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101 Sentence-Building ELA Games

Sen

ten

ce N

inja

become a true

ninja of sentence

construction

the student shall

Sentence Ninja #1 Challenge: Cut out the word tiles below. Then, use them to create the lengthiest, most meaningful sentence possible by arranging them on your desktop in any order. Record your sentence in the space provided. For every word used, you score the number of points shown on its tile. For each mistake in grammar, punctuation, spelling, or capitalization, you shall be deducted 1 point.

municipal

all at the zoo

escaped

captivity animals

rampaged gorilla

and in the held

has of the only

Points

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

2

2

3

3

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Sentence Ninja #1 Challenge: Cut out the word tiles below. Then, use them to create the lengthiest, most meaningful sentence possible by arranging them on your desktop in any order. Record your sentence in the space provided. For every word used, you score the number of points shown on its tile. For each mistake in grammar, punctuation, spelling, or capitalization, you shall be deducted 1 point.

municipal

all at the zoo

escaped

captivity animals

rampaged gorilla

and in the held

has of the only

Points

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

2

2

3

3

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Sentence Ninja Answer Keys: #001: Of all the animals held in captivity at the municipal zoo, only the gorilla has escaped and rampaged.

#002: Under the light of the moon, all things covered in snow seemed to glimmer like bits of glitter.

#003: While shopping at the grocery store, it was a surprise to discover cookies being sold at a discount.

#004: Racing boxcars can be risky if children as young as four years old are allowed to be drivers.

#005: The total number of fatalities wheeled into the hospital tonight was high, due to lots of car accidents.

#006: A furious guy fell down the side of the cliff after yelling at other climbers to ascend faster.

#007: As the frail custodian swept the floor with his broom, he whistled, out loud, a familiar melody.

#008: While digging in the sand, two kids unearthed a trinket of incredible value that sparkled in the sun.

#009: The crash was so deafening, with shattering glass and crunching metal, that it was doubtful anyone survived it.

#010: No one at the open market was buying the produce on account of it being so terribly bruised.

#011: The talented musician wiggled wildly here and there, as he got a few audience members to sing along.

#012: The regal judge became quite mad after a reckless attorney cut him off by speaking out of turn.

#013: My dad used earplugs to avoid the annoying racket of the unruly teenagers running around in the alley.

#014: The bees felt joyous, due to a bountiful harvest of dandelion leaves that will feed them all winter.

#015: Each time her pet dragon was very ill, noticed the queen, it could not breathe flames on command.

#016: The student winced as she saw the teacher step on her favorite pencil, breaking it into many bits.

#017: The final repair bill for the damage an evil robot did to the city totaled millions of dollars.

#018: It was not long until the burglar made a mistake by breaking a window to trip the security alarm.

#019: We can't let my dad order the pizza, as he always gets gross toppings like garlic and anchovies.

#020: The end of our world happened when the sky fell to the ground abruptly, crushing all things.

#021: Do not go down into the deepest part of the basement, as that is where the wickedest monsters dwell.

#022: The girls kept their big collection of water balloons, candy, and comics up in the old tree house.

#023: As the train increased speed, a few daring ruffians tried to leap aboard, but fell and were injured.

#024: Prior to the invention of video games, the tiny toy shop in the mall had countless more customers.

#025: If you eat the berries from wild shrubbery, you will get queasy and throw up your stomach contents.

#026: Once darkness had consumed the small town, we could hear animals howling scarily out in the far distance.

#027: Is it true the biggest rock star on our planet is playing at the stadium the following month?

#028: The ninjas got in by scaling the west side of the tower and then subduing a sleepy guard.

#029: The odor wafting from the bathroom, after the portly guy had emerged, sickened those of us in proximity.

#030: It is not a very good idea to try riding a tornado, let alone while wearing only undies.

#031: "Can we have cereal for breakfast today?" asked the girl, as her mom gave the daughter an embrace.

#032: When the football game was over, the doctor had his hands full—tending to the injuries of players.

#033: As he struggled to take a nap in the hammock, kids surprised him with squirts from water pistols.

#034: Our favorite part of camping is that we all get to tell scary ghost stories around the fire.

101 Quick Story Composition Prompts

Rap

id W

rite

Rapid Write #1 Challenge: Use the information you have selected in the 3 steps below to write a very brief story in the space provided. Don't shy away from using dialogue!

Step 1 - Pick a Character:

Step 2 - Select a Setting:

Deserted Island, or

School Playground

Step 3 - Choose an Event:

Winning a Contest, or

Wild Animal Attack

Delbert

Jessica

Title

One summer afternoon,

The end.

or

Rapid Write #1 Challenge: Use the information you have selected in the 3 steps below to write a very brief story in the space provided. Don't shy away from using dialogue!

Step 1 - Pick a Character:

Step 2 - Select a Setting:

Deserted Island, or

School Playground

Step 3 - Choose an Event:

Winning a Contest, or

Wild Animal Attack

Delbert

Jessica

Title

One summer afternoon,

The end.

or

`

101 Vocabulary Word Puzzles

Syn

on

ym S

trin

g A

Q

U

E

O

W

T

U

S

S

A

K

E

D

L

W

T

O

R

I Z

A

A

B

D

Synonym String

#1 Challenge: Complete the string of synonyms for the word hot by using the given bank of letters.

Letter Bank:

E

R

S

H

S

L

R

Y

B

I

T

L

N

H

T

E

D

F

A

I

B

I

R

I

N

G

N

O

I

L

G

Y

E

E

E

E

F

G

I

I

I

L

L

M

N

N

N

O

R

R

R

S

S

T

T

T

U

V

Z

Z

L

W

T

O

R

I Z

A

A

B

D

Synonym String

#1 Challenge: Complete the string of synonyms for the word hot by using the given bank of letters.

Letter Bank:

E

R

S

H

S

L

R

Y

B

I

T

L

N

H

T

E

D

F

A

I

B

I

R

I

N

G

N

O

I

L

G

Y

E

E

E

E

F

G

I

I

I

L

L

M

N

N

N

O

R

R

R

S

S

T

T

T

U

V

Z

Z

G

G

101 Word Making Language Arts Games

Wo

rd W

izar

d

Word Wizard #1 Challenge: Cut out the letter tiles below. Then, in the time allotted by your teacher, arrange them in different orders to make as many words with 3 or more letters as you can, and record them in the grid (along with the points scored) as shown. There's even a word to create that uses all 9 letters!

D T A E R E U V N

Points State Your Words!

nerd (7),

2 2 1 1 2 1 1 5 2

Word Wizard #1 Challenge: Cut out the letter tiles below. Then, in the time allotted by your teacher, arrange them in different orders to make as many words with 3 or more letters as you can, and record them in the grid (along with the points scored) as shown. There's even a word to create that uses all 9 letters!

D T A E R E U V N

Points State Your Words!

nerd (7),

2 2 1 1 2 1 1 5 2

The following entries are a list of words that can be created with each Word Wizard game. Please note that only words considered part of conversational English have been included, while plurals and other tenses of the same word have been intentionally excluded for the sake of brevity. As the teacher, you may obviously accept plurals and other tenses of the words listed here, as well as more obscure English language words that aren't listed. In short, these are not intended to be exhaustive lists of every possible word that can be created with the same nine letters, but rather concise lists of the most common words that students are likely to create (in their base forms).

#1: art, ear, ate, tea, rat, red, van, ran, rut, nut, eat, run eve, end, tan, ant, rad, ten, date, dart, tear, teen, dare, earn, true, rant, deer, rude, rate, tree, tune, rent, true, vent, veer, nerd, runt, tuna, turn, ever, evade, trade, never, enter, tread, trend, trade, venue, nature, tender, advert, avenue, tavern, venture, veteran, adventure.

#2: eat, ate, ear, tea, tar, air, rat, art, are, tie, tin, tire, ran, ten, net, tan, ant, rate, rain, irate, rant, run, nut, near, true, earn, rent, neat, tuna, aunt, train, ram, aim, arm, mat, rim, inert, runt, turn, tune, team, tame, time, unite, untie, trim, meat, retain, term, mare, man, mane, mean, name, nature, mint, timer, mute, merit, meant, menu, urinate, remain, marine, mature, interim, minute, mature, manure, ruminate, miniature.

#3: how, low, mow, owl, see, sew, she, who, sole, seem, lose, hole, solo, home, heel, hose, whom, helm, howl, wool, mole, slow, loom, moose, loose, woosh, wheel, whole, whose, somehow, woesome, wholesome.

#4: sea, age, ago, end, lid, oil, log, nag, son, dog, sad, and, gas, nod, soil, slid, said, loan, lend, sail, silo, soda, sing, sole, node, gold, land, sand, gone, lane, sane, sled, idea, song, long, seal, idle, lead, line, lose, send, snag, nail, nose, legs, lion, side, soda, sign, load, deal, dose, dean, does, gain, gild, dole, aide, glad, done, dong, ding, goal, snide, alien, gland, lodge, solid, lined, ideal, alone, slain, along, lingo, salon, slang, angle, slide, sling, noise, snail, glide, aisle, angel, dongle, island, denial, design, dosage, single, goalie, golden, slogan, losing, gasoline, alongside.

#5: bed, bee, bet, bid, bit, dew, die, hid, hit, ice, the, tie, web, wed, wet, wit, beet, dice, diet, itch, edit, wide, tide, chew, etch, weed, heed, hide, debt, white, width, edict, witch, debit, twice, ditch, deceit, bewitched.

#6: tea, ash, had, sea, see, axe, has, hat she, due, hue, hut, sue, eat, sad, sat, tax, dust, shed, thud, shut, thus, east, stud, used, hate, dash, head, seed, heat, duet, tease, exude, death, steed, haste, exhausted.

#7: fit, tin, aim, for, ton, too, ran, man, rat, ant, rim, not, arm, oar, art, fan, far, fat, tan, rot, oat, tar, roam, moat, into, moon, roof, foam, room, torn, main, mint, onto, root, raft, font, fair, foot, form, farm, rant, fort, fart, moan, moot, trio, rift, riot, from, afoot, manor, minor, train, moron, motif, faint, motor, front, ratio, motion, ration, format, inform, maroon, monitor, formation.

#8: cot, sit, zit, cue, cut, tie, toe, out, ice, set, use, met, stem, zest, most, cost, suit, item, muse, must, mice, cute, time, mute, size, mist, some, oust, emit, moist, mouse, music, suite, stoic, scout, sitcom, costume, customize.

#9: ace, bun, nub, cab, can, cub, cue, man, men, ban, able, calm, male, name, came, lamb, acne, cane, lame, mane, bane, maul, numb, clan, lube, bean, club, meal, mean, cube, clue, menu, mule, blue, lace, clean, uncle, amble, lance, album, banal, blame, cable, manual, balance, ambulance.

#10: oar, ant, oat, tar, art, our, ton, out, toy, ran, try, lay, rat, lot, ray, rot, run, van rut, not nut, tan, torn, volt, tour, yarn, tray, your, aunt, navy, runt, tuna, auto, turn, loan, only, oral, oval, rant, vary, royal, valor, talon, vault, truly, ultra, layout, outran, notary, voluntary.

#11: bed, doe, foe, one, orb, for, end, bin, end, red, rib, rid, nod, rob, rod, did, die, odd, robe, rode, done, bend, nod, fond, bind, fern, bond, dine, bone, find, iron, ride, fine, born, nerd, fire, diner, fried, robin, frond, droid, bored, drone, bride, brief, fiend, friend, fodder, ridden, bonfire, forbidden.

101 Word-Building Spelling/Vocabulary Games

Wo

rd C

hun

ks

st

reet

op

Word Chunks #1 Challenge: Cut out the tiles and place them face-down in a pile. When your teacher tells you to begin, flip them over and try to combine the tiles into words. Your goal is to make all 12 words in the time your teacher allows. For each word created, you score 1 point. If you can't create all of the words the first time, don't worry! You'll play more than one round to see if you can increase your score.

gr

ba

water

ki

blue

ch

p

pine

man

p

straw

or

berry

erry

each

go

ange

berry

nana

melon

ape

ear

apple wi

Theme:

Fruits

Word Chunks #1 Challenge: Cut out the tiles and place them face-down in a pile. When your teacher tells you to begin, flip them over and try to combine the tiles into words. Your goal is to make all 12 words in the time your teacher allows. For each word created, you score 1 point. If you can't create all of the words the first time, don't worry! You'll play more than one round to see if you can increase your score.

gr

ba

water

ki

blue

ch

p

pine

man

p

straw

or

berry

erry

each

go

ange

berry

nana

melon

ape

ear

apple wi

Theme:

Fruits

Word Chunks Answer Keys: 1. Fruits: banana, watermelon, cherry, orange, grape, pineapple, strawberry, blueberry, kiwi, peach, mango, pear. 2. Flowers: rose, daffodil, daisy, lily, orchid, tulip, poppy, sunflower, petunia, violet, marigold, dandelion. 3. Aircraft: airplane, satellite, helicopter, rocket, jetpack, dirigible, glider, balloon, spaceship, jet, hovercraft, drone. 4. Cold: frigid, frosty, frozen, snowy, wintry, cool, chilly, brisk, arctic, glacial, icy, boreal. 5. Desserts: sundae, muffin, lollipop, cookie, popsicle, pie, chocolate, candy, cupcake, donut, gelatin, pudding. 6. Water: ocean, pool, lake, river, stream, sea, creek, puddle, pond, lagoon, spring, swamp. 7. Drinks: soda, juice, coffee, tea, milk, smoothie, milkshake, wine, water, punch, beverage, seltzer, brew 8. Pirates: treasure, booty, ship, cannon, parrot, captain, map, sword, ocean, island, mutiny, hook. 9. Beasts: monster, demon, devil, dragon, freak, giant, brute, creature, critter, barbarian, savage, fiend. 10. To Shout: hoot, howl, screech, shriek, squawk, wail, whoop, yell, scream, roar, holler, bellow. 11. Friends: confidant, ally, associate, buddy, pal, playmate, companion, partner, chum, cohort, sidekick, crony. 12. Instruments: guitar, piano, drums, bass, harp, flute, tuba, violin, clarinet, saxophone, cymbals, trombone. 13. Happy: cheerful, overjoyed, ecstatic, elated, glad, joyful, jolly, merry, pleased, thrilled, upbeat, gleeful. 14. Winter: cold, blizzard, icicles, shovel, snowflake, scarf, sled, mittens, plow, coat, sweater, boots. 15. House: apartment, shack, condo, dwelling, home, mansion, residence, castle, digs, domicile, abode, building. 16. Red: crimson, coral, maroon, burgundy, brick, blush, rose, cardinal, fuchsia, ruby, salmon, scarlet, vermilion. 17. Group: array, jumble, gaggle, collection, combination, mishmash, mixture, medley, assortment, selection, mélange, combo. 18. Empty: bare, barren, blank, deserted, desolate, devoid, hollow, unfilled, lacking, vacant, stark, depleted. 19. Halloween: pumpkin, autumn, haunted, spooky, costume, werewolf, scarecrow, ghost, witch, candy, vampire, graveyard. 20. Bugs: spider, ladybug, ant, beetle, dragonfly, butterfly, termite, cricket, mosquito, moth, wasp, worm. 21. Sports: basketball, baseball, football, hockey, tennis, golf, soccer, volleyball, bowling, rugby, racing, boxing, cycling. 22. Tools: drill, hacksaw, hammer, level, wrench, screwdriver, trowel, crowbar, chisel, pliers, scissors, ratchet. 23. Farm Life: horse, cow, tractor, barn, harvest, crops, seed, herd, farmer, livestock, chicken, pig, hay. 24. To Throw: fling, chuck, flip, lob, pitch, catapult, flick, launch, toss, sling, cast, hurl. 25. To Eat: consume, devour, chew, feed, ingest, inhale, nibble, swallow, absorb, scarf, snack, lunch, graze. 26. Weather: tornado, lightning, thunder, rainstorm, snowfall, sleet, tsunami, drought, clouds, rainbow, fog, wind. 27. Big: colossal, enormous, fat, gigantic, hefty, huge, immense, massive, large, bulky, jumbo, monster. 28. Camping: forest, hiking, tent, campfire, sunshine, fishing, flashlight, compass, canoe, firewood, rifle, hunting. 29. Road: avenue, boulevard, highway, lane, roadway, street, route, thoroughfare, trail, drive, parkway, track, drag. 30. Animals: bear, fox, deer, rabbit, squirrel, snake, porcupine, raccoon, beaver, skunk, turtle, coyote. 31. Blue: azure, cerulean, cobalt, indigo, navy, sapphire, teal, aqua, sky, royal, turquoise, bluish. 32. Space: planet, meteor, rocket, spaceship, sun, star, alien, astronaut, moon, asteroid, satellite, shuttle. 33. Clothing: socks, underwear, hat, gloves, shirt, sweater, pants, shorts, jacket, blouse, dress, skirt. 34. Dirty: crummy, dusty, filthy, greasy, grimy, muddy, murky, stained, unkempt, sullied, unclean, soiled. 35. Trees: cedar, hickory, willow, pecan, poplar, pine, maple, coconut, walnut, birch, oak, elm. 36. Ocean: shark, squid, dolphin, whale, penguin, lobster, jellyfish, shrimp, octopus, walrus, seahorse, stingray, albatross. 37. Containers: lunchbox, backpack, basket, bottle, bucket, briefcase, canteen, pocket, saddlebag, crate, drawer, jug, pouch. 38. Hot: scorching, scalding ovenlike, heated, blistering, fiery, sweltering, burning, sizzling, torrid, warm, tropical. 39. Sports Verbs: shoot, score, slap, throw, catch, dribble, block, sprint, pass, swing, pitch, kick, tackle. 40. Love: like, admire, cherish, worship, adulate, fancy, adore, prefer, prize, treasure, idolize, glorify. 41. Money: cash, funds, capital, currency, salary, wages, coinage, dough, moolah, bucks, bread, green. 42. Error: blunder, failure, mistake, glitch, misstep, wrong, goof, slipup, boner, miscue, lapse, miss. 43. To Look: glance, peer, see, stare, study, view, watch, notice, gape, gawk, gaze, glower, rubberneck. 44. Music: alternative, blues, classical, country, dance, electronic, hip-hop, jazz, pop, soul, reggae, rock, opera. 45. Crazy: insane, kooky, mad, nutty, wacky, berserk, cuckoo, psycho, bonkers, delirious, deranged, screwy. 46. Movies: comedy, adventure, drama, action, thriller, romance, horror, musical, western, animated, crime, slapstick. 47. Smelly: rank, foul, fetid, stinking, putrid, stinky, reeking, funky, rancid, strong, whiffy, mephitic. 48. Part: chunk, detail, element, member, piece, section, segment, unit, allotment, fragment, parcel, sliver. 49. Art Supplies: canvas, paint, brush, pastels, pencil, marker, pens, clay, watercolor, paper, crayons, eraser, scissors. 50. The Fall: autumn, leaves, harvest, feast, hayride, pumpkin, scarecrow, crops, chilly, rainstorm, rake, firewood, sweater.

101 Six-Letter Word Scramble Puzzles

All

Mix

ed-U

p

All Mixed-Up #1 Challenge: The sequence of letters for the following 12 words is all mixed-up. Read the brief clue for each word. Then, unscramble them by rewriting their letters in the correct order. 1. a writer.

r h a u t o

2. holiday decoration.

e t h a r w

3. lungful of air.

t e b a r h

4. a thing.

o j c e b t

5. male parent.

h f e a r t

6. a person who hunts.

u h e t n r

7. to fasten or secure.

n h c r o a

8. a water spout.

a c u f e t

9. a quantity.

a u o t n m

10. a feat or deed.

t c a o n i

11. to argue.

b k c i r e

12. a pail.

c u t b e k

All Mixed-Up #1 Challenge: The sequence of letters for the following 12 words is all mixed-up. Read the brief clue for each word. Then, unscramble them by rewriting their letters in the correct order. 1. a writer.

r h a u t o

2. holiday decoration.

e t h a r w

3. lungful of air.

t e b a r h

4. a thing.

o j c e b t

5. male parent.

h f e a r t

6. a person who hunts.

u h e t n r

7. to fasten or secure.

n h c r o a

8. a water spout.

a c u f e t

9. a quantity.

a u o t n m

10. a feat or deed.

t c a o n i

11. to argue.

b k c i r e

12. a pail.

c u t b e k

101 Dialogue Writing Prompts

Smal

l Tal

k

Small Talk #1 Challenge: Write the dialogue that is being spoken between the two comic characters you see below. They can be talking about anything your brain can imagine. Be creative!

Small Talk #1 Challenge: Write the dialogue that is being spoken between the two comic characters you see below. They can be talking about anything your brain can imagine. Be creative!

101 Word Find Vocabulary Puzzles

Lett

er L

ink

B A L

L O

O N

Letter Link #1 Challenge: Find, and shade, the words from the bank in the group of linked letters below. b d h j e g j r a n g e d k z

l a c j o l c o t l q t u f y

n f k e d n w o s p i n b n v

k p m p e e a w b i z k v k s

c g w c r u n e z u d f o d r

m a t m g k f y s o g i d n i

l f e b c w a e y o i l r u o

e k l k t o l l g c m s a h e

i i o t j i o d y j v e w s o

c v r g t g w o s h c r i m n

Word Bank:

v i o l e t

i n d i g o

p i n k

b l a c k

g r e e n

y e l l o w

c r i m s o n

o r a n g e

Letter Link #1 Challenge: Find, and shade, the words from the bank in the group of linked letters below. b d h j e g j r a n g e d k z

l a c j o l c o t l q t u f y

n f k e d n w o s p i n b n v

k p m p e e a w b i z k v k s

c g w c r u n e z u d f o d r

m a t m g k f y s o g i d n i

l f e b c w a e y o i l r u o

e k l k t o l l g c m s a h e

i i o t j i o d y j v e w s o

c v r g t g w o s h c r i m n

Word Bank: v i o l e t

i n d i g o

p i n k

b l a c k

g r e e n

y e l l o w

c r i m s o n

o r a n g e