“It's like having a second teacher in my classroom.” ~ a teacher describing Byrdseed.TV

TEKS ELA Standard: 5.11.B

develop drafts into a focused, structured, and coherent piece of writing by:

Any Shape With Just One Cut
Mechanical Dinosaur Costume
from a single piece of paper
Apple Harvesting Machine
Backdraft in Slow Motion
working Lego car
Wood Bending Machine
Hair Dryer Kinetic Art
Making a Chain Link From a Red-Hot Rod
Writing Compound Sentences
Writing Compound Sentences
Students work with subjects, predicates, and conjunctions to write compound sentences.
Gr 1-7
Halloween Problems and Solutions
Halloween Problems and Solutions
When we try to solve a problem, sometimes we end up creating new problems. Which lead to new solutions. Which lead to new problems.
Gr 1-8
Improving Shakespeare’s Repetition
Improving Shakespeare’s Repetition
Let’s help William Shakespeare with his use of repetition.
Gr 1-8
Rainclouds – Mixed Up Paragraph
Rainclouds – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about rain clouds back into the correct order?
Gr 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8
A Halloween Costume Gone Wrong
A Halloween Costume Gone Wrong
Let’s go roller skating in a Halloween costume! What could possibly go wrong?
Gr 1-8
Super Specific Similes: Quick Baby
Super Specific Similes: Quick Baby
Let’s make this simile about a quick baby even more specific.
Gr 1-8
Super Specific Similes: Stinky Seaweed
Super Specific Similes: Stinky Seaweed
Start with a basic simile. Now make it more specific. Now even more. Watch how much better writing gets with each round.
Gr 1-8
What If… Unreliable Water?
What If… Unreliable Water?
What would the consequences be if a town’s tap water became… unreliable?
Gr 3-8
What If… No Sleep?
What If… No Sleep?
What would the consequences be if no one had to sleep anymore?
Gr 1-8
Holiday Writing: Packing Crates
Holiday Writing: Packing Crates
An old photograph. A holiday scene. Pick one object in the picture and write from its point of view.
Gr 1-8
Writing About Art: Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons
Writing About Art: Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons
Look closely at Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.
Gr 1-8
Writing About Art: Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog
Writing About Art: Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog
Look closely at Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.
Gr 1-8
Changing Coordinating Conjunctions
Changing Coordinating Conjunctions
What happens when we switch out a “but” with a “so”? An “and” with a “for”? How can such tiny words make such big differences?
Gr 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Writing Technique: Triple Anadiplosis!
Writing Technique: Triple Anadiplosis!
Have students mastered the art of anadiplosis: ending one sentence with the beginning of the next? Now it’s time to take it to the next level!
Gr 1-8
Doubling Up Writing: Anadiplosis
Doubling Up Writing: Anadiplosis
Repeating words can be what you want, if what you want is an interesting effect. (Psst, that’s an example of anadiplosis!)
Gr 1-8
Writing Sample: A Christmas Carol (Cold)
Writing Sample: A Christmas Carol (Cold)
A passage from White Fang to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.
Gr 1-8
Writing Technique: 3 Dependent Clauses
Writing Technique: 3 Dependent Clauses
A specific technique to help students add some spice to their writing. We’ll be writing sentences with three dependent clauses.
Gr 1-8
SCAMPER: Scaffolding Creativity
SCAMPER: Scaffolding Creativity
Asking students to “think creatively” won’t get you far. They won’t know how to start, they’ll get stuck with simple ideas, or they’ll just go completely wild. SCAMPER is a tool for scaffolding the process of creativity.
Gr 1-8
Paragraphs: Systems of Sentences
Paragraphs: Systems of Sentences
Blow up a paragraph into individual sentences. Now reassemble it. The clues hiding in each sentence will surprise you.
Gr 1-8
Pronouns With Too Many Antecedents
Pronouns With Too Many Antecedents
What happens when a pronoun could refer to more than one noun? Big problems!
Gr 1-8
Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing
Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing
Upgrade compare and contrast writing with just a couple of key words.
Gr 1-8
Improving Presentations 3: The Storyboard and Slides
Improving Presentations 3: The Storyboard and Slides
It’s time to turn that outline into a storyboard and then some actual slides.
Gr 1-8
Writing Clear Directions
Writing Clear Directions
Can you write directions so clear that a group of kids can put a toy together with no illustrations?
Gr 1-8