Growing Up Portfolio Assignment
Web English Teacher: Plenty of lesson plans, and young adult literature.
Web for Teachers: Links to webquests and lesson plans.
Literature Board Games Learning Activity: After completing a text, Brooks has his students make a board game about it in groups. Groups are told to use as many of the story’s elements as possible and are peer-evaluated on visual appeal, level of difficulty, and if the game includes the elements assigned. I think this is a good way to finish a unit, but I’ve also seen teachers who use this project as a final exam. In this version, students are told to make a board game about one of the books they’ve read. Students prefer this to a test, book report, or final exam.
Lesson Tutor : Lesson Plan for Creative Writing Adapted for Elementary, Middle and High Schools: This is a short lesson on writing with your senses. A writing prompt is given for each sense. There are two variations of the lesson: one for elementary students and another for junior high and high school. Because the prompts are easy to write from, students will have no difficulty completing this lesson. I’d change the prompt about surfing to something else, because very few students in Michigan know what it is like to surf. This is a great way to start a creative writing unit, or to show students how to improve existing work.
Teaching and Writing Poetry: Poetry Workshops & Outta Ray's Head:
Zelinka uses these “poetry workshops” as a way to introduce writing poetry in her high school classroom. The first week of her poetry unit is spent studying modern poets and songs, noting the rhythm, lyrics, etc. During the second week her students begin to write their own poetry, with the help of her poetry workshops. Students circulate between 8 stations, doing prewriting activities. These stations include “Diggin’ in the Dictionary,” where students flip through the dictionary collecting interesting words; “Magnetic Poetry,” where students use magnetic words to form phrases they like; and “Use Your Senses!” where students use their senses to figure out what’s in a paper bag and then write about it. After this prewriting stage, students create poems out of the words and phrases they have collected at the stations. Students evaluate themselves and their poems at the end of the lesson.
New York Times: Language Arts and Journalism Resources
Make Your Own Soundtrack for Macbeth: Working with a book, novel, or play students would be asked to create a soundtrack for the work. This would be the final alternative assessment for the unit. Each student is responsible for creating a soundtrack according to the book, novel, or play including at least ten songs. The songs should reflect their personal interpretations of the text in musical form. They must tape the songs in the order that they will appear in the text as well as a brief explanation of how and why each song is played in the location of the text. Students should also explain the action taking place during the time the song is being played. Students will also be responsible for creating a soundtrack cover for their work.
Fairy Tale Unit...
Additional Online Resources...
Les Quatres Dauphins Aix en Provence, France