Playlist: Bookmarks
Change A Story’s Genre
What if we rewrote a story’s climax into a totally different genre?
Letters With Symmetry
Let’s group letters by their symmetry, then create symmetrical words, and then symmetrical sentences!
Super Specific Similes – Slimy Broccoli
Start with a basic simile. Now make it more specific. Now even more. Watch how much better writing gets with each round.
Prefixes and Suffixes in Other Languages
Let’s go beyond merely memorizing word parts and instead analyze across languages. How do other languages make a word the opposite?
Stories with the Same Problems and Solutions
Have you ever noticed that some stories have awfully similar problems? What if we looked for the most unusual way of solving a repeating problem?
Discussing An Important Decision from History
How would people with two different perspectives discuss a decision from history?
Introducing Universal Theme of Systems
So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Systems? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.
Fizz Buzz: A Counting and Divisibility Game
Ready for a tricky counting and divisibility game?
Writing in Pilish
Pi can go beyond circles! What if you wrote using the digits of pi as your guide?
Not Like The Others: Branches of the US Government
How is each part of the United States Government not like the other parts?
Looping Grid Art
Pick a few numbers, draw some corresponding lines on grid paper, and you’ll end up with some interesting, looping math-y art!
The Pros and Cons of Producers and Consumers
Sure, students might know the difference between a producer and a consumer… but have they considered how they feel about each other? What, in a producer’s opinion, are the pros and cons of a consumer?
Fixing Shakespearean Run-Ons
Can your students help The Bard? We’ll fix five Shakespearean run-ons in three different ways.
Notice, Wonder: Blood Falls
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Generalization: Systems Are Made up of Other Systems
A clock is a system. So is a rainforest. So is your school. Once you see systems inside systems, you can’t unsee it.
Punctuation Power
In a sentence, punctuation may seem meek when compared to those mighty words, but punctuation has incredible power over the meaning of a sentence. Students will try re-punctuating sentences to find new meanings – without changing a single word!
Create A Civilization: A Change In Government
It’s a great moment for your civilization! Power is moving from the hands of a few to a more democratic government.
Writing A Story About Fraction Equivalence
When fractions take on a new denominator, it’s as if they’re wearing a disguise – same value, new look. So let’s write a story about fraction equivalence starring a fraction who needs to fit in with a new group.
Describing Author’s Voice
What if… Edgar Allen Poe wrote Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland?
Jabberwocky and Context Clues
Context clues lessons can be a disaster. Here, we expose students to a delightful classic packed with nonsense words (“Jabberwocky”) and ask them to decipher the meanings and parts of speech. Then, it’s only natural for students to write their own nonsense poems.
Improving Presentations 1: Watching The Greats
Get better at giving presentations by studying the greats!
Introduce Symbolism with Pixel Art
Create a pixelated icon that represents the essence of a character!
Greek and Latin Dinosaur Names
Let’s create a new dinosaur using Greek and Latin stems!
Better Stories Part 4: Character Archetypes
Are students’ characters a bit flat? Archetypes give them a strong foundation on which to build their own characters as well as a tool to analyze existing stories.