March is packed with fun themes that make it easy to bring fresh energy into your ELA lesson plans. From the excitement of St. Patrick’s Day and March Madness to the ominous Ides of March, this month offers plenty of creative ways to hook middle school readers and writers.
Over the years, I’ve created a variety of seasonal ELA resources designed to turn those March themes into meaningful reading and writing activities. These lessons help students practice important literacy skills while keeping things fun and engaging. If you’re looking for low-prep activities that fit perfectly into March themes, the ELA resources below are some of my favorites.
St. Patrick's Day Reader's Theater
This 20-page St. Patrick's Day readers theater toolkit features a 12-character script and reader response activities. The story centers around a 6th grade classroom that notices some recess equipment missing after participating in their St. Patrick's Day team challenges. Students accuse one particular student, but it turns out that the culprit is not one that would ever be suspected.
Your middle grade students will love working on their fluency and comprehension with this high-interest, realistic fiction mystery. They will also see that sometimes we can learn important lessons through making mistakes. A great learning activity for this green holiday!
See full description on TPT.
Context Clue Task Cards
Using context clues to identify the meaning of new words is a skill that my middle school students are ALWAYS in need of working on. These task cards make it easy to offer context clue analysis for independent work, small groups, and literacy stations. This print-and-go PDF resource let's you quickly integrate context clue word work in multiple ways.
See full description on TPT.
Close Reading Passages
My March Close Reads resource offers engaging close reading practice with high-interest, March-themed topics like National Nutrition Month, St. Patrick's Day, the End of Winter, and more. Do your students need more work with reading passages to enhance their focus on comprehension? If so, this pack of PDF reading passages is a great addition to your teacher toolbox.
See full description on TPT.
End of Novel Projects
The second half of the year often features a lot of book study and independent reading projects. My middle school students complete books at different times, which is why I created this End of Novel project template. I needed a flexible resource for my students to work on at different times to showcase and highlight their reading and comprehension. This printable toolkit features 10 activities students can utilize upon completing ANY novel they read.
See full description on TPT.
The month of March means we only have a few more months of school. The time will go by fast with spring break, standardized testing, and the numerous end-of-year activities. Make sure to take a breath and enjoy the spring with your students. Hopefully, you'll find some inspiration and time-saving opportunities in the suggestions I have listed here!
