Think-Tac-Toe: Using
Choice Boards in the
Language Arts
Classroom
Choice as
Differentiation
• Students like to feel as though they are in control of
their learning.
• Setting up Choice Boards, Menus, etc. allows you to
give students choice while controlling the complexity
of the activities.
• Most of the time, these boards can be created based
from Bloom’s Taxonomy
Example—based on
Bloom’s
Create a pair of collages that
compares you and a character in
the book. Compare and
contrast physical and
personality traits. Label your
collages so viewers understand
your thinking.
Write a bio-poem about
yourself and another about a
main character in a book so
your readers see how you and
the character are alike and
different. Be sure to include the
most important traits in each
poem.
Write a recipe or a set of
directions for how you would
solve a problem and another for
how a main character in the
book would solve a problem.
Your list should help us know
you and the character.
Using a digital tool, write a
greeting card that invites us into
the scenery and mood of an
important part of the book. Be
sure the verse helps us
understand what is important in
the scene and why.
Make a digital model or map of
a key place in your life and an
important one in the novel. Find
a way to help viewers understand
both what the places are like and
why they are important in your
life and the characters’.
Make 2 timelines. The first
should describe 6-8 shifts in
setting in the book. The second
should explain and illustrate how
the mood changes with the
change in setting.
Using quote books, find at least
6-8 that you feel reflect what’s
important about the novel’s
theme. Find at least 6-8 that do
the same for your life. Display in
digital form and explain your
choices.
Interview a key character from
the book to find out what lessons
he/she thinks we should learn
from events in the book. Make
sure the interview is thorough.
*This can be done in groups of
2.
Find several songs you think
reflect an important message
from the book. Prepare an audio
collage. Write an exhibit card
that helps your listener
understand how you think these
songs express the book’s
meaning.
From Ignite Student Intellect and
Imagination in Language Arts
Distinguish between fiction
and nonfiction books.
What makes them similar?
How are they different?
Write a book review to
suggest a good fiction and
nonfiction book for a friend
to read. Briefly describe
each book and give a short
synopsis of its content.
Survey at least 10 students
in your Reading class to
determine their favorite
fiction and nonfiction book.
Analyze the results of the
survey and create a graph as
a display.
Compare and contrast a
fiction and nonfiction book
on the same topic or subject.
How are they alike and
different?
Design an original book
cover for on the the books in
your reading level.
Consider why some people
prefer to read books that are
nonfiction rather than fiction
for pleasure. Write an
argument for which type you
like best. Give reasons why.
Prepare a list of of classical
and contemporary books that
you would recommend to
someone your age. Use the
Internet to help you!
Determine your criteria for a
good novel. Compare the
current novel you’re reading
up against those criteria.
How can someone tell the
difference between a classical
text and a contemporary
text? Give examples of each.
Example—Rikki Tikki Tavi
Summarize the plot of
Rikki Tikki Tavi using a
plot diagram.
Write a letter from
Create a storyboard of
Brittney Spears to Jessica Rikki Tikki Tavi using
Simpson explaining the
any pictures and images.
plot of Rikki Tikki Tavi.
Use a Venn Diagram to
compare and contrast
either Rikki Tikki Tavi or
Nagaina with a character
in another story we have
read.
Write a song/poem/rap
in which you comare
Rikki Tikki Tavi to a
famous person. Make
sure you make it clear
how they are similar.
Write a dialogue between
Rikki Tikki Tavi and
someone you know in
which they discuss how
they are alike and
different. Use appropriate
dialogue punctuation.
What will happen next?
Write a letter to the
author about what you
think the next installment
of the story would be.
Include two pages of new
text that could go in the
next story.
What will happen next?
Create a six-frame comic
strip in which you
continue the story beyond
its ending. Use your
favorite comic strip maker
tool.
What will happen next?
Create a story map for the
next installment of this
book. Use this map to
help you:
http://www.readwrite
think.org/files/resources/
interactives/storymap/
Journal Entry: Would you
rather have had Casey hit a
homerun at the end of the
poem? Why or why not?
Journal Entry: Why do you
think this poem has
remained popular for so
many years? Support your
stance with text and world
examples.
Journal Entry: What
personal connections can
you make to the poem? Tell
of a time when you were in
a position like Casey’s.
You are a casting director for
a movie studio. Your job is
to select actors to portray
major characters in “Casey at
the Bat” in a film. Who
would you choose? You
must give reasons for your
choices.
Select on of the characters
from the poem “Casey at the
Bat” and design a trading
card for him. What
information is needed? What
nice-to-know info can be
included? Create this
digitally.
Choose a popular athlete of
today and compare him/her
to Casey. Use a graphic
organizer (such as a Venn
Diagram) detailing the
similarities and differences of
the two athletes.
Create a narrative poem
about your favorite athlete.
Must be at least six stanzas in
length and contain both end
rhyme and internal rhyme.
Prepare six or more
consecutive stanzas of the
poem to perform to the class.
You need to dress up to
enhance your performance.
Read the article, “Where the
Mighty Casey Struck Out.” It
explains how Thayer reacted
to the fame he earned as the
author of “Casey.” How
might you have responded if
you were in his situation?
General Board for Vocabulary…
Create an acrostic poem. Write
the word ‘government’ vertically
on a piece of computer paper.
Each letter is used in the
construction of phrases or
sentences to describe the six
words.
Be creative with the letters in
Government.
Make two continuums or
spectrums. Place the following
words autocratic, democratic, and
oligarchic on one continuum with
“I wouldn’t want to live there” on
one side and “I want to live there”
on the other. Do the same thing
with the other three words. Then
write a 6-7 sentence paragraph
explaining your positions on the
continuum.
Create a bubble map for each of
the six words. You should
brainstorm at least four synonyms
for each word and put them on
the bubble map
Neatness counts.
Create a simile for each of the six
vocabulary words. A simile is a
comparison of two things or ideas
using like or as. It is not enough just
to write the simile, you must explain
it too.
Bonus for illustrations
Create a crossword puzzle using
the six words. Make sure that you
include the clues at the bottom.
You can not use the definition your
teacher gave you – you must
create your own clues.
Categorize the six words into two
groups. Then write a 4-5 sentence
paragraph explaining why each
word fits into category you put it in.
Create an analogy to go with each
of the six vocabulary words.
Analogies can help to explain an
unfamiliar concept by making a
comparison to something that we
do understand.
Create a facial expression matrix.
Create a table or matrix with six
boxes for each of the six words.
Draw heads with pertinent facial
expressions and related thought
bubbles to summarize how a
person would feel living under that
government.
Create a riddle for each of the six
vocabulary words. Your riddle
should have a minimum of four
lines, should be written in the first
person and the last line should be
“what am I?” Make sure you have
an answer key.
OPTION: Centers
MAP-based Choice Boards
• You can develop the choice boards based on RIT bands
in DesCartes.
• Some options can be used on ANY strand.
• Make each strand a different FONT TYPE or COLOR
to help you differentiate between each strand.
Lots more examples…
• http://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com/Choice+Bo
ards
• www.pvusd.net/extensionmenus
• http://www.rcs.k12.tn.us/rc/instruction/ttt/ttt.htm