mELTing Activities, Lessons and Ideas

 At my school I teach yearbook and journalism. I understand the different writing styles quite well, but I only have a very basic understanding of photography. I had the opportunity to receiv...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/09/helping-students-understand-color-in.html

When I have stations throughout the school year I enjoy adding a "fun station." I like to have it be somewhat literary or linguistic. One great game is Bananagrams and I just found out about a n...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/08/linguistic-card-game-for-students.html

There are more and more books today reminding students that they live in a wonderfully diverse  world. In fact the author of this journal have written quite a few books that focus on bringing at...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/08/my-rad-life-journal-review.html

Looking for a great first day of school? Here's a piece of advice. DON'T just have them read the syllabus! Here are some alternatives for a memorable first day that gets you off on he right f...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/07/four-fun-ways-to-start-new-school-year.html

So many teachers right now are asking about that first day of school. I thought I'd make a quick blog post with a fantastic no-prep, no tech option. I can only do this one in the summer with...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/07/have-your-students-introduce-you-to.html

Four years ago I wrote a guest blog post for learnemy. They are no longer around, so I thought I'd share the original post here: As an English teacher it is easy for me to correct students' wor...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/07/ten-tips-to-flawless-writing.html

One of my big focuses as a teacher is giving students tools they can use without me. I've given many students checklists and models that they have later thanked me for as they used them through...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/07/using-tech-to-help-students-review.html

Working on a project? Giving students time to brainstorm or write? Have one or two students that just can't concentrate with the noise from a neighboring class or that constant flickering light...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/04/background-noise-perfect-for-any.html

A snippet from students at different stations I really hate delving into a unit immediately after break. I have foreign exchange students who usually miss the first week back, students trans...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/01/poetry-stations.html

I teach "The Rubaiyat" to my World Literature class. I LOVE IT. I love introducing students to poetry from so far away and so long ago that still has messages for today. However,  it is an old...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/01/using-prism-with-poetry.html

TO START THIS ACTIVITY STUDENTS ENTERED CLASS WITH A "TO DO" LIST ON THE BOARD. EACH STUDENT DESK HAD TWO MARKERS AND TWO TO THREE SQUARES OF TOILET PAPER. STEP 1. The "To Do list" on the b...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/01/create-class-culture-and-flush-regrets.html

A big focus in my graduate classes this year, and the topic of several workshops I've attended has been on making sure lessons start with student as the center rather than the content as th...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2017/01/starting-with-students-poetic-journeys.html

As an ESL teacher I've always been a HUGE fan of making students talk to each other. It could be about their day, what we've read, or working on questions together. In my opinion we cannot teac...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/09/jigsaw-kahoot.html

On Instagram I recently shared a picture of a book I'd bought. The caption read, "Just grabbed this book at the #TheDollarTree! So perfect for my journalism class! This has so many great arti...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/08/dollar-store-books.html

Here's an easy no prep activity that students love and can be easily tailored to best fit your students' levels. I don't know how your first day is...mine is CHAOTIC. Students are always swit...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/07/abcs-of-me-no-prep-icebreaker.html

Understanding poetry can be tough for students. Understanding older poetry can be very difficult. The vocabulary tends to be antiquated and the examples no longer relevant to the lives students...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/06/rubaiyat-stanzas.html

I am a long time user of Quizlet. I adore it for independent practice, and while I have sometimes tried to play their games in class (using a white board and volunteer), it hasn't been the easi...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/04/QuizletLive.html

San Diego is getting a GREAT delivery this June. In honor of Shakespeare's 400th birthday the San Diego Library (in conjunction with the San Diego Old Globe Theater) will be showing off Shakesp...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/03/first-folio-workshop.html

I've been so busy these last few weeks, but here's a quickie for you. I was watching Independence Day the other day and thought, "This is a GREAT example of Growth Mindset." 1-7 seconds - Oo...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/02/growth-mindset-example.html

Can you tell I LOVE San Diego? My Dutch View For those that don't know, I spent the vast majority of my twenties living abroad. I adored hopping from place to place. I LOVED actually l...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/01/SoCal-Teachers-favorite-things.html

All teachers grade. It is an inevitable part of life. In some ways technology has made things MUCH easier.  When it comes to assessments, I really believe that the sooner students get feedbac...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/01/grading-made-easier.html

In addition to my year long English courses I teach two semester classes. As the new year starts, I begin a new class as well: speech! I LOVED taking speech as a student, so it is really fun ...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2016/01/zombies-and-teamwork.html

Technically in 2015 I've taught four different classes. So here's my collection of one awesome lesson I'll be using again the next time I teach the course. ACADEMIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL LITERACY ...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2015/12/melting-teacher-best-of-2015.html

Oedipus Rex vs Kung Fu Panda Do you teach Oedipus Rex? Looking for a non-ancient Greek way to reinforce what students have learned?   This was a fun and easy lesson the reinforced literary...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2015/12/kung-fu-panda-vs-oedipus-rex.html

There's this idea that learning starts and stops at my door My boyfriend is moving into his own house and I got him this awesome rug. He commented that with the rug "it felt like home." It w...

http://eslcarissa.blogspot.com/2015/12/interactive-texts.html