Read and analyze a variety of Shakespearean and contemporary puns using Visual Thesaurus computer software. Middle and high schoolers analyze a pun as a class; in small groups they analyze a Shakespearean pun using contextual clues and...

Read the descriptive paragraph (included) with your middle schoolers, and have them study the stylistic elements included. They'll look for vivid verbs, alliteration, assonance, similes, and personification. Before writers craft their...

What is the difference between Hercules and Spiderman? Both are heroes, right? Kids identify the characteristics that make a hero, and analyze the differences between heroes of long ago and today. They write creative stories describing a...

A woven rug depicting birds and cornstalks becomes the inspiration for a lesson on critical thinking and creative writing. Learners analyze the symbolism found in the rug and then compose a descriptive paragraph or poem that embodies the...

A fabulous Samurai suit of armor is the inspiratoin for a creative reseach project and presentation. Kids research the symbols found on the Samurai armor, describing the symbols meaning or significance in Japanses culture. 

Who doesn't need a sidekick or protective spell? Kids examine a clay vessel from ancient Colombia as they discuss the idea of sidekicks or protective magic. They then illustrate a comic strip that represents the concept of protection in...

Imagine life from a horse's perspective. That's what the class will be doing after they analyze images of the Crow installation piece, Horse Outfit. They analyze the cultural significance of the work, the tribe who created it, and then...

Use O. Henry's ubiquitous tale of love and poverty to explore irony. After reading the story, middle schoolers identify examples of all three kinds of irony in the story. With partners, they brainstorm original examples of irony. Then...

Give your emerging poets a topic (or have them choose one themselves), and have them play with different poetic devices. They work on alliteration, rhyme, metaphor, personification, simile and onomatopoeia. Consider having them choose...

Colorful contemporary images contained in a PowerPoint presentation will capture the attention of class members and model for them the how to distinguish between the subject and the theme of a work. A great want to introduce this...

Participate in writing poetry as a group. Focused on a given theme, young writers compose a popcorn poem using sensing verbs and adverbs. They write popcorn poems, onomatopoeias, collective poems, and diamond poems. You could introduce...

Inspire your learners to experience poetry in an entirely different way with this resource. A writing prompt that goes along with "The Charge of the Light Brigade" by Alfred Lord Tennyson, learners craft a reflective piece in the voice...

Hyperbole, simile, metaphor, and personification are spotlighted on an online/interactive quiz. Test takers read short passages and then identify the figures of speech used.

Enrich a unit on The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros with a selection of related activities. The packet contains nine activities that go from pre-reading through wrapping up the novel. Young readers work on studying...

How does a conversation flow? Have your learners practice with conversation and dialogue by asking them to rearrange sentence strips in order to make a coherent conversation between two people. After ordering the strips, pairs...

"The Road Not Taken," is the focus of an exercise that asks readers to identify the figurative meaning of Robert Frost's poem.