by Colene Wilson Teach Students to sprinkle their speech and writing with clichés, idioms, and proverbs. After completing just a few activities, they will love to think, to toy with words, and to learn. There will be sparkles in students' eyes, as an "Aha!" ignites. Beyond Words centers on everyday themes. The activities give students opportunities to focus on the fun aspects of our language while accomplishing language arts and creative thinking objectives. Thy require students to slow down ... to think more deeply ... to think with a twist. Students don't have a lot of time for one more activity ... but Beyond Words requires just enough time to provide a challenge to kids in all kinds of classrooms. However, students are encouraged to delay their responses, not rushing through activities without thinking. These activities will benefit the students little if they write quick, short answers. Encourage them to be fluent, to brainstorm several possibilities. Encourage them to be flexible, thinking of a variety of possible answers, and to be original. Encourage students to ask questions to clarify their understanding of the activities. As you watch them responding to the questions and directions, encourage them to elaborate on their ideas. Ultimately, the benefits of Beyond Words are not complete until each student has had a chance to extend beyond the activities provided by developing his or her own creative questions and activities centered on a new theme. Pull out the dictionary, thesaurus, and books of idioms and proverbs, and challenge your students to risk developing original pages to share with their peers! Grades 3 to 8