8th Grade ELA Teacher Essentials: 11 Top Teaching Tools

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Teaching 8th grade ELA can be a uniquely rewarding experience, as long as you’ve got the right tools. A good classroom management system, a novel list, and a set of writing prompts go a long way to set students and teachers up for success. But is that enough to prepare new teenagers for 9th grade?

We’ve gathered our favorite 8th grade ELA teacher essentials, including tips for brand-new teachers and seasoned veterans alike. All you need to add is a classroom full of eager middle schoolers, and you’ve got the best school year ever!

1. Maintain a steady stash of supplies

Anyone who’s taught language arts (or any class, really) has heard “I forgot my pencil” more times than they can count. Keep the excuses at bay with a cabinet full of loaner pens and pencils, extra paper, file folders, dry erase markers, and sticky notes for students to use as needed. Check with your admin for any supply stipend, or take advantage of those back-to-school sales.

And don’t stop with the office supplies! Have a stack of middle schooler-approved novels for students who left their book at home, don’t like the book they chose from the library, or need a more calibrated book choice for their reading level.

2. Include review materials in your curriculum

It’s easy to assume that 8th graders know the foundations of grammar, vocabulary, and writing, but that’s not always the case. Integrate these basics in your curriculum at the beginning of the school year and throughout each ELA unit to ensure every student is ready for the demands of high school.

For students who are testing below grade level, incorporate the CCSS for language arts that are closer to their actual abilities. You can fill in learning gaps before they’re confronted with even harder material next year!

Decorate your classroom with vocabulary words

Nothing says “ELA class” like a word wall! Use bulletin board or wall space in your classroom to display vocabulary words that students need to know or might discover in their class reading.

Editable ELA Word Wall for Middle School
By Erin Beers from Mrs Beers Language Arts Classroom
Grades: 5th-8th
Standards: CCSS CCRA.L.5, L.6

Do your students know the difference between voice and opinion in a story? What about the difference between summarizing and synthesizing? Use bold, easy-to-read poster cutouts to display common ELA concepts around your classroom as a word wall.

3. Choose a classroom management system

You’ve worked hard on your lessons; don’t let student behavior derail your plans! From setting up behavior expectations and consequences early to securing classroom seating arrangements, establishing a solid classroom management system keeps students comfortable and your lesson on track.

The biggest key to classroom management is modeling the behavior you want students to exhibit. It sounds too easy to be true, but if you’re calm and self-assured, the majority of your students will follow suit. (For the students who don’t, refer to the consequences mentioned above!)

4. Provide relevant reading materials

It’s no secret that 8th grade ELA teacher essentials include the middle school literary canon. But one secret to a successful year is in giving students a choice on what they read, including modern, relevant texts that resonate with their lives.

Bridge themes and topics across classic literature and 21st-century literature for an innovative novel unit they’ll never forget. Add more works that represent multiple voices and cultures, and let students choose from a list of titles to ensure they’ll be engaged in the reading.

5. Keep writing prompts on hand 

Some 8th graders claim they don’t like writing, but we all know those 8th graders just haven’t found the right prompt yet! Use 8th grade writing prompts throughout your curriculum to keep their pencils moving and their minds creating. 

Journal topics, argumentative prompts, and narrative writing ideas are sure to pique middle schoolers’ interest, especially if you have them write every day. Once they’re used to writing a paragraph or two every day, writing five paragraphs for a standard essay won’t seem so daunting!

No 8th grader will admit it, but middle schoolers love structure. It makes them feel comfortable and organized, and it helps you run your class as efficiently as possible. Establishing classroom organization by listing learning objectives, assignment due dates, and upcoming tests in your classroom lets you (and your students) stay one step ahead of the schedule.

And in order to list them, you need to plan them! Use a lesson plan template that allows for a structured approach with some flexibility to adjust for student needs. 

State your standards and objectives at the start of the lesson

“What are we learning today?” Answer their question without saying a word when you display the learning standards and goals for the lesson you’re about to teach. Students will know what the plan for today is and whether they’ve met their objectives.

Learning Standards, Goals, Objectives, or “I can” Statement Poster Template
By Write on with Miss G

This resource teaches students the most important lesson of all: They can do it! With editable “I can” statement slides as well as standard and objective slides, middle schoolers feel organized and successful from the moment class begins.

7. Decide how you’ll communicate with students, caregivers, and admin

No one likes a surprise (unless it’s their birthday!). Whether it’s the end of the grading period or the beginning of a big project, communication with 8th graders and their caregivers is key. Send out weekly communications with parents and use classroom messaging systems to ensure students know what’s expected of them.

Don’t forget admin in your communications! Invite members of your administration to meet with you during conferences or observe your class from time to time, even when it’s not required by your contract. Seeing you in action keeps them in the loop with what you’re doing, better equipping the front office to meet your and your students’ needs.

8. Add accountability activities to your units

Teachers don’t give grades — students earn them. Make this message a core part of your class foundations with accountability programs from day one. Ask students what grade they’d like to earn in your class, then have them create a plan to actually earn that grade. 

Once it’s time for report cards, have students reflect on their work and assess whether they stuck to their plan. You can even make the assessment part of their final grade (or extra credit if they earned that A they wanted)!

9. Incorporate project management

Assigning too much homework can be detrimental to kids, rather than helpful. Instead of nightly ELA assignments that keep them up late, inspire students to hone a more important skill: time management. Encourage students to balance project work between their class and home time, giving them ample time to finish without procrastinating.

And speaking of procrastinating, project-based learning is a great way to make students aware of their own study habits. Have regular check-ins, reflections, and team sessions to keep students on track during a bigger project. Assign mini-goals for them to accomplish before the deadline, and provide smaller project grades for each successful milestone. 

10. Be prepared for the unexpected

The most successful teachers are the ones who roll with the punches. Whether it’s too many kids and not enough desks, a sub day right before finals, or a fully planned unit for a novel students read last year, staying on your toes is vital for keeping your class running well.

Have backup plans, sub plans, differentiated materials, lessons that address all learning types, and endless discussion questions to use up those last five minutes before the bell. By staying flexible, you’ll meet more student needs and model a growth mindset for students!

Keep learning on track with emergency ELA sub plans

A sub day doesn’t have to be a lost day in your lesson books. Make sure students keep the momentum of your curriculum going with sub plans for any unit or lesson that’s planned for the day. Having a sub plan template also keeps you from late-night planning sessions when you’re not feeling well!

Middle School ELA Curriculum | Emergency Sub Plans for 6th, 7th, 8th
By Performing in Education
Grades: 6th-8th
Standards: CCSS RL.6.1, 2, 3, 4, 5, RL.7.1, 2, 3, 4, RL.8.1, 2, 3, 4, RI.6.1, 2, 4, 5, 6, RI.7.1, 2, 4, 5, 6, RI.8.1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, W.6.9, 7.9b, 8.9

Step-by-step lesson plans, reading passages, graphic organizers, and discussion questions make these ELA plans a no-prep solution for sub days! Anyone can take over your class and lead students in an enriching and engaging lesson, ensuring bell-to-bell instruction.

11. Keep a copy of your teaching philosophy nearby

Every ELA teacher has dreamed of avid discussions about an inspiring novel, rapt students poring over a poem, or inspired writers furiously tapping out a perfectly structured essay. Bring your dream to life — yes, even the essay one! — by staying true to your teaching philosophy.

Choose books you love to talk about, poems that give you goosebumps, and writing lessons that really reach your students. When you’re enthralled with the subject matter you chose to teach the next generation, you’ll bring willing readers and writers right alongside you.

8th Grade ELA teacher Essentials You Didn’t Know You Needed

Sometimes the difference between an average lesson and a great one is having the right tools! Keep your classroom stocked and ready with these simple school materials that may not have been on your checklist.

• A wireless speaker to play music for class transitions, audiobook clips, or even interviews with authors
• A lesson book or template that makes planning easy and intuitive
• A filing system to keep multiple periods of students organized
• Old magazines and newspapers for literature or poetry collages
• Individual whiteboards for group answers or brainstorming
• A paper gradebook (to back up your online gradebook)
• A fun timer to keep students on task
• A spot in your classroom for students to work independently
• Baskets of reading supplies, such as finger highlighters, sticky notes, and unique bookmarks 
• Printed literary reference materials, including dictionaries and thesauruses

Seamlessly transition 8th grade ELA students to high school

By the time students have reached 8th grade, they may have already decided what kind of students they are. When you add these 8th grade ELA teacher essentials to your repertoire, you’ll reinforce the success they’ve chosen or inspire struggling students to find a new method of learning.

Find more 8th grade ELA resources that meet students where they are and motivate them to strive for more. Once they’ve gained these important middle school skills, there’s no stopping them in high school!