Welcome to the Shurley English Blog! For the past thirty-five years, our mission at Shurley Instructional Materials has been simple. We do all we can to help teachers and students experience grammar and writing success. With that goal in mind, we wanted to create a space where our team of educators could share tips, tricks, and techniques to ignite learning. It’s all about educators helping educators on the Shurley English Blog. We invite you to join the conversation!
Coloring sheets, word puzzles, tinsel, glitter, and glue are just some of the items you’ll find scattered around many classrooms during the holidays. There are so many wonderful craft ideas and activities people have used to make the season a memorable one at school. Here’s a fun way to keep your students engaged in writing during the weeks before the holiday break.
Read MoreMy family and I have played a really cool game throughout our years together. My wife and I thought it up when we were traveling on vacation several years ago, and it remains one of my all-time favorites (not sure anyone else agrees!!). It only requires a brain, a vocabulary, and a voice.
Read MoreAre there times when you wonder, “what is my child thinking?” Well, let me clarify. Are there times when you wonder, “what are my child’s thoughts on a particular topic?” (Yes, that’s better phrasing.)
I find that this question usually hits me around the holidays. While the pageantry, hustle, and bustle of the holiday season surrounds us, I have a desire to know, "what are you thinking?!?" I have found a great way to “tune in” with acrostic poems.
In an acrostic poem, the letters that
Read MoreHave you ever asked your students to use a newspaper or magazine to highlight adjectives or adverbs? You may have had the same results as me. I tried this with 3rd-5th graders, and I admit the results were underwhelming. A more effective and interactive way to help your students practice this same skill is to have a little fun with a Mad Libs-inspired worksheet! These sheets can easily be turned into a game or into a story-writing activity in your classroom.
Take a look at this free holiday printable I found online. It can be used in your classroom by following a few easy steps!
Read MoreThe upcoming Thanksgiving holiday is the perfect time to help your students show appreciation for someone special in their lives by creating a special, handmade memento.
I’ve got a great activity that will take your students through the entire writing process to create a heartwarming essay to share with their loved ones. Here are the details…
Read MoreWhen was the last time you had your students write a Comparison-Contrast Essay? Personally, it is one of my favorite forms of writing. With this type of essay, you must use factual details to analyze the similarities and differences between two or more subjects. I think the wanna-be researcher in me LOVES this! I get to scour sources for facts and data. I get to learn new information. That’s my jam, and you may be surprised by how many of your students will love this type of writing too!
Read MoreThe Shurley English Writing Folder will help your students move through the writing process with ease. This foldout, four-pocket folder keeps students organized with a dedicated space for their prewriting, rough draft, revised draft, and edited paper. It is packed with handy references, checklists, and tips to ensure students have exactly what they need to produce a polished piece of writing. The Writing Folder…
Read MoreI have never taken a class in martial arts, but I have certainly enjoyed watching Bruce Lee’s moves in his action-packed films! Let’s face it! The guy was physically amazing, but more than that, he had a way with words!
Lee was more than just a famous martial artist! He was also an actor and a philosopher with a long list of inspirational quotes tagged to his name. Many of his famous quotes are still being used today to trigger personal growth, and one of my favorites says:
Read MoreVerb tenses can be challenging for students and adults! In an effort to reinforce correct verb tense usage, why not play a little game? Let’s get started with a quick review of verb tenses.
Tense means time. So, that means that the verb in the sentence actually lets the reader know the time of the action.
There are three basic verb tenses that show when an action takes place:
Read MoreIt’s that time of year when all things Halloween are tripping about, including thematic lessons like the one I’d like to share with you today. Since it can be exhausting to come up with new, exciting ideas to engage kids during the holidays, hopefully, you will appreciate the idea. I think it’s important to embrace and even outdo students’ excitement because kids long to have adults who can embrace fun!
A favorite lesson plan of mine requires 360˚ thinking—a process where you consider a lesson theme and use it to branch into as many academic areas as possible—sort of like the spokes on a wheel. I like to call it 360˚ Thinking because you actually do look at the possibilities from every aspect where it can apply. Since Halloween is coming up,
Read MoreShurley English is the best English Language Arts curriculum available to public schools, private schools, and home educators.Shurley English is a rigorous curriculum that brings back student-teacher interaction, promotes higher-order thinking skills, and provides students with a successful base from which they can achieve mastery, retention, and enthusiasm for English.
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