with the Pandora myth. The strategy used was a tiered lesson where the students were broken up into their dominant learning style, verbal, visual, and bodily kinestetic. 186kv. 2Feb 24, 2009, 7:33 AMDan Black
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This is a reading/writing workshop lesson tha Edmund developed for the marriage of Pysche. The differentiation strategy in the reading segment is based on learning style and how the students share out. During the writing section the students are in flexible groups for feedback. 98kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 6:17 PMDan Black
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This is a lesson about fining the main idea in a story as well as practicing inference. All the studentes will read the story, 'Trick of the Trade,' what Anna has done is created 3 groups of questions for her students to differentiate based on their readiness and complexity of the reading she wants. There are also two versions of the story for the students to access as well. 844kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:41 AMDan Black
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This is a centers lesson that was created to help the students summarize what has been ocurring in the book Stargirl. This is an example of how the teachers split it up among team teachers as well as readiness level for the students. 34kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:34 AMDan Black
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This is a centers lesson around helping students write persuasive essays. The centers are based on student readiness. 88kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:34 AMDan Black
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This is the brief explanation of the lesson. 33kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:50 AMDan Black
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These are agendas that Lauren created on subject, verb, and object agreement that the students had to fill out based on the agenda they recieved in class. 75kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:50 AMDan Black
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These are the directions that went along with part of the activity. 33kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:01 AMDan Black
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This is a lesson on myths in a Latin class developed my Ms. Queler. The students were asked to develop their own myths and analyze the Hercules myth. The strategy used was Centers. 412kv. 2Feb 24, 2009, 7:26 AMDan Black
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THis is the lesson Miguel did for the group in January on character traits in the Westing Game using cubing. The students recieved different cubes based on their level of reading and had to answer questions about character traits based on the cubes they got. 34kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 2:44 AMDan Black
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This is a lesson that is part centers part tiers. The class was broke up into three groups based on their reading levels and ability to process what they read. At these centers they each had 5 poems to analyze, however at each center they each had different poems based on reading level and interest. These copies include the lesson as well as the 15 different poems in the class. 542kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 5:59 PMDan Black
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This is a companion lesson to other lessons Luis has produced for the book MAUS. This lesson looks at bias in text. 954kv. 2Mar 24, 2009, 5:53 PMDan Black

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This is a tiered lesson for the book MAUS. The class is broken up into 4 different groups to track the small details in the story. 47kv. 2Mar 24, 2009, 5:53 PMDan Black
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This is a tiered lesson based on intereste for the book MAUS. In this lesson students choose which set of characters they want to track and write about in the chapter based on the flashbacks they have. 78kv. 2Mar 24, 2009, 5:53 PMDan Black
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This is a tiered activity where the students are learning more about each other in the classroom. The tiered nature of the lesson happens in the grouping. The more prepared students are allowed to be more creative when they report back, and the other tier has to fill out the template. The explanation and the template are included in the lesson. 176kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:05 AMDan Black
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This is an ESL lesson on using confident word choice in writing developed by Ms. Rosado. The strategy used was a combination of a choice board and tiered lesson. The students were broken up into two separate groups based on ability and given a variety a formats to write with. 91kv. 2Feb 24, 2009, 7:29 AMDan Black
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This is an ELA lesson on the difference between reserach papers and editorials. Anna has grouped the kids based on their readiness for the topic. 126kv. 2Apr 15, 2009, 3:25 AMDan Black
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This is a Tiered lesson based on interest and learning style where the students are able to choose the text they read to explore figurative language based on these two qualitiies. 158kv. 2Apr 14, 2009, 6:22 PMDan Black
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This is lesson from Ms. Xuereb where the students will be using RAFT to write a song for an ESL classroom about the future. 23kv. 2May 26, 2009, 11:06 AMDan Black

Effective Instruction for Middle School Students with Reading Difficulties: The Reading Teacher’s Sourcebook. Social studies, science, English language arts) in teaching students content area vocabulary and practices for comprehending content area academic text. 25 Ways to Get Kids Writing. By Ephraim Stempler. This is every middle school English teacher's dream site for its ability to inspire some thoughtful, dialogue. And NWP contains a library of stellar books on the art of teaching writing. It's a must for keeping your mind as sharp as your pencil.

Not satisfied with students' progress on district- and state-mandated tests -- and after careful deliberation by administration and staff -- the Edwards Middle School implemented the Massachusetts Expanded Learning Time (ELT) Initiative in the 2006/07 school year. ELT has since become an integral part of the school day, where students receive an additional 60 minutes of support instruction in some core academic classes like English and math, and 90 minutes of electives in arts, sports and music, and other enrichment activities.

In order to maximize the benefits of ELT for students, I looked for ways to fine tune my approach to teaching individualized learning in my English language arts classroom. One of the instructional models that informs my approach to teaching individualized learning is the Readers and Writers Workshop. This approach proved very helpful in optimizing ELT.

Readers and Writers Workshop: An Instructional Model

The workshop model for English instruction combined with an extended 60 minutes of ELT support for my struggling students provides an excellent springboard to plan and implement individualized instruction in my class. Readers and Writers Workshop is an instructional model that focuses on students as learners, as well as readers and writers in practice. As readers and writers, students are mentored, working in a supportive and collaborative environment with their mentor on touchstone texts. There is an inherent reading-writing connection with this instructional delivery system that includes the following phases:

1. Mini-lesson (10-15 minutes)

This phase involves a teacher modeling a reading or writing strategy for the students to practice. It could also involve a 'do now' to tap into students' prior knowledge. Students might build a schema around a specific strategy that the teacher had modeled previously -- or do an activity to see what they retained of the day's lesson. (See a a sample lesson plan (PDF).)

2. Guided or independent student practice (40-45 minutes)

This is a student work time allocated for practicing the modeled strategy. During this phase the teacher circulates the room conferring with individuals and small groups. He takes notes, makes informal assessments, and provides one-on-one support to struggling learners.

3. Reflection (5-10 minutes)

This phase allows the whole class to regroup and review the lesson objectives, share learning, and reflect on what worked or did not work.

The workshop model provides for both independent and collaborative learning, and thus fosters student ownership of the learning process. This approach strongly emphasizes a student-centered approach to learning.

Reaching All Learners in the ELA Classroom

As a middle school ELA teacher, I continue to collaborate with my peers in the building and across the school district. I participate in planning and designing instruction, inquiry-based studies, and collaborative coaching and learning. These activities have provided me with a repertoire of research-based best practices to engage the readers and writers in my ELA classroom. I teach four core ELA classes Monday through Friday, and one support ELA class Monday through Thursday. Two of my core classes are inclusion, with a third of the students in each on individual education plans (IEP). I co-teach with a specialist who supports the students on IEP. The specialist and I also plan instruction to ensure that all students are able to effectively access the curriculum. We provide frequent check-ins and modify instruction to meet everyone's needs. Our instruction is focused on building stamina in reading and writing to produce critical thinkers and life-long learners. We use the following strategies:

1. Encourage independent reading

From the first day of school, we encourage students to choose the books they read. We model how to choose and review a book for reading. We also encourage students to choose books at their independent reading level rather than at their frustration or difficult level. Students read for 30 minutes daily and complete an entry on the reading. (See sample reading questions (PDF).) Students are not only expanding their knowledge as good readers, they are also building reading stamina.

2. Design product-driven reading and writing instruction

Plan units that are product-driven. (See a sample lesson plan template (PDF).) Have a key or an essential question that instruction seeks to address in the unit. It should become the epicenter of instruction, thus allowing for mastery. Students become stakeholders when they know the instructional objectives and learning outcome.

3. Pre-reading and pre-writing strategies

Infuse pre-reading and pre-writing strategies to build schema. 'What I know, what I want to know, and what I learned' (KWL), quick-writes, and vocabulary activities before reading and writing are very useful for tapping into students' prior knowledge and making connections in learning. Quick-writes also provide excellent seed ideas for writing. Expand students' word choice by previewing text vocabulary before reading and providing opportunities for students to find at least three synonyms for unfamiliar words.

4. Making meaning

Provide instruction in basic reading strategies using reciprocal teaching practice that includes predicting, visualizing, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing. As students master these strategies, have them read in small groups of three or four, applying the strategies to their readings. Students should be encouraged to rotate roles. As they interact with the text, they are making meaning and comprehending the text.

5. Text annotation

Teach students to mark or highlight text for main ideas and also for answers to specific questions. Text annotation is an excellent method to make meaning and provide evidence to support answers.

6. Ask text-based evidence questions

Art Of Effective English Writing Pdf For Middle Schoolers

Challenge students to provide specific evidence to support their answers. Use t-chart graphic organizers to have them identify specific lines from a text and explain their thoughts about the lines.

7. Immerse students in the genre

Provide adequate opportunity -- one to two weeks -- for students to examine text features and structures, and to read and learn from mentor texts and literature before writing.

8. Provide options for writing

As students examine mentor texts in their reading, provide a variety of writing samples for them to learn from. Teach a variety of genres. Encourage learning and practicing the craft of authors through modeling, conferring, and collaboration.

English

9. Analyze and interpret

Teach strategies that emphasize analysis and interpretation -- examine author styles and use of language through literal and figurative analysis to get meaning from text.

I apply this model to ELT by working with kids twice a day. In the morning class, it is strictly curriculum-driven; students are using the workshop as a means to their own learning. In the afternoon, I guide them to help remediate the skills they need to improve their comprehension.

Have you used this workshop model, and if so, do you have any other techniques for how you've been able to individualize instruction? Please share any questions or experiences in the comments section below.

Enrollment
534 |Public,Urban
Per Pupil Expenditures
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Free / Reduced Lunch
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Art Of Effective English Writing Pdf For Middle School Free

DEMOGRAPHICS:
16%Black

Art Of Effective English Writing Pdf For Middle School Students

8%White

The Art Of Effective English Writing Xavier Pinto

38% English-language learners
24% special needs