Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classics Edition of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Whether new to teaching The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or an experienced pro, you’ll find useful resources in this teacher’s guide. The 40-page packet includes background information, historical context, an annotated list of...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Grandfather's Journey (Say)
Read Allen Say's classic tale Grandfather's Journey as scholars expand their vocabulary in context (note: this strategy could be done with any text). Wondering what words they will learn here? Although you could easily include more,...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Over in the Meadow (Keats)
If you're reading the classic story Over in the Meadow, consider this strategy to cover vocabulary in context with budding readers. After a brief introduction, listeners raise a hand when they hear each word (bask, burrowed, and cawed)...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Red Riding Hood (Marshall)
It's the classic story of Little Red Riding Hood retold by James Marshall; scholars listen for six new words as you read: bouquet, charming, escort, horrid, tarry, and wicked. Introduce the words before reading so they can listen for...
Curated OER
Six Degrees of Lord of the Rings
Here's a fascinating take on a three-year honors, AP language, and AP literature course. Designed for teachers, the presentation suggests how to connect Tolkien's classic to the AP English canon. Very thought-provoking and definitely...
Curated OER
You Are What You Eat
Youngsters listen to the story of Gregory the Terrible Eater and write a similar story using the same pattern. In the new book, Herman is requested to eat things that are nouns. They must supply the correct part of speech for the class...
Curated OER
Classic Hero
Middle schoolers discuss hero tales. In this character education lesson, students identify heroes from the movie Star Wars and explain how the hero showed courage. Middle schoolers reflect upon their own definition of courage and present...
Prestwick House
Fahrenheit 451—Activity Pack
The burning questions is at what point do readers of Fahrenheit 451 recognize the many literary devices Ray Bradbury employs in his dystopian classic that warns of a society that uses media to indoctrinate the public and denigrates...
Scholastic
Identifying Types of Irony Using "The Gift of the Magi"
O. Henry's "The Gift of the Magi" is the classic example of irony in literature. Teach young writers about the ways irony can engage their readers with an activity in which they write scripts using dramatic irony, situational irony, and...
Curated OER
Literature for Lesson 4 - Abolitionists
Students examine the definition of abolition and abolitionists. In this abolition lesson plan, students complete vocabulary work before reading about Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, and Frederick Douglass. They watch a video about...
Curated OER
Seeing the Image in Imagery: A Lesson Plan Using Film
In our increasingly visual society, it is often difficult for some readers to create a mental picture of a picture created only with words. An image-rich text like F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby can therefore, present a real...
Curated OER
"Ivan the Fool" Lesson 1
Young scholars in an ESL class read "Ivan the Fool", a folktale from Russia. In groups, they work with their partner to read the material and discuss what they have read. They write down any vocabulary they are unfamiliar with and...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Curious George Rides a Bike
Young scholars explore language arts by reading a classic book in class. In this story vocabulary lesson, students read the book Curious George Rides a Bike and identify the use of specific vocabulary words. Young scholars define the...
Curated OER
The Diary of Anne Frank
Students write a book review of The Diary of Anne Frank. In their reviews they determine whether or not the book should be considered a classic of the twentieth century.
Curated OER
Understanding Character
Middle schoolers are introduced to literary elements and definitions in the worksheet Understanding Character but reading through each of the elements and definitions aloud. They read the story, "La Bamba" and identify examples of the...
Prestwick House
Touching Spirit Bear: Individual Learning Packet
Whether using Touching Spirit Bear in the classroom, as an outside reading assignment, or in a homeschool situation, your readers will benefit from this eight-page packet of essay and discussion questions, vocabulary lists, and reading...
Curated OER
Getting the Best out of Book Buddies
Students explore the best approaches to reading with book buddies (younger students). Students create a student-friendly definition for "mentor" and identify traits of a success that a mentor displays. They examine literature for...
Curated OER
The Allegorical Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Students write and discuss the definition of an allegory. They read the story, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, and analyze the style and allegorical elements within the story.
Curated OER
Detective Fiction for Remedial Readers
Eighth graders in a remedial reading class are introduced to detective fiction by Edgar Allan Poe and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. After reading about their lives and work, they define new vocabulary and practice using a guided reading...
Curated OER
Interesting Idioms
Students are introduced to the topic of idioms in figurative speech. Using the definition of idioms, they use literature to view examples. They identify idioms in different forms of writing and practice using them in speech. ESL...
Curated OER
"He Says, She Says"
Stuents compare and contrast male and female views of love and beauty in classic Chinese and Japanese society through the reading and evaluation of prose and poetry. Chinese and Japanese art is also studied.
Curated OER
When in Greece, Do as the Greeks Do
Students examine the contributions of ancient Greeks in this five lesson unit. The explorations reveal how Greece shaped our stories, our modern language, and our society. The study of the Greek myth forms the basis of this unit.
Prestwick House
Catcher in the Rye Activity Pack
The Catcher in the Rye is the focus of a sampler that models some of activities included in a for-purchase packet based on J. D. Salinger's novel.
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Beauty of Anglo-Saxon Poetry: A Prelude to Beowulf
Riddle me this! What do kennings, caesura, and alliteration have to do with the Nowell Codex? Introduce class members to Anglo-Saxon poetry and prepare readers for a study of Beowulf with a series of activities that includes asking...