Teaching has a whole new meaning in the wake of COVID-19. Suddenly, you’ve switched from a blended learning style to a fully online format. At times like this, it’s important to adapt to the current situation and move toward new solutions with your students.
When it comes to writing, there are a plethora of free, fun online tools that can help your students become better writers. Encourage your students to use these resources so they’ll stay engaged while learning proper grammar and writing techniques. Below are a few websites and tools to get you started.
1. Magnetic Poetry
The play online Magnetic Poetry website helps students create poems and share them with friends. The poetry kits provide a collection of words students can then rearrange to form unique and amusing poems. This is a great option for students who need a little help getting started.
2. NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program
National Novel Writing Month is a fun and creative challenge people everywhere enjoy. The NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program is a wonderful way to get students involved in the main novel writing event held in November and participate in smaller creative writing challenges throughout the year. The NaNoWriMo website is also filled with a ton of great writing content to keep your students engaged and inspired.
3. Grammarly
Grammarly is a writing assistance tool that students can add as a Chrome extension. This tool will not only help check their writing for spelling and grammar mistakes, but it can also detect tone and sentences that are too wordy or unclear.
4. Word Count Tool
Word Count Tool has a number of features that will benefit students. First, students can quickly determine not only how many words and characters are in their writing assignment, but it will also tell them their word count statistics. This includes information on the number of unique and difficult words included in the text. It also rates the readability level to let them know if they need to improve.
5. Read Relevant
More traditional resources are also important to share with your students. One of my most popular products uses the RACE Strategy to help your students master all aspects of writing through writing prompts, reading comprehension exercises, and more. Get free digital downloads here!
I am SO GLAD I found your worksheet series on Season 1 of Billy Nye Saves the World. Way to go!!!! Super discussion questions, it’s brilliant. I’m a huge fan of the show, it’s so well done, and I want to go through it with my kids in a meaningful, critically thinking way. We started homeschooling so we could be free to travel with them, and this resources is a perfect fit for us.
THANK YOU for your hard and thoughtful work – I’m sure I’ll be coming back!
Rachel
Thanks so much for your comment and your support, Rachel! I’m glad it was helpful!