Carolina K-12
The Revolutionary Times
Be sure to grab a copy of the Revolutionary Times! Scholars take a step back in time to report on topics set in the revolutionary period. Events include the ride of Paul Revere, the Battle of Saratoga, and more.
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "The Metier of Blossoming" by Denise Levertov
Poetry analysis need not be a lugubrious exercise for young learners. The approach used with Denise Levertov's poem, "The Metier of Blossoming" is one of close observation, of noticing and reflecting on the words, phrases, and images the...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: “Crisscross” by Arthur Sze
Arthur Sze's poem "Crisscross" launches a activity that asks scholars to use their observation skills. They first draw an image that reflects what crisscross means to them. They then examine a photograph of a lightning strike and list...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "Instructions on Not Giving Up" by Ada Limón
What do the myth of the phoenix bird and Ada Limón's poem "Instructions on Not Giving Up" have in common? Young scholars create a list of what they notice about both the myth and poem, then consider what the similarities might indicate...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond" by E. E. Cummings
Scholars engage in a role-play exercise, compare their demonstration to a time-lapse video, and to a poem by E.E. Cummings. The ensuing discussion asks learners to consider the similarities among the three.
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "Once the Magnolia has Blossomed" by Ed Roberson
A free write, an image of magnolia leaves, and the Ed Roberson's poem "Once the Magnolia has Blossomed" ask scholars to use their noticing skills to reflect on the lesson plan beauty teaches about loss and grief.
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "Lines Written in Early Spring" by William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth's poem "Lines Written in Early Spring" lets learners sharpen their observation skills. Class members first closely examine the image "Flowers in Front of an Abandoned House in Demerino, Russia," listing what they...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Gaining Understanding and Information from Introductory Material, Headings, and Other Division Markers in Texts (English III Reading)
All teachers are teachers of reading! The 13-part interactive series ends with a lesson that teaches learners (and their instructors) how to approach reading their textbooks. After learning about several strategies, users test their...
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...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Arguments, i.e., Identify Fallacies (English III Reading)
A series of interactive exercises provide users with the ammunition they need to detect logical fallacies and defend themselves against persuasion. Learners read about 11 types of logical fallacies and identify the type used in sample...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Distinguishing Between Inductive and Deductive Reasoning (English III Reading)
Is Sherlock Holmes an inductivist or a deductivist? Users of this interactive to distinguish between inductive and deductive reasoning. They consider in various situations whether it is better to list evidence and then introduce a claim...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Annotating to Deepen Understanding (English III Reading)
An interactive resource teaches readers how to annotate all kinds of texts. After reading an introduction that stresses the benefits of text annotations, users examine several models and then demonstrate what they have learned by...
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)
Simile and Metaphor (English III Reading)
The key idea in this interactive exercise designed for high schoolers is that figurative language, especially similes, and metaphors, add layers of meaning to a text. Users examine examples from speeches, ads, movie dialogue, and poems,...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Cognates (English III Reading)
Did you know that "30-40 percent of all words in English have a related word in Spanish?" This fact launches an interactive study of cognates appearing the same in English and Spanish. Learners demonstrate what they have learned about...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Paradox (English III Reading)
Pairs of contradictory words introduce learners to paradoxes, the literary device writers use to get readers thinking deeply about their messages. An interactive lesson uses poems by Emily Dickinson and Wilfred Owen and excerpts from the...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Imagery (English III Reading)
Picture this! The first interactive in a set of 13 shows learners how writers use imagery and sensory details to create mental pictures in readers' minds.
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Allusion (English III Reading)
An interactive lesson introduces readers to allusions, the literary device writers use to add depth to their work. Users record notes on the provided graphic organizer as they identify the allusions in poems by Walt Whitman, Langston...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
Character Changes Lesson and iPad Assignment
Round, flat, static, dynamic. As part of a characterization study, scholars review the different types of characters and create a slide show demonstrating how a dynamic character in a story they have read changes throughout the tale.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: Leadership and a Global Stage
Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is, among other things, the study of a ruler's ambitions. Young scholars watch videos, read articles, and keep a Commonplace Book while studying the play. At the end of Act III, pupils stage the play that...
National Endowment for the Humanities
"From Citizen, VI [On the Train the Woman Standing]," Claudia Rankine
Claudia Rankine's poem "From Citizen, VI [On the Train the Woman Standing]," asks readers to consider direct and more subtle forms of prejudice. After discussing the format of the poem, its tone, and the emotions expressed, class members...
Academy of American Poets
Incredible Bridges: “Cotton Candy” by Edward Hirsch
Read it, hear it, see it, do it! Young poets experience Edward Hirsch's memory poem, "Cotton Candy," by first closely reading the poem silently, then aloud, watching a video of the poet reading it, and crafting their memory poem of an...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
8th Grade Poetry: Assess
Eighth graders craft a Petrarchan sonnet and respond to a performance assessment to demonstrate what they have learned in this five-activity poetry unit.
Utah Education Network (UEN)
8th Grade Poetry: A to Z Poem
A two-part instructional activity asks eighth graders first to draw connections between the myth of Aengus and William Butler Yeats' poem "The Song of Wandering Aengus." In the second part of the instructional activity, writers craft an...