Thirty-six pages familiarize scholars with the story and vocabulary of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. After reading and listening to an abbreviated version of the holiday tale learners show what they know about the sequence of...

"There is something irresistible about popcorn" and about activities designed to accompany the reading of a really good book. The nine activities in this packet support the reading of Elizabeth George Speare's Newbery Award winning...

After a pre-reading activity, students read a novel about violence prevention. After reading, students divide into groups and discuss the novel's content. They then create a powerpoint slideshow outlining the novel using graphics, audio...

As your authors prepare to write a hypothetical novel, they need all the inspiration they can find! Using a book they have already read (and enjoyed), learners complete a literary analysis by filling in eight short-answer questions....

Peer editing is a big part of the writing process, and this learning exercise will really help guide both editor and writer. Class members read brief editing tips and examine examples of helpful and not-so-helpful comments. (Consider...

Leading readers through a discussion of the book The Color of My Words by Lynn Joseph, a series of activities provides comprehension questions and other techniques and strategies to enhance understanding. This instructional activity can...

How better to get your writers painting a picture with words than to actually have them paint a picture? Well, drawing works just fine in this case, but the idea here is to get budding authors illustrating settings from their novel to...

Prepare for a wild ride on the plot roller coaster! Budding authors outline their novel plots through this set of visual and entertaining worksheets. They follow the story of Boris the Unicorn, which demonstrates the various stages of a...

Have you assigned your learners a creative writing project, only to find that their incredible creativity doesn't easily translate to writing? Here's some practice to kick them into sensory overload! Using their five senses, they choose...

Okay, your writers are ready to become authors - but how do they begin? This packet uses humor to keep kids entertained as they learn about first sentences. First, they get a brief introduction to the various types of beginnings they...

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is an interesting novel for learners to explore. This comprehensive packet enables students to use critical thinking skills to evaluate what they read.

Through the book A Strong Right Arm by Michelle Y. Green, learners discuss the implications of a women playing on a Negro League baseball team. There are so many rich discussions that can be inspired by the questions in this packet.

With The Star Fisher by Laurence Yep as the focus, this activity can help students learn how to use story maps and other techniques to better understand a story. This learning exercise provides a comprehensive exploration of this book.  

As part of a discussion of the book A Library for Juana by Pat Mora, learners can answer the thought-provoking questions in this resource. There are 23 comprehension and fill-in-the-blank questions for students to address.

Learners reading the book Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George can enhance their understanding of the novel using this comprehensive activity. Students can use the graphic organizers to display information and the many...

New ReviewAfter reading the novel, Love That Dog by Sharon Creech, scholars review poetic devices such as metaphor and onomatopoeia. As a class, then small groups, pupils compare and contrast two poems from different authors, discuss how one...

A clip from the documentary Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth features Walker discussing her writing process and why she chose to write The Color Purple as an epistolary novel. The resource is part of PBS' American Masters series.

George R.R. Martin, famous in his own right for heroes, villains, dragons, and direwolves, offers his rationale for why viewers should vote for J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings with its elves, wizards, and hobbits as part of the Great...

Narrators of a short video offer their rationale for why Catch 22 should be included in the Great American Read program. They touch on the key themes in Heller's satirical and sobering novel about Captain John Yossarian and the catch-22s...

Justice and murder are the heart of the best mysteries. The writers interviewed for this episode of the Great American Read try to convince viewers that the best of this genre is Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. 

Jack London's books feature male characters, but that doesn't mean they're just for boys! Chelsea Clinton and Shanna Peeples discuss the underlying messages of love and sacrifice in The Call of the Wild, as well as the conflict of man...

Modern readers apply classic themes to Victor Hugo's masterpiece, Les Miserables. After they discuss tricky vocabulary and plot elements from the novel, class members compare Hugo's written work to a stage or film adaptation of the musical.

An anagram is a word that's formed by rearranging the letters of another word, so listen might become silent. Scholars practice decoding anagrams with the novel study for Gary Paulsen's The Winter Room. They also put words in...