One Teacher's Adventures

Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 every year. As Earth Day approaches, middle school teachers have a golden opportunity to infuse their curriculum with meaningful activities that honour our planet while meeting educational standards. From math, English, and French to social studies, science, and art, here are some creative ways to incorporate Earth Day into every subject: Math: Environmental Data Analysis Project : Engage students in a real-world math project by providing them with environmental data sets related to topics such as air quality, water pollution, or climate change. Students can use mathematical concepts such as statistics, graphs, and proportions to analyze the data, identify trends, and draw conclusions about environmental trends and patterns. Encourage students to present their findings in a report or presentation, highlighting the mathematical techniques used and their implications for environmental stewardship. This project not only reinforces mathematical skills bu...

April is not just the month of blooming flowers and warmer weather; it's also National Poetry Month—a time to celebrate the beauty and significance of poetry in our lives. For middle school teachers, this presents a golden opportunity to dive into the world of verse with your students. While some may view poetry as an intimidating or irrelevant subject, the truth is that teaching poetry in middle school can offer numerous benefits that extend far beyond the classroom. Let's explore the top ten reasons why incorporating poetry into your curriculum is a must: 1. Cultivating Creativity: Poetry is the ultimate playground for creativity. By exploring different poetic forms, structures, and styles, students are encouraged to think outside the box and express themselves in unique ways. Whether it's crafting haikus, sonnets, or free verse, poetry allows students to unleash their imagination and discover their own voice. 2. Enhancing Language Skills: Analyzing poetry helps student...

  I've used this format to teach independent novels to students in grades 5-9.  Because it is so open-ended, it allows for easy differentiation of kids in the same grade, or for kids in split classes. I like this project a lot because it is very student-centred, and once I hand out the project outline, the students can work at their own pace.  Because there is so much choice involved, the quality of work is usually very high, as well. I have borrowed pieces of this from other bloggers and teacher friends.  I've also been adding to it/changing things around for a few years, and I have forgotten which pieces came from whom.  If you see one of your ideas, please know that I love it (which is why it's still in my project), and let me know in the comments so that I can credit you! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Choice Novel Project Over the next four weeks, you will complete a choice novel study p...

As a wrap-up project to a lesson on stereotypes with a Grade 7 class, I decided to have the students create travel brochures for our great country, but they were only allowed to use typical Canadian stereotypes to bring in tourists. Each student had to include information on food, accommodations, sights, and activities to try.  It was hilarious to read what they came up with!  I was very impressed with their final projects!  Some students included typical Canadian advertisements, as well! So, what do you think? Would this work in your classroom? Have you done something similar? Let me know in the comments below. Looking for more great tips and ideas for middle school? Subscribe to my email list and receive an exclusive FREE sub plans resource. It includes plans for math, ELA, science, social studies, and Core French. Click  here  to subscribe.

When I was in University, my reading professor gave us the idea of a one-page basic book report for young readers.  She called it the Bare Bones Book Report.  Basically, she folded a piece of paper into quarters and had us fill in each quarter with a different aspect of the book (character, plot, setting, and conflict).  She only wanted the bare bones of the book. I've used versions of this idea for so many assignments, with elementary, middle, and high school students.  Last year, I used it as a note-taking strategy in Grade 8 Social Studies.  As my students watched a film about the crisis in the Middle East, they took notes in the four section of the paper with these headings: Important People, Important Places, Vocabulary to Know, Questions I Have.  With a Grade 4/5 class, I used it when I was teaching connections in reading.  My students made notes about the connections they made in their free choice books. The ...

Teaching the 5 W's - Who, What, Where, When, and Why - has never been my favourite subject.  And because I am not too excited about it, my students don't get too excited about it, either.  For me, it's just tedious. Last year, I was teaching a Grade 4/5 class, and when we looked at informational writing, the 5 W's came up again.  I tried to find a fun and creative way to liven up this topic, and I remembered something I had seen on Pinterest , coming from a blog called Sarcasm 101 - story sticks! Ruby, the original poster, used coloured popsicle sticks as elements of a story.  One colour for character, another for conflict, etc. I decided to adapt the idea, and make each colour stick into one of the 5 W's.   I spent an hour or so coming up with a class set of sticks.  The red sticks show "WHEN," green sticks show "WHERE," yellow sticks show "WHO," and the blue sticks "WHAT."   I told my students to pretend they w...