Brain Ninjas

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English Language Arts

End the School Year With Lasting Memories

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Are you looking for ways to celebrate the school year with your students? We've collected some of the best ways we spend the last month of school in our upper elementary classroom (and of course we're still learning right up until the end). Come check out these ideas.

Every group of students you teach over the years will leave a special place in your heart. The names and faces might fade a little or get mixed up as the years pile up, but there are always some groups, names and faces that will stick with you. We try to make the end of each year special for our students. For some, the end of the year is a joyous occasion, but for others, it’s sad and summer break is not always wonderful for them. Here are some of the ways we end the school year in special ways to create lasting memories.

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Give Your Reading Instruction an Easy Twist

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Do your students need a fun way to share what they are reading in class? This is a great twist on literature circles and book clubs that your students will enjoy. Come read the whole post and get some ideas for your upper elementary or middle school language arts lessons.

For years we’ve done Literature Circles and tried lots of variations, but this one worked really well with our students. The problem with Literature Circles is that some students just don’t like the different activities. This version allows students to have some independence while still having accountability (and something to show for the time). If you are looking for an activity to spice up your reading instruction, look no further than Twisted Literature Circles in our TpT Store (USD) or BN Shop ($CAN).

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How to Teach Poetry Using Drama

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Instead of teaching poetry by simply reading or writing it, how about encouraging students to act it out. Teach poetry using drama to add a new dynamic to your language arts lessons.

Poetry is a beautiful and expressive form of literature that often expresses emotions, paints vivid imagery, and can be fun to read and write. Learning about poetic elements and figurative language can be engaging and memorable by teaching poetry using drama.

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How to Teach Poetry All Year Long

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Instead of teaching poetry in a unit, have you ever considered sprinkling poetry throughout the school year? It's a great way to show students that poetry is all around us. Come learn about some of the ways we include poetry in our language arts lessons throughout the year.

Many teachers add a poetry unit to their Language Arts programming, but what if you teach poetry throughout the school year? It’s not as hard as it sounds and you don’t even have to be a poetry expert.

Poetry is a beautiful and expressive form of literature that allows students to explore language, imagery, and emotions in creative ways. Many students enjoy poetry because it’s short and the rhyming is catchy. Come learn some of the ways we teach poetry throughout the school year.

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How to Teach Types of Sentences and Fix Punctuation Problems

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When students understand how punctuation can change an author's intent, they get better at using the correct punctuation in their own writing. They also learn to properly express the author's intent and read properly with the correct tone. Come learn about a lesson we use to help students learn about the dfferent types of sentences in our upper elementary language arts class.

Often when the school year starts, we do a few different writing activities to get a sense of how well students can (or cannot) write. One of the things we continually see is the lack of conventions regardless of whether students write by hand or type it into a device. We found that a simple lesson around the different types of sentences changed many of the punctuation problems. Come read about the lesson and get some ideas for your classroom.

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Unravel the Magic of Fractured Fairy Tale Activities!

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How are you using fairy tales in the classroom? One of our favourite ways is to use fractured fairy tales to help students write their own stores. There are already so many great examples out there. Come read through this list of ideas you can use right away in your upper elementary classroom. Add some magic to your language arts lessons.

Once upon a time, there was a teacher who discovered her students didn’t know the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Yes! It’s a true story. It is not a fairy tale. With each year, it is surprising that fewer and fewer students know the traditional fairy tales. It seems that reading classic stories before entering school has become less and less common at home. With the huge selection of stories, teachers just don’t have time to read them all.

Even in upper elementary, one of our favourite units is fairy tales. We start our fairy tale unit by reading some of the old classics. If you have older students who are a little twisty, you can even share the darker versions. We talk about why fairy tales were used by parents and how the stories have changed over time. Come learn about how we use fairy tales in our upper elementary classroom.

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5 Fascinating and Inspiring Canadian Trailblazers

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There are many interesting Canadian trailblazers who have stood up in the face of discrimination. Come learn more about Mary Two-Axe Earley, Viola Desmond, Elsie MacGill, Willie O'Ree and Abhayjeet Singh Sachal.

We teamed up with several Canadian teacher-authors to collaborate on different historical (and modern) Canadian trailblazers that you should be teaching your students about.

A trailblazer is the first to do something or to lead the way for others. This term is often used to describe someone who pioneers a new idea, creates a new path, or achieves something that has never been done before. Trailblazers are often seen as innovators or leaders who inspire others to follow in their footsteps. They create positive change in society. They may face challenges and obstacles along the way, but they persist in pursuing their goals and paving the way for others to follow.

How well do you know these Canadian trailblazers?

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How to Have Fun With Homonyms

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Do your students struggle with reading and writing homonyms? We brainstormed a list of games and activities to help students learn and practice the difference between homographs and homophones. We've even included a list of picture books with homonyms in them. Come have a read today!

Do your students struggle with using the correct word when they are writing? Do homophones confuse your students when they are reading? They are not alone. There are more than six thousand different homophones in the English language. No wonder it’s so confusing for students.

Teaching homophones and homographs can be a lot of fun. We’ve collected some of our favourite lessons, books and activities that you can use in your classroom to practice using homonyms. Come read more!

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How to Add Some Meat to Your Idioms Lessons

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Idioms can be challenging for students, so we brainstormed different ways to learn and practice the meaning of different idioms in the classroom. Come have a read.

Idioms are a complicated thing for many English Language Learners. In fact, many students struggle with them in their day-to-day life. Every language has its own idioms: phrases that say one thing literally but mean another thing figuratively.

Learning idioms helps students understand the cultural context and conversational skills. Many idioms come naturally to native English speakers, making them challenging for English Language Learners. Students with learning challenges like Autism or cognitive issues can find figurative language misleading and frustrating. In our experience, many native English speakers don’t always know the meanings of the idioms either, so they are great for all your students to learn.

What are some different ways you can help your students learn idioms?

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22 Amazing Ways to Use Word Wall Words

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Are you trying to use a word wall, but are running out of ways to make it worth the time? Come check out this big list of ideas for how to make your word wall interactive and useful for all your students.

What are word wall words?

A word wall is an organized display of a collection of words that are usually left posted on a wall or bulletin board for a long period of time. The words are typically high-frequency words. Posted word wall words can provide a visual reference for students throughout a unit of study, a term, or a year. Teachers and students use these words continuously. 

But are you guilty of hanging up your words and then forgetting about them? Come learn how we make our word wall more interactive.

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Practical Strategies for Reluctant Readers

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Do you have students who avoid reading? Check out these step-by-step effective strategies for reluctant readers so you can get all of your students to enjoy reading.

Do you have students in your classroom you would label as reluctant readers? A reluctant reader is usually considered to be a person who doesn’t read for pleasure, but we’re about to debunk that myth and help you out in your classroom by giving you strategies to engage reluctant readers in ways you didn’t even know you needed.

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Disguise Research Skills as a Scavenger Hunt

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Give your students meaningful practice doing research by completing scavenger hunts. They're fun and serve a purpose. Come find out how we use them in our classroom.

Sometimes students don’t understand how time is of the essence when doing research. They lack the research skills to use text features, skim materials, and find items quickly. Not only does this slow down their work, it often results in incomplete research and general frustration.

It is a struggle year after year.

However, we have managed to find some activities that help students refine their research skills: scavenger hunts. It turns out that making research fun and game-like can have a positive impact on how students complete research.

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