Novel units are a big part of my ELA classroom. I utilize them in whole class instruction, small groups, and independent reading. As students discover connections between a novel’s characters, setting and story elements, they become more engaged readers.
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan makes an excellent whole-class novel study for ELA teachers in grades 5-7. Your students will love reading about Esperanza’s adventure from a wealthy Mexican landowner to a poor immigrant worker. They’ll cheer her on every step of the way …
Every classroom has a wide range of readers. Typically in my class, I’ve got my FAKE readers, my reluctant readers who need the right hook, and a few who’ll devour three novels before Thanksgiving. If this sounds familiar, an independent novel study with differentiated reading …
Rules by Cynthia Lord is a novel that will make students genuinely think about how they treat people. I have watched many middle schoolers connect with this book, make arguments about what Catherine should have done, and then change their minds by the end. That …
Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings is a staple in my 7th-grade ELA curriculum. This is a book we cover through both traditional novel study activities and daily read-alouds in the classroom. It is fast-paced, the moral stakes are real, and your students will be talking …
In this post, I’m sharing the five components I use in every novel unit, plus a free character trading card template you can download and use with any book. But first, a quote many teachers can relate to… “A writer only begins a book, a …
Novel study units are a HUGE part of my ELA classroom. I use them for whole class instruction, small groups, and independent reading, and after 25 years of teaching middle school, I can tell you they cover more standards than most teachers realize. When I …
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