Olivia Sutton

Punching the Air, National Book Award Finalist by Ibi Zoboi & Yusef Salaam, chronicles the trial and life of Amal Shahid as he enters a juvenile prison for a crime he didn't commit. This resource provides a review in literary terms (such as figurative language), a mini lesson on identity webs and "Where I am From" poems to explore the reader's own identity as Amal learns to shape his new identity, in a world very different than what he is used to. This book study also includes supplemental art

This activity is a supplement for The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton Students will explore the poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost - analyzing poetry devices while also formulating text-to-self connections and theme found in the story. I have utilized this resource DURING our reading of Chapter 5

Looking for an alternative to the book report project? This Free Choice Grid project is a great assessment based on multiple intelligences. I have utilized this as a quarterly project. Students need to select a different square & I set aside one day for students to present their ‘square’ to the class. These make for a great book talk and peer-to-peer YA book recommendations.

I have combined all of my reading (check-in) quizzes. We didn't read the entire diary - just portions that are listed in the headings here. The purpose of many of these quizzes - make sure that students were understanding what they were reading. I have also included a final assessment that is brief, but would check for basic understanding of knowledge.

When I taught 8th grade ELA, we would read portions of the diary with students. I designed this dual note-taking/journaling graphic organizer to not only give my students practice on note-taking skills, but to also experience the power of journal writing. The prompts were sometimes pre-printed in the packet and other days I would select a topic from the PPT I have also included. *Please note I have also included a blank note-taking/journal page at the end of the word document, should you want t

This Google Slides Hyperdoc will lead students through discovering & completing pre-reading activities: What is science-fiction as a genreBackground author study information (Ray Bradbury)Agree/Disagree about subjects/topics/themes found in the story & charactersAudio/reading of the text (by me!)Media comparison of 2 versions of short storyLiterary Terms applicationReal-world article about traveling & living on another planet (NYTimes article)Creative writing extension assignment**Hyperdoc wa

This presentation will offer your students a way to make personal connections, providing their own thoughts and opinions about various characters, conflict and topics found within this classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. This presentation was originally used as enrichment and could easily be adapted for whole class discussions, as well as making a copy for each student & allowing them time to explore questions/topics and write their own responses/thoughts to then share and disc

Based on the graphic novel Nimona, this resource will give you 'About the Author' information as well as focusing on characterization, plot and conflict. Discussion questions are also provided and would be great for book clubs/small group or whole group instruction.

For the past couple of years I have used the iMovie program for students to create a movie trailer, based on what we have read. One year I focused on narrative poetry, another year I used short stories. This makes for a great summative assessment & has worked with for cooperative learning. This graphic organizer is key as a way for students to brainstorm images that they need to find, in order to convey what the literature is about.

This hyperdoc was used as a culminating activity at the end of the school year (during pandemic) but could honestly be used ANY school year - either at the end OR as a kick-off to the year for students to revisit at the end of that school year. The idea is to provide students the opportunity to reflect who they are now - who/what has shaped the person they are and also the person that they hope to become. Letters could be sent back to students prior to moving on to high school (or traditionall

I used this mini lesson for students once they were a few chapters into their independent reading book. We took 2-3 days to kick this off, along with follow-ups where students could then share the lines that they have found. Lifting lines was something we did THROUGHOUT independent reading the entire school year.

I used this as a mini-lesson prior to doing book talks in small groups. This was meant to show what to do and what not to do and also provide students a chance to jot down their thoughts and ideas if they were unsure what information what to share. My 7th graders did book talks on novels that they had read independently. To reinforce listening skills, students who were in the group listening, kept a "want to check out" list in their writer's notebook.

These activities are great for both as you read the short story, as well as review before a final assessment. Many of these activities include various learning styles (visual/hands-on learners). While this is more of a 'classic' short story, students are very drawn to the characters & plot. This was also covered in a parody of a Simpson's Halloween special.

I used this for writing prompt ideas in students' writers notebooks during distance learning this past spring. I like to give students choice - as you will see on slide #1 *Please feel free to change dates at the top of each slide.

This is a brief overview slide that I have used when introducing textual evidence to my students, along with MLA.

Great activity for the start of the school year - get to know your students and review basic literary terms! Students are asked to not only define these terms, but then apply them to their own lives.

This is a great getting to know you activity for the start of the school year. Students get to move around the room and get to know one another, as well as provide the teacher with information that show how they are unique.