Digital Classroom

As an educational blogger, I hope to provide ideas and materials for your curriculum to help you succeed in your classroom! While many of my posts will lead you to my Teachers Pay Teachers store, you will get detailed insight into what has worked in my very own classroom. - Read Write Teach ELA

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Mood vs. Tone in E.L.A.: Activities to Help Middle Schoolers

Megan Mariano

Feb 18
4 min

Mood vs. Tone in E.L.A.: Activities to Help Middle Schoolers

Mood and tone are two key literary elements that start popping up a lot more in middle school. I've found that students often have a diff...

724 views0 comments

Dystopian Literature in 6th Grade: Opening Minds and Critical Thinking

Megan Mariano

Jan 22
7 min

Dystopian Literature in 6th Grade: Opening Minds and Critical Thinking

Dystopian literature is by far my favorite genre. I'll dabble in other genres, but always find myself right back into this genre. When I ...

338 views0 comments

Main Idea Statements, NOT Topics: 6 Steps to Writing Main Idea Sentences

Megan Mariano

Dec 31, 2020
4 min

Main Idea Statements, NOT Topics: 6 Steps to Writing Main Idea Sentences

Main idea. Students do it as soon as they start reading. My son in Kindergarten has even dabbled in it. It gets increasingly more complex...

710 views0 comments

Dialogue and Elaboration: Using Comics to Encourage More Detail

Megan Mariano

Dec 2, 2020
4 min

Dialogue and Elaboration: Using Comics to Encourage More Detail

Dialogue is one of the most challenging aspects of writing for middle schoolers. Usually, by the time they get to middle school, they gen...

239 views0 comments

Hybrid Teaching: What's Working, What's Not, and What I'm Learning

Megan Mariano

Oct 28, 2020
7 min

Hybrid Teaching: What's Working, What's Not, and What I'm Learning

Read about what's working for me, what's not, what I am learning, and how I am feeling about hybrid teaching!

576 views3 comments

Seesaw in Middle School: Safe Social Media

Megan Mariano

Jul 23, 2020
5 min

Seesaw in Middle School: Safe Social Media

Read about the Seesaw online platform to stay connected with parents and students!

398 views0 comments

The Importance of Teacher, Parent and Student-Self Evaluations using Google Forms

Megan Mariano

Jun 25, 2020
5 min

The Importance of Teacher, Parent and Student-Self Evaluations using Google Forms

Google Forms makes it easy to create surveys for reflection...use them to improve your practice!

146 views0 comments

Teach with Tech Conference! July 27th, 2020: 70+ Presentations!

Megan Mariano

May 26, 2020
3 min

Teach with Tech Conference! July 27th, 2020: 70+ Presentations!

Read about all the amazing presentations that you can do at home! On your couch!

452 views0 comments

5 End of School Year Activities in Middle School with a Digital Focus

Megan Mariano

May 13, 2020
4 min

5 End of School Year Activities in Middle School with a Digital Focus

As I write this post, we are doing remote learning. I know the end of the school year is full of celebrations and activities; many of us ...

1,042 views0 comments

Graphic Novels in Middle School: 9 Key Critical Thinking Skills of Focus

Megan Mariano

May 2, 2020
6 min

Graphic Novels in Middle School: 9 Key Critical Thinking Skills of Focus

Teach graphic novels as a UNIT!

793 views0 comments

Argumentative Writing: Debates in Middle School

Megan Mariano

Apr 16, 2020
5 min

Argumentative Writing: Debates in Middle School

Try debates instead of an essay!

1,495 views0 comments

Extended School Closure Resources and Tips in Middle School E.L.A.

Megan Mariano

Mar 13, 2020
5 min

Extended School Closure Resources and Tips in Middle School E.L.A.

Here are some resources to help you if your school is closed due to the coronavirus!

2,908 views0 comments

Making Valentine's Day Meaningful and Academic in Middle School E.L.A.

Megan Mariano

Feb 6, 2020
3 min

Making Valentine's Day Meaningful and Academic in Middle School E.L.A.

Students write break up and love letters to books!

1,671 views0 comments

Close Reading of Short Stories: How to do it Digitally, Especially for The Holidays!

Megan Mariano

Dec 10, 2019
3 min

Close Reading of Short Stories: How to do it Digitally, Especially for The Holidays!

A few years back, close reading became a big buzz in the E.L.A. realm. I had tons of workshops on it and still have files full of informatio

373 views0 comments

Narrative Writing in Response to Reading: Ditching the Personal Narrative

Megan Mariano

Nov 17, 2019
5 min

Narrative Writing in Response to Reading: Ditching the Personal Narrative

Middle schoolers have done personal narrative writing for years. Time to change it up!

1,547 views0 comments

Thanksgiving Activity: Using YouTube and Google Search in English Language Arts

Megan Mariano

Nov 10, 2019
3 min

Thanksgiving Activity: Using YouTube and Google Search in English Language Arts

Use YouTube and Google search to your advantage!

968 views0 comments

Write What You Expect Students to Write: Importance of Modeling Writing Pieces and Reading Responses

Megan Mariano

Oct 25, 2019
4 min

Write What You Expect Students to Write: Importance of Modeling Writing Pieces and Reading Responses

Want students to write well? You need to write, too!

425 views3 comments

Digital Interactive Notebooks in English Language Arts (and the Slip in Slide Add-on)

Megan Mariano

Oct 4, 2019
6 min

Digital Interactive Notebooks in English Language Arts (and the Slip in Slide Add-on)

Using DIGITAL interactive notebooks saves tons of time, allows flexibility, and creates lots of organization!

5,792 views7 comments

Grammar and Vocabulary in Middle School Reading/Writing Workshop

Megan Mariano

Sep 18, 2019
4 min

Grammar and Vocabulary in Middle School Reading/Writing Workshop

Many teachers who embark into the world of Reading and Writing Workshop beg to question: how do you get in vocabulary and grammar instruc...

869 views0 comments

Assessment in Reading Workshop: 9 Ways to Hold Students Accountable for Independent Reading

Megan Mariano

Sep 7, 2019
6 min

Assessment in Reading Workshop: 9 Ways to Hold Students Accountable for Independent Reading

Yes, you can assess students if they are ONLY using free choice reading for instruction and lessons!

1,742 views0 comments

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