Teaching Tolerance
Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Exposing Gender Bias
Young sociologists are asked to read two photographs, identifying how the photographer uses point of view, color, pose, light, and shadow to express a stereotype of women or to challenge those stereotypes. Partners then create their own...
Simon & Schuster
Classroom Activities for The Call of the Wild by Jack London
Three activities are designed for readers of Jack London's The Call of the Wild. First, class members research and create posters that reflect the setting of the novel. Next, groups create posters with images that represent each chapter...
Newseum
Weed Out Propaganda
Young scholars study four essential propaganda techniques: Simplification, Exploitation, Exaggeration, and Division (S.E.E.D.). Individuals select an example of propaganda from the past and present then compare how the key elements have...
Newseum
Disinformation Nation: Is It Propaganda?
Propaganda or not? That is the question researchers must answer as they analyze techniques used in ads. Pupils use a three-part definition to determine if the ad is propaganda or advertising.
Newseum
Disinformation Nation: Checking Your Emotions
Propaganda is designed to manipulate! High schoolers learn how to recognize the devices propagandists use to evoke strong emotional reactions and practice techniques that help them avoid being manipulated.
Simon & Schuster
Classroom Activities for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
A 16-page packet includes three activities for a unit study of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Before beginning the novel, class members identify the factors in their lives that helped create their frame of reference,...
Newseum
Disinformation Nation: Separating Politics and Propaganda
Separating political rhetoric from propaganda is no small feat. Class members are challenged to examine two different sources about a candidate in an upcoming election and determine whether the primary purpose of the source is to inform...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment
Pain and suffering do not have to be inevitable in a study of Crime and Punishment. A carefully scaffolded lesson plan introduces readers to the divided natures of the characters in Fyodor Dostoevsky's complex novel. Groups use the...
K20 LEARN
It’s Raining Whats and Whats? Colloquial Language
"Yuns betta outten the lights!" Colloquial language is the focus of a lesson that asks middle schoolers to consider the pros and cons of using idioms. They read articles, match expressions with their meaning and place of origin, and...
K20 LEARN
Is Pizza Epic? Word Choice
Remember when everything was Fantastic! Fabulous! Awesome! Iconic! A series of activities encourages young writers to move beyond these overused descriptors and instead choose a more precise language.
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Reference Guides (English III Reading)
An interactive resource introduces users to dictionaries, glossaries, and thesauri and the significant differences among these reference guides. Users learn which reference is best for which kind of search, examine sample entries from...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Drawing Conclusions Based on the Sufficiency and Strength of Research (English III Reading)
High school juniors learn how to construct a strong argument by crafting a claim and using neutral language backed by evidence from reliable sources. To do so, they learn to evaluate sources and evidence to support claims. They then...
Curated OER
What Do You Call Older People?
Students brainstorm a list of words they use to refer to the elderly. As a class, they discuss the importance of word connotations and explain those used to refer to the older population. They complete a handout and share their thoughts...
Curated OER
Stylistic Devices
Students review connotation and denotation and stylistic devices in poetry. They read the lyrics to a song as it is being played and then discuss the meaning of the song. As a class, students read poems, share their thoughts, and...
Scholastic
Choose Your Words Wisely (Grades 9-12)
Words, words, words. The function of words in persuasive writing is the focus of a group activity that asks members to analyze how words advertisers use are designed to influence targeted audiences.
K12 Reader
Winter Adjectives: Shades of Meaning
Is wet damper than soggy? Young grammarians consider shades of meaning by ranking a set of winter adjectives from the weakest to the strongest.
Curated OER
Unlocking New Words: Partner Presentations
Following extensive modeling about how to apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to learn new words, partner teams create brief word presentations to teach new vocabulary to the class. Preselect words from upcoming social studies,...
Curated OER
Metaphor
High schoolers identify the distinction between literal and figurative language with a focus on metaphors. They complete a metaphor analysis chart, then practice expanding metaphors by composing their own comparisons of elements of the...
Curated OER
Eng 312: Midsemester Exam
Using the text Language Awareness by Eschholz, Rosa and Clark, as well as previous lectures from the class, this slideshow presents students with a midterm addressing key terms and concepts. While teachers might have a hard time using...
Curated OER
What is Language?
Intended to be used along with the first chapter of An Introduction to Language textbook, this PowerPoint is full of linguistic terminology that is not necessarily explained. This tool can be used to complement a lecture or a text, but...
Curated OER
Back to School: Style Analysis
Jump back into expository writing and analysis at the start of a new school year! Start with a review of an authors' stylistic choices in diction, syntax, treatment of subject matter, and figurative language. Writers choose a text to...
Shakespeare Uncovered
Henry IV, Part I: Does Father Know Best?
“Yea, there thou mak’st me sad and mak’st me sin/In envy that my Lord Northumberland/Should be the father to so blest a son--.” Henry IV, Part I, provides the text for a series of exercises that ask class members to examine the...
Mr. Ambrose
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Good discussion questions, quizzes, and tests teach as well as assess. Readers of The Great Gatsby will learn much from the materials in a 36-page packet designed to help students prepare for the AP Literature exam. Included in the...
Curated OER
Elements of Poetry
Prepare your learners to identify figurative language in poetry. Tips for reading poetry and what to look for are listed on these slides. Rhetorical devices are defined and plenty of examples are given.