18 Fun Choice Activities to Boost Engagement in ELA Class

Heads tilt and lean into palms.  Eyes repeatedly glance to the clock on the wall.

Some pencils dance on notebooks.  Some pencils tap on desks.  Some pencils remain motionless.

Sporadic yawns and intermittent exhales of breath serve as the background noise to the too-maintained lecturer voice.

Occasional hands are raised by the few eager students in the classroom.  These new voices break up the monotony, though only for a few moments.

Several students let out low-volume groans as homework is assigned that once again entails answering questions about today’s reading.

Have you lived this painful scenario?

Are you beginning to panic as you silently answer “yes”?

There’s no shame in that.

Many new teachers fall into this trap now and then of delivering a painfully boring lesson.  This does not mean that you have failed as an educator.

There is good news.  That mind-numbing scenario can be prevented with choice activities.  These activities can be done in class and at home.  

The best part is that this list of activities can be used with nearly any text.

Read on to uncover student-approved activities for individuals and groups!

14 Interesting Individual Activities

English language arts, of course, revolves around reading and writing.  It also incorporates thinking analytically, making connections, and creating visual representations of content.

Here are 14 fun assignments your students can self-select for the texts they are reading or watching.

• Write a poem/song/rap about the text’s plot, themes, characters, conflicts, etc.
• Write journal entries as each of the characters
• Write an additional chapter picking up where the story ends
• Write and deliver a speech explaining whether this text should continue to be read
• Cast actors to play each role in a movie or TV series
• Find one or more paired texts (novel, short story, song, news article, historical document, artwork, etc.) to complement the selected text
• Draw a comic strip showing the five parts of the story’s plot
• Research the author to uncover the author’s inspiration for the text; make connections between the author and the text; create a list of five questions you would want to ask the author to enhance your understanding of the text
• Create a list of “what if” questions (and provide answers) that would affect the plot: different time; different place; protagonist was the opposite gender; protagonist was older or younger; character X was not in the story; decision X was not made, etc.
• Create a social media account for one of the characters
• Create a collage that represents the text’s plot, themes, characters, conflicts, etc.
• Rewrite a chapter from a different character’s perspective
• Rewrite a chapter as a different genre (mystery, horror, romance, sci-fi, action, fairy tale, biography, etc.)
• Use five words or phrases to describe each of the text’s characters, and use text evidence to support those descriptions

These are only a handful of many tasks that your students can have fun completing individually.

Depending on how intensive you’d like the results of the activities, they can be used as classwork, homework, or projects.

If you want to focus on specific literary concepts, you can include assignments that ask your students to identify relevant examples from the text.  This may include citing uses of symbolism, irony, personification, foreshadowing, inferencing, just to name a few.

That work can also be connected to one of the more fun projects listed above.  For example, if there is an emphasis on symbolism in the text, you might require that symbolic elements be included in a song that a student writes or in a collage that a learner creates.

You may consider creating guidelines for selection.  This could include categorizing the activities and requiring each student to complete one activity from each group.  This way, each student has a sense of autonomy and enjoyment from choosing his or her activities, while making sure the necessary skills are applied and the desired concepts are explored.

4 Groovy Group Activities

While it is important to have individual assignments to assess each student’s academic skill level, group work is also important for building the abilities to communicate and to cooperate with others.  Plus, students are often excited to collaborate with their peers.

Here are four exciting group activities your students can participate in as related to any text.

• Create a trivia game, such as in the style of Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit
• Create a script for a podcast from two or more characters; students can either present it live to the class or show a filmed version
• Act out a scene from the story  
• Debate whether character X was responsible for event X

Just like with the individual assignments, these are just a few of numerous projects your learners can work on in groups.

Depending on the duration of the text and any accompanying lessons, these activities can be worked on either at the completion of the text or first at the halfway point and again at the end.

If the text is a long work, such as a novel or a play, the same activity can be done twice with additions or changes the second time.

Revisiting an activity allows the students to build upon the new knowledge gained from the text.  This may mean that the students will now think critically, form new perspectives, and/or have more information about the characters and the plot to add significance to their project.

Benefits of Choice Activities

Whether your students are working individually or in groups, providing them with a list of activities to select from is a sure way to ignite excitement.

When a learner chooses what to do, the assignment’s fun factor increases.  He or she may even feel more ownership over this project compared to other assignments because the act of deciding on a topic makes it personal.  A student who does not normally put in effort may develop intrinsic motivation to put pride into their work because it is something they have selected.  

Allowing students to pick the type of activities they do also allows them to delve into their interests.  A student who enjoys writing may gravitate towards writing a chapter picking up where a story ends, while someone who loves drawing may be drawn to creating a comic of the story.      

Reflection to Get Feedback from Students

With any project, it is helpful to have your students write reflections about the choice activities, both the individual ones and the group ones.

The act of thinking in self-reflection allows your students to become self-aware.  It also provides an opportunity for them to be honest with themselves and with you.

As for being honest with themselves, each student can genuinely assess the effort he or she put into the project.  He or she can also mention what they feel went well and what they believe they could improve on for future activities.  Each student can think about what they learned from this activity and how they have grown from it. 

When it comes to being honest with you, the reflection is a chance for students to share what they liked and did not like about the activities.  It is also an opportunity for them to suggest ideas for other activities and/or how the existing projects can be improved. 

Choice activities can be ever-changing and evolving.  More options can be added that are specific to the text being read and/or to be interests of your students.  Be open to providing choices as often as possible.  The boost of engagement means there is an increase of skills being used and an abundance of learning taking place.

What choice activities do you recommend?  Share your comment below!

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Peace.  Love.  Reading & Writing.

💗 Miss M