"When students are actively reading and applying multiple reading strategies as they read, they are able to understand the text at a deeper level."
5 Ways to Use Valentine's Day to Prepare for ELA State Tests
"Valentine's Day Reading Passages": Provide students with reading passages that are themed around Valentine's Day and have them practice answering multiple-choice and open-ended questions similar to those found on the ELA state test.
"Valentine's Day Writing Prompts": Use Valentine's Day-themed writing prompts to help students practice writing in response to literature, which is a common task on the ELA state test. For example, "Write a letter from Romeo to Juliet expressing his feelings on the day of Valentine's Day" or "Write a persuasive essay about why Valentine's Day should or shouldn't be celebrated in schools."
Valentine's Day Vocabulary": Use Valentine's Day-themed vocabulary words to help students practice identifying and understanding words in context, which is an important skill tested on the ELA state test. For example, "amorous," "affection," "devotion," "adulation," "admiration," "ardor," "passion" and "romantic"
Valentine's Day Reading Comprehension": Use Valentine's Day-themed texts such as poems, stories or articles to help students practice reading comprehension skills like identifying main ideas, making inferences, and understanding literary elements.
"Valentine's Day Group Discussion": Have students read and discuss Valentine's Day-themed texts in small groups, and encourage them to use evidence from the text to support their opinions and thoughts. This will help students to practice critical thinking and to analyze text as they will be required to do during the ELA state test.
More Great Ideas to Use This Year
ChatGPT
If you haven't tried this yet, YOU MUST! This is the equivalent of asking an English teacher any question you want, only it is via text through a chat. Example: "Act as an English professor and tell me the steps required to teach 12th- grade students this story/question/idea: (copy and paste your question here.) This works for anything and everything you can think of.
Debate Time!
Another great activity can be a class discussion or a debate on a topic relevant to Black History such as segregation, civil rights movement, or the impact of slavery on the modern world. This allows students to develop their critical thinking and analytical skills, as well as learn about different perspectives on a topic.
Guest Speakers
You can also invite guest speakers, such as local activists, authors, or community leaders, to speak to the class about their experiences and perspectives on Black history, or connect with other classrooms using videoconferencing tools for a cross-cultural learning experience.
