#1: Identity Charts
Use identity charts to help students consider the many factors that shape their own identity and that of groups, nations, and historical and literary figures.
#2: Socratic Seminar
A Socratic Seminar invites students to facilitate a discussion in order to work together toward a shared understanding of a text.
#3: Text-to-Text, Text-to-Self, Text-to-World
Use text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world comparisons to help students connect ideas in a text to their own lives, current events, and history.
Use the Fishbowl discussion strategy to help students practice being contributors and listeners in a group conversation.
#5: K-W-L Charts
Use K-W-L charts to help students assess what they already know about a topic and what they want to learn.
Bookmark these and more teaching strategies to try in 2025 with the aim of nurturing students’ unique strengths and learning styles.
Kickstart year-end reflections with this creative musical activity, brought to you by our amazing English Language Arts team, that you can grab today and use in your classroom tomorrow!
My 2024 Playlist – Grades 6-12
Activity Instructions
Invite students to create a My 2024 Playlist with five songs that represent their intellectual, emotional, and/or moral growth this year.
- A Victory Song: Celebrates a success, big or small, from 2024
- A Growth Song: Reflects an aspect of personal growth or change
- A Lesson Learned Song: Connects to a significant self-discovery or insight about the world
- A Comfort Song: Helped them get through a tough time
- An Opening Track for 2025: Sets the tone for the year ahead
Next Steps
- Model the activity with your own “My 2024 Playlist.”
- Students list their songs, title their playlist, choose an image, and write a brief reflection explaining each song’s significance.
- Consider sharing playlists as a community-building activity before winter break. If you plan to have students play their music in class, it is important that you provide content and language guidelines for the songs they choose that reflect your classroom norms and school policies.
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