I made a new version of my embedded storyboard today (the idea originally came from Michele Whaley). With the old one, which was meant to include the most general/basic information at the top and then add more details moving down the columns, it was difficult to explain the problem and give the basic plot outline…
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BINGO with Free Write
1-3-10 Free Write Form
A 1-3-10 Free Write is a great activity to leave for a sub (as long as your students are trained and you leave clear instructions!!) because it takes quite awhile to do. It is beneficial, but I have a hard time justifying chunking out such a long period of class time when I am there…
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Universal Screener: Writing
OVERVIEW: In the RTI (Response to Instruction/Intervention) framework, there are five categories of assessments: outcome measures, universal screeners, progress monitoring assessments, diagnostic assessments, and informal assessments. Each kind of assessment plays an important role in determining each student’s abilities, strengths, and weaknesses in whatever content they are meant to assess. At the middle school that…
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Character Map
This is a character map that I adapted from Laurie Clarcq after a workshop that she did with us at the AFLA 2010 Conference in Talkeetna. I made my own form so that it fits on a half page, saving some trees! It requires the students to explore a character from a story (novel, song, article, etc.) in-depth.…
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El día terrible, horrible, espantoso, horroroso
This activity has several inspirations: Sarah Camblin, the French teacher at my school–her students are using this format to write about the frequency with which they do different activities in each season. Michele/Jenny and the story about waking up on the wrong side of the bed. The book “Alexander y el día terrible, horrible, espantoso,…
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Writing Workshop
Being out of the classroom has given me fresh eyes. I’ve been looking at my students’ informal writing over the past few days and have noticed some pretty atrocious error patterns. Time for a writing workshop! Certainly not an innovative activity, but this was needed. I typed up five sentences (in English) to describe what happened…
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Grammar Targets for Spanish I
Finding a maternity substitute was, for me, not unlike any classic tale of unrequited love. I was “enamored” by several of my options, only to find them uninterested, unavailable, or snatched out from under me by dazzling offers of full-time positions (Emily!). I began to think that there was no other option but to turn…
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Zoológico Loco
Here is a project that you can use while studying the imperfect past tense. Basically, students create an imaginary animal that is now extinct and describe it. My students receive a Citizenship grade (effort/on time?) and a Writing grade for the project. Notes for the imperfect can be downloaded here.
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Embedded Storyboard
This is a fantastic idea developed by Michele Whaley and Laurie Clarcq (here is the link to Michele’s original post about the activity). It is a different way of illustrating a story, and I like it because it sets up students really well for speaking and writing assessments. It is also a great way to…
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