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!
I’ll never forget returning to my 6th-grade language arts classroom after winter break. Being the social type, I had stopped between classes to say hello to some of my friends, and I barely made it into the room before the tardy bell rang. To my surprise, the desks had been rearranged into groups of four, and I had no idea where I was supposed to sit.
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In a word…YES! If you are seeking a great writing prompt, look no further than a picture book, a local art gallery, or a collection of great works of art from one of those coffee table display books.
When I was a kid, we used to have a large reproduction of Paul Detlefsen’s work, called The Smithy and Horse. I used to stare at it, sort of daydreaming about how the objects could interact if they were real and not just a painting.
Here’s just a short sample of how I made the objects in the picture come alive:
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If you are a teacher, you know that teaching—and learning—are emotional experiences. Thanks to neuropsychology and neuroscientists, we have some exciting ways to increase the joy in our classrooms, which in turn increases learning. Why? It’s one of the most basic concepts in teaching and learning…happy kids learn new things easier than stressed-out kids.
Read MoreLast week, we began our study of sentence patterns. Remember, if you recognize the pattern of a sentence’s core parts, the grammar of the sentence (or its word arrangement) will make more sense. Last time, we discussed Pattern 1 and Pattern 2.
Today, let’s start our study with a new Pattern 2 Sentence:
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The overall goal of team writing is to provide an opportunity for small groups of students to collaborate during each step of the writing process to produce a shared piece of writing.
If a team writing activity sounds like an implausible dream (considering your students’ diverse stages of writing development), take a deep breath and listen up! You might be surprised to learn that there are tremendous benefits in store! Some of the most notable student benefits include having the opportunity to…
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Learning English grammar can be tough, but, as the saying goes, a picture paints a thousand words. So, I am taking the high road on this series and making it visual—thereby sparing well over 980 words…and your sanity!
If you are up on your brain science, you know that our brains seek patterns to make sense of the world. In English, even our sentences fall into patterns. If you recognize the pattern of a sentence’s core parts, the grammar of the sentence (or its word arrangement) will make more sense. Look at this:
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Lately, I’ve noticed some confusion with the way people use the idiom “used to” in a sentence. Some write “use to” and others write “used to?” Do you know which one is correct?
“Use to” and “used to” cause confusion for a couple of good reasons. We unravel the mystery in this week’s Two-Minute Tip. Take a look…
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If I could travel the world, I would! I love the excitement of finding a new destination to experience. I love having the freedom to go wherever I want or can afford whether I have a detailed itinerary or not! For me, world travel is an adventure. But, what if you don’t have the time or money to travel? Shurley English can take you on a global adventure through Discovery Time!
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I read some information today about what’s missing in reading comprehension instruction, and the research that was provided jumped off of the page for me! I had to get used to some new terminology, but it all made perfect sense!
The article stated that the latest research in early literacy found that there is an extra step between decoding and comprehension that most of us don’t know about. They even had a name for the missing skill: microcomprehension.
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As a kid, do you remember the first time you took the training wheels off and tried to ride your first bicycle? In the beginner’s mind, it was the next step in being a big kid, and it meant being open to making mistakes and being willing to take a huge risk.
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.
Our mission is to inspire and empower ALL students to become competent, confident communicators by providing superior educational solutions and innovative teacher training tools. This will enable all students to positively impact their school, community, and future work environments.
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