Curated OER
"Pray, Why Speakest Thou Thusly?"
Examine popular language and slang and how they have changed over the course of American history. Conduct Internet research, use an online interactive Colonial House website to translate 17th century language into 21st century language,...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Chapter 3
Get to the point ... the point of view, that is! Pupils analyze Laurence Yep's Dragonwings for tone, figurative language, and point of view by completing graphic organizers. Scholars also read an excerpt from the novel and record the...
Curated OER
Student Opinion: Are You Popular, Quirky or Conformist?
Approach the topic of popularity with this resource from the New York Times and their Learning Network series. The article is about Alexandra Robbins' "Quirk Theory." Learners respond to the article excerpt either on paper or online....
Curated OER
Explore Literary Devices in Popular Lyrics
Bring literary devices to life by listening to popular song clips and studying their lyrics.
Mailbox Education Center
On the Hunt: Understanding Figurative Language
Young writers hunt for examples of figurative language in their reading. The hunt requires pupils to cite their sources, record a quoted example for each type of figurative language, and an explanation of what they think the examples...
Media Literacy
Good Versus Evil: Exploring Popular Children's Animation
Dora, Buzz Lightyear, Mufasa. Swiper, Dr. Porkchop, Scar. The six lessons in this unit packet focus on how good and evil, and violence, are portrayed in children's animation. The lessons encourage kids to consider how violence is...
Curated OER
Persuasive Writing Skills Worksheets
What makes you want to buy that new car? Or vote for that popular politician? Study the persuasive techniques commonly found in advertisements or argumentative writing, including repetition, exaggeration, and fact vs. opinion.
British Council
Learning English through Short Stories
Use short stories to teach English? Yes! Designed as a professional development opportunity for English language teachers, the ideas in this booklet can easily be adapted to advanced ESL/ELL classes.
Curated OER
Folk and Popular Culture
Good enough for a college class, this resources discusses multiple aspects pertaining to the issues with globalization and the differences between pop and folk culture. It defines major terminology, provides concrete examples, and...
Curated OER
Allusions to Shakespeare in Popular Culture
Send your high schoolers on a scavenger hunt through popular culture (music, television, video games, movies) to find allusions to Shakespeare. They must each provide three to share with the class, and the one they present cannot have...
Curated OER
Individuality vs. Conformity
Spark an animated debate in your class! Young adults consider some of the fads or trends that are prevalent at their school, as well as their own level of participation in them. Just how much of a role does popular culture play in their...
K20 LEARN
Locating Archetypes in Pop Culture, Literature, and Life
Archetypes help readers connect literature to the world around them. A lesson plan uses elements of pop culture to teach about archetypal traits of common characters and discuss issues of perception and other literary devices. At the...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Teach English, Teach About the Environment
Spread the message of recycling while teaching your English language learners new vocabulary and practicing verb tenses. Included here are four lesson plans for each level (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) as well as accompanying...
K12 Reader
Proverbs and Adages: What’s the Meaning?
Your kids have probably heard these idioms before, but do they know what they mean? Help them learn that haste makes waste, an ill wind blows no good, and that ignorance is bliss with a list of popular expressions.
Super Teacher Worksheets
Idioms
If figurative language makes your kids feel blue or under the weather, use an activity focused on idioms to help them feel on top of the world. Kids complete a chart with seven idiomatic phrases, adding the meaning of each along with an...
K12 Reader
Proverbs and Adages: What Do They Mean?
You shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but feel free to find the silver lining in a worksheet about common proverbs and adages. Learners read six popular adages and write their literal definitions on the lines provided.
Curated OER
Understanding Protagonists and Antagonists
How can you tell if a character is a villain? What about a hero? Work on literary analysis with an engaging language arts learning exercise. After completing an activity about the four types of conflict, learners fill out a character map...
Curated OER
Heroes and Sidekicks from Popular Culture
Students discuss familiar fictional characters. In this fictional characters lesson students practice pronunciation of adjectives. They describe the personality of popular characters by answering questions about those characters.
Curated OER
Figurative Language: Simile and Metaphor
What is figurative language? Introduce your young learners to the most popular forms of figurative language: the simile and the metaphor. Start by reading "Willow and Ginkgo" by Eve Merriam, and identify where similes are used. Then look...
Curated OER
American Sign Language History and Practice
Is fingerspelling a popular way to communicate in American Sign Language? Actually, only about 15% of a conversation between Deaf people uses fingerspelling! Learn more about Deaf history and review a variety of general strategies for...
Curated OER
Popular Music and Music Videos
This resource is part of a three-activity unit that introduces your class to the concept of popular culture and the role that it plays in their lives. Here, learners examine the importance of the music industry and music videos in pop...
Weebly
Mini-Media Literacy Project
Encourage your pupils to think critically about media and the messages media portrays. Starting off with a quick-write about pop culture, this assignment launches into a hands-on, collaborative collage project. After creating collages,...
Scholastic
Quick as a Cricket Lesson Plan
Teaching young learners about similes is easy as pie with this primary grade language arts lesson. Following a class reading of the children's book, Quick as a Cricket by Audrey Wood, young readers learn the definition of a simile as...
US Apple Association
Apples: A Class Act! (Grades 4–6)
Middle schoolers have a bushel of fun as they engage in activities and research core facts about apples. Packed with suggestions for in-class activities and out-of-class research, the colorful 6-page packet is sure to satisfy hungry...