Curated Video
Pelosi on Green New Deal, Virginia controversies
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she welcomes "the enthusiasm" of backers of a Green New Deal, but she stopped short of supporting it.
TED-Ed
Why Should You Read “Kafka on the Shore”?
Haruki Murakami's Kafka on the Shore was selected as one of the 10 Best Books of 2005. A short video provides insight into the many threads that form the tapestry of the prize-winning novel.
PBS
Relatable Characters in Dark Tales and The Book Thief
Markus Zusak's The Book Thief is another novel high on the list of must-reads from The Great American Read collection. Jenna Bush Hager, daughter of former President George W. Bush, and John Green of Crash Course series fame share...
PBS
Jane Eyre 2: Meeting Mr. Rochester
Adapting a much-beloved novel for the screen can be a tricky business. Each media has its own possibilities and limitations. The second PBS Jane Eyre resource in the Masterpiece series asks readers to evaluate how the filmmakers have...
PBS
One Hundred Years of Solitude | The Great American Read
One Hundred Years of Solitude introduces readers to magic realism. Told in a series of flashbacks and flash-forwards, Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Nobel Prize-winning novel is a candidate for The Great American Read program and aficionados...
PBS
The Color Purple
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...
PBS
American Masters Meet F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Gatsby
Introduce readers to the great Jay Gatsby with a short video from the American Masters series. Narrators analyze how Fitzgerald's choice of narrator and point of view create the dreamlike qualities and near-mythic status of Jay Gatsby.
PBS
A Separate Peace
Jenna and Barbara Bush, daughters of former President George W. Bush, and author Armistead Maupin share with viewers their reasons for selecting John Knowles' A Separate Peace as one of their favorite books.
PBS
Character Study: Scout Finch
Scout Finch, the rough-and-tumble protagonist of Harper Lee's iconic To Kill a Mockingbird, learns quite a bit about how the world works as she observes her father's defense of Tom Robinson. Learn more about Scout and her distinctive...
TED-Ed
Why Should You Read Sci-Fi Superstar Octavia E. Butler?
Introduce science fiction fans to writer Octavia E. Butler with a short video that argues for why readers should add her works to their must-read list.
Lit2Go
The Swallow and the Crow
What characteristics make a true friendship? Pupils explore the question when reading "The Swallow and the Crow," Aesop's fable about two birds comparing their feathers. The post-reading graphic organizer encourages thinkers to write...
Lit2Go
The Tree and the Reed
Are thoughts of superiority ever justified? Aesop's fable "The Tree and the Reed" is about a tree that thinks he's better than a reed and is taught otherwise by nature.The post-reading compare/contrast activity features a graphic...
Lit2Go
The Lion and the Statue
How does one's perception affect their representation of places and events? Readers investigate this question by listening to Aesop's "The Lion and the Statue" and completing a graphic organizer to analyze characters and their motivations.
Lit2Go
The Fox Without a Tail
Can you trust advice from a person who has something to gain? Aesop's fable "The Fox Without a Tail" depicts the skepticism of a fox community when one of their fellow foxes, having lost his tail in a tap, tries to talk them into...
Lit2Go
The Dog and the Wolf
See why a wolf would rather starve alone than join a family in Aesop's "The Dog and the Wolf." After listening to an audio retelling of the fable, learners answer four literary analysis questions about characterization, plot, and...
TED-Ed
Why Should You Read James Joyce's "Ulysses"?
What is Bloomsday? Why would thousands travel to Dublin on this day to visit sites depicted in a novel that is ridiculously hard to read? Why even bother with reading such a book? Find out by viewing a short video that suggests the...
TED-Ed
Why Should You Read Tolstoy's "War and Peace"?
The famous length of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace — 15 books and 365 chapters — presents a real challenge for many readers and their teachers. So why bother? Use a short video that argues for a reading of an unabridged...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: American Masters: Gatsby Chases the American Dream
In this video [3:24] from the American Masters film Novel Reflections on the American Dream, learn about F. Scott Fitzgerald and his notorious fictional character Jay Gatsby. Both were in the pursuit of the American dream and love....
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: American Masters: Meet F. Scott Fitzgerald's Gatsby
Meet F. Scott Fitzgerald's iconic character Jay Gatsby in this video from the American Masters film Novel Reflections on the American Dream. Learn about the spectacle of Gatsby, the techniques the author uses to present Gatsby, and the...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: American Masters: The American Dream in the Grapes of Wrath
In this video [3:06] from the American Masters film Novel Reflections on the American Dream, see the quest for the American dream as depicted in John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath." Follow the Joad family as they search for work and...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Character Study: Scout Finch
This video [4:18] from American Masters: Harper Lee: Hey, Boo highlights Scout, one of the most beloved characters in all of American fiction and the main character of the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In the video, students learn what...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Sanditon: An Opinionated Woman
When Charlotte Heywood offers her forthright opinions of the Parker brothers, she is chastised by the dashing Sidney Parker, in this video excerpt from Sanditon Masterpiece, based on Jane Austen's unfinished novel. The brief encounter...
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Identifying Character Types
This video lesson focuses on character types including the following: flat, damsel in distress, fugitive, rebel, womanizer, country bumpkin/city slicker, social climber, traitor, siren, man sinned against, and guilt-ridden forgiveness...
Imagine Learning Classroom
Learn Zillion: Analyze a Character's Actions
In this lesson, you will analyze a character's actions by recording what a character does and how he does it. Login gives access to an additional video. [3:31]