Okay, I'm putting myself in your shoes. Here is what I would do first. I would give them all a writing assignment which simply provides them with some seat work during the "Dead time" in the classroom. Make it clear that the assignment is due by the next class. While I'm at it, you will check it tomorrow, during class by walking around, to each desk, and reading over a sentence or two, while they are working on tomorrows writing assignment.

Now, you can't have them write all class time, so you stop the class, and you begin to work on specific skills. For example, (remember this is only to get you started in teaching) You ask the students to write down as many nouns as they can. Then you have them pair up, and they can read each others nouns and add to their list. Afterwards, you can even have them get in groups of three and do the same thing. Remember the entire time, they are reading each others words and adding to them so the list is getting longer and longer. (Which is what you want the students to do.) Next the students then break up the group and go around and read each other list of words. 1. If someone sees a word they think might not be a noun, they can return to their book, write it down, and it can be discussed later. So now all of the students are walking around the class reading each others notebook which is on their desk. When the students are back in their seat they can discuss the words they questioned.

Okay, this can be done with verbs, adjectives, adverbs, complete sentences, (see where I'm going, almost anything) What's important is the fact that the students are up and moving and learning. They should not be sitting in their seat all of the time.

Hows this sound....?

Joe