PRESTO PLANS BLOG

Are you struggling to motivate your students? It can be challenging to engage and inspire learners who seem disinterested or just all-around apathetic about the material. However, with a little creativity and effort, you can find creative ways to spark your students’ motivation and help them become more invested in their learning.  I’m sharing my […]

If you’re a middle school ELA teacher, you may be wondering why you still need to teach your students parts of speech. After all, wasn’t this something that was covered in elementary school?  While it is true that parts of speech is often taught in elementary school, it is important for middle school students to […]

We’ve all been there. You’re standing in front of the classroom, calmly asking students to take out their notebooks, or whatever it may be, and you’re being completely ignored. Then, you start talking over the students, repeating what you said but a little louder and more emphatically this time. Before you know it, your emotions […]

As we approach winter break, students tend to come to the classroom increasingly less focused and more energetic. It’s hard to blame them—this is an exciting time of year! In my experience, the best way to keep middle school ELA students engaged in this time leading up to Christmas is with a fun, movement-based activity […]

Are you looking for fun and festive ways to keep your students engaged around the winter holidays? I know that some schools and districts do not permit holiday-specific activities, so I thought it might be helpful to share a few other options for non-Christmas classroom activities. Each of these will help you and your students […]

Are you tired of hearing groans and grumbles whenever you tell students you will be working on grammar? Let’s face it: grammar is not the easiest sell for students in ELA. Still, it’s an important topic. Chances are that you’ve found yourself correcting the same grammar errors over and over again in your students’ writing. […]

Taking a day off when we need a sick day is a real challenge for teachers. For things to run smoothly, it is often necessary to write a detailed sub-plan that will keep students engaged in our absence. We all know how long these can take to prepare, especially if you don’t want to come […]