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Lit with Lyns

How Stressed Out Teachers Can Still Promote Learning

Common Core· differentiation· ELA· ELA test prep· Reading Comprehension· Secondary ELA

It's hard to think about how to promote learning and engagement when teachers are at what seem to be, an all-time low, both mentally and physically. If you're in teacher Facebook or other social media groups, you can't avoid the posts from the extreme amount of teachers sharing that they are overly ... Read More about How Stressed Out Teachers Can Still Promote Learning

End of Year Activities that Rock

4 End of Year ELA Activities that are ZERO PREP

End of Year Activities· Escape Rooms

What's more important in May or June than end of year ELA activities that students will actually enjoy? These are tried and true resources that cause my students to beg for more! You'll also love the FREEBIE I've included... and that all of the activities require virtually ZERO PREP! 1. End of ... Read More about 4 End of Year ELA Activities that are ZERO PREP

5 Game Changing Ideas to Use Tract in the Classroom

5 Game Changing Ideas for Using Tract in the Classroom

Paperless Classroom· technology in the classroom· Writing Activities

Tract is a peer-to-peer personalized learning platform designed to foster creativity, interests, and promote project-based learning for students in grades 3-12. This blog post will share 5 game changing ideas for using Tract in the classroom. Tract sponsored this blog post. However, I only ... Read More about 5 Game Changing Ideas for Using Tract in the Classroom

Test Prep Activities that Work

Why These Successful Test Prep Activities Work

Digital Escape Rooms· digital resources· ELA test prep· Escape Rooms· Reading· test prep

There is nothing middle school students dread more than test prep! I can't say that I don't feel the same... especially this year. Some students have been online while others have been in person. Then there's the handful of kids who were virtual. All you saw was their ceiling all year, so you don't ... Read More about Why These Successful Test Prep Activities Work

Argumentative Essay

Argumentative Essay Writing Coming in Strong

Argumentative Writing Process· ELA test prep· middle school· Secondary ELA· Writing Activities

Teaching the Argumentative Essay Writing process as a middle school ELA teacher is something we all know is part of the job... and what a job it is! After tweaking this for years, I've finally found what works and what doesn't. The bottom line- the writing process has to be broken down into steps. ... Read More about Argumentative Essay Writing Coming in Strong

Tract with Distance Learning

Online Learning – Guaranteed Engagement With Tract

blended learning· digital learning· Educational Websites

Many schools transitioned to online learning after the holiday break. Covid is affecting us yet again. With this in mind, I wanted to share how I plan to keep my students learning and on track with Tract. As you may remember, my students have been using the online program, Tract, for the past few ... Read More about Online Learning – Guaranteed Engagement With Tract

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🌎 Make Earth Day meaningful and stress-free! 🌱 Co 🌎 Make Earth Day meaningful and stress-free! 🌱  Comment 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 for the link to be sent to your inbox. 
Middle schoolers will LOVE this Earth Day Reading Comprehension Escape Room—and you’ll love how easy it is to use 🙌  ✨ DIGITAL + PRINT OPTIONS 
✨ ZERO PREP (just assign or print!) 
✨ Built for engagement + real learning  Students will: 
🔍 Explore informational text about Earth Day 
🎭 Analyze environmental poems with figurative language 
🧠 Answer comprehension questions 
🎥 Watch a short video clip using symbolism  All while working through 4 interactive “rooms” to escape 🔐  💡 What’s included: 
✔️ Easy-to-follow teacher directions 
✔️ Answer key 
✔️ Code recording sheet 
✔️ Digital link + printable version  🌿 Teach the impact humans have on the environment in a way students actually enjoy!  👉 Your easiest, most engaging Earth Day lesson—done.  #middleschoolela #earthdayactivities #elaclassroom
✨ Argumentative Essay Writing Made EASY for Grades ✨ Argumentative Essay Writing Made EASY for Grades 5–8 ✨  Struggling to get students to write strong, structured essays? This Argumentative Writing Unit is your solution 🙌 Reply 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 in comments to have link sent to your inbox.  With step-by-step support, your students won’t just write essays… they’ll write CONFIDENT, well-organized arguments backed with clear evidence.  ✔️ DIGITAL + PRINT options (perfect for any classroom setup) 
✔️ 2 model argumentative essays with guided questions 
✔️ Scaffolded practice to break down each part of the essay 
✔️ Graphic organizers to simplify planning 
✔️ Student-friendly rubric for self-check + revision  Students will:
📌 Analyze model essays to identify key elements (hook, claim, evidence, reasoning) 
📌 Use guided questions to truly understand structure 
📌 Draft with confidence using organizers 
📌 Revise using a clear rubric before publishing  The result? Students who KNOW exactly what to include in their writing 💡  Perfect for:
#middleschoolELA #5thgrade #6thgrade #7thgrade #8thgrade
ELA Test Prep Escape Room | Reading Comprehension ELA Test Prep Escape Room | Reading Comprehension Activities for Grades 5–8 | Printable & Digital | No Prep! Reply 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁 in comments for the link!  Looking for engaging middle school ELA test prep activities that your students will actually enjoy? This ELA Test Prep Escape Room is the perfect solution for boosting reading comprehension skills while keeping students motivated and on task.  🎯 Designed for grades 5–8, this resource transforms boring test prep into an interactive experience with 6 exciting escape room challenges students must solve to “escape”!  ✨ Why teachers love it:
✔️ No prep ELA activity (just print or assign digitally!)
✔️ Includes printable and digital formats
✔️ Perfect for test review, ELA centers, sub plans, and review days
✔️ Keeps students engaged while practicing essential skills  📚 Skills included:
• Main Idea
• Supporting Details
• Theme
• Point of View
• Text Structure & Mood
• Inferences
• Figurative Language
• Characterization
• Story Elements
• Context Clues  This middle school reading comprehension escape room is ideal for test prep, review, and skill reinforcement—without the stress or prep time.  📌 Save this pin for your next ELA test prep activity!  🔗 Click to grab this engaging ELA escape room for middle school  #ELATestPrep #ReadingComprehension #MiddleSchoolELA #6thGradeELA
🚨 Middle School ELA Teachers—This is your test pre 🚨 Middle School ELA Teachers—This is your test prep game changer. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐄𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤.  Test prep doesn’t have to mean packets, boredom, and disengaged students. What if your students were excited to review?  🔐 Introducing the ELA Escape Room Growing Bundle (Grades 5–8).
✨ ZERO prep for you
✨ HIGH engagement for them
✨ REAL standards-based practice  Students will review key skills like:
📚 Main Idea & Supporting Details
🧠 Inference & Theme
🧩 Text Structure & Story Elements
🎭 Point of View & Figurative Language
💬 Vocabulary in Context  All through interactive, problem-solving escape rooms that feel like a game—but deliver serious results.  💡 Perfect for:
✔ Test prep season
✔ Review days
✔ Sub plans
✔ Keeping students focused (and off-task behavior low)  Stop stressing over test prep… and start watching your students love it.  🎯 Grab the growing bundle now and get access to ALL future escape rooms for FREE.  #MiddleSchoolELA #ELATeacher #TestPrep #middleschoolela
✨ Make End-of-Year Awards Actually FUN Again! ✨ T ✨ Make End-of-Year Awards Actually FUN Again! ✨  Teachers—ditch the boring awards and give your students something they’ll actually be excited about! These editable Student Superlative Certificates are designed with middle schoolers in mind—featuring trendy slang, relatable humor, and personality-based awards your students will LOVE. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤.  From “Most Likely to Know Every TikTok Dance” to “Future Influencer,” these superlatives celebrate who your students really are—making your end-of-year celebration memorable, engaging, and meaningful.  ✔️ Editable + Print & Digital Options
✔️ Zero prep (teacher win 🙌)
✔️ Perfect for middle school classrooms
✔️ Boosts classroom community + student confidence  Make your awards day unforgettable 💖  #TeacherIdeas #MiddleSchoolELA #EndOfYearActivities #TeacherLife #StudentAwards
Student Superlatives that will make your students Student Superlatives that will make your students crack up! They’ll actually relate to these so much! Your kids will be “cooked,” and you can use them year after year! Link in bio. #studentawards #endofschoolyear
Middle school ELA teachers—if your students strugg Middle school ELA teachers—if your students struggle with claims, counterclaims, and evidence… you need this 👏  This hands-on print + digital resource breaks argumentative writing down in a way that finally clicks. Students practice building strong thesis statements, identifying relevant evidence, and writing clear claims + counterclaims through engaging drag-and-drop activities and paragraph analysis. Link in bio.  No more confusion—students will know exactly what belongs in a strong argumentative paragraph or essay 💡  Perfect for test prep, skill-building, and easy review—PLUS it’s ZERO PREP 🙌  Save time, boost confidence, and watch your students’ writing improve FAST ✏️  #middleschoolela #argumentativewriting #elateachers #writinginstruction #test prep engaginglessons

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