A reader was looking for examples of high-quality books for gifted/talented 4th and 5th graders, but she was constrained to a lexile range of 900-1000. Here are the recs I received…
All AboutLanguage Arts
What do we do with advanced students who need something more in language arts? Here are bunches of articles about how to differentiate vocabulary, word studies, spelling, and reading.
Creating Better Research Questions
Once students have a topic they’d like to research, how do we help them form more interesting questions?
Academic Love Letters
We’re going to take the Academic Valentine idea from earlier, and extend it into a full blown love letter – just in time for Valentine’s Day!
Vocab Puzzle: Antonym Paths
Begin with a small, simple word and identify its antonym. Then, take this second word and find its antonym. Many times, you’ll find that an antonym of an antonym isn’t always related the original word.
Exploring Palindromes in ELA and Math
Palindromes are one of those fun ideas that some gifted kids just latch onto. We’ll check out palindromic words, phrases, and even numbers in this article.
Going Beyond “Challenge Words” In Spelling
Many students blow past grade-level spelling and vocabulary at a young age. Unfortunately, a common technique to “challenge” them is to find harder and more obscure words for their spelling list. Instead, let’s take advantage of the built-in complexity of common words with multiple-meanings.
What Influences A Character’s Traits?
To add depth to character analysis, let’s look beyond a character’s traits and dig into what influenced them to have those traits.
Studying Ambiguous Sentences
This type of sentence has great possibilities for classroom application because of its two different interpretations. It’s a perfect tool to: demonstrate careful reading, showcase the need for editing while writing, and encourage creativity and divergent thinking.
Writing Mother’s Day Similes
Mother’s Day is coming up, and it’s the perfect chance to practice figurative language. Help your students create thoughtful cards, packed with rich similes and metaphors that relate directly to their mothers.
The Mysterious Benedict Society – Book Study Ideas
After it was recommended dozens of times, I finally read The Mysterious Benedict Society and I wish I had read it sooner!