Students investigate how to gain confidence in speaking through using scripted dialogues. They should remember to use familiar dialogues/dialogues based on language recently studied. Students incorporate nonsense into the mix of...

Why do books end up on the banned book list? How do these banned books contribute to the literary canon? Start by showing the photo slide show, and discussing notably banned books. Then focus on some of the most popular objections:...

What do you usually do on Saturdays? What will you do on Thursday? Class members practice the simple future tense and the days of the week with a series of activities and questions. They then share their answers with a partner.

A four-part worksheet challenges scholars' knowledge of American, Australian, and British slang. Learners use context clues to decide which country a slang word is from, complete sentences, decipher a conversation, and answer...

Eight graphic organizers to choose from? That's right! Each of these organizers relates to writing or reading. From narrowing a writing topic, to responding to literature, to planning a writing project, you'll find many purposes for...

Do wolves ever attack humans? An informative novel study for Old Wolf helps pupils conduct research to answer the question. They also decode anagrams, learn about onomatopoeia, and write quatrain poems about themes from the novel. 

Julilly dreams of freedom after being taken from her mother by a slave trader. Will she ever be free again? A resource focuses on the first chapter of Barbara Smucker's book Underground to Canada, and includes 10 vocabulary...

Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American fiction writer whose biggest claim to fame was the creation of Tarzan. Using the novel study for Harper Lee's beloved novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, pupils research and list facts about him or another...

A child lawyer is exactly what people need ... not! With the novel study for John Grisham's Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, pupils use their imaginations to create their own examples of sarcasm. They also research a chosen famous lawyer and...

What items would most people want to have with them if they were stranded on a desert island? Using the novel study for The Swiss Family Robinson, scholars attempt to answer the question from their own perspectives. They also explore...

Have you ever gone looking for one thing but ended up discovering something else? That is exactly what happened to Gaylen, a character in The Search for Delicious. Gaylen begins looking for a food to label as delicious, but...

How can a screenplay create meaning and drama in ways that other forms of writing cannot? That is the question class members must answer as they compare the cantina scene of the screenplay for George Lucas's Star Wars: A New Hope...

West Side Story is widely known as a modern-day Romeo & Juliet. Learners read a list of characters from the play and list their counterparts from Romeo & Juliet before completing a vocabulary enrichment activity and word...

Everybody has a special place they like to go. I hang out on top of the fridge, for example. Upper graders analyze the painting Mountain Lake, in terms of technique, style, and imagery. They then write or draw a place that expresses...

The blanket being analyzed here seems simple and plain, but it reflects the culture and geography of the people who made it. Learners critically examine the influence geography and culture had on the creation of the blanket and on...

Compare and contrast while challenging your class with this higher-level thinking and reading comprehension lesson. After observing the teacher model comparing and contrasting bats and birds, learners read passages about two towns. They...

How do you spell great? G-R-E-A-T! Ensure that your pupils can spell great and so much more with this effective app.

Readers are asked to evaluate Helen Keller's claim, and the evidence she uses to support her argument, that it is more difficult for hearing impaired children to learn to talk with others.

Discovering the creative process can be done through critical analysis. Upper graders examine a hand -carved Shinto Deity, discussing purpose, technique, and artistic expression. They then read a poem about the creative process. and...

Problem solving and creative thinking are top priority in an interesting lesson. Learners explore how they can think creatively to use four common objects in three different ways, they discuss senses and using senses differently to...

A portrait The Radcliffe Family circa 1742 is inspiration for creative writing and empathetic reasoning. Your class discusses the period in which the piece was painted, then imagines what life was like for one of the people seen in the...

The life-sized statue of St. Ferdinand, King of Spain represents royalty as it was seen in the past. Learners explore who is considered royalty in modern times and compare them to royalty of the past. They make a collage representing...

After processing notes from research or an interview, middle schoolers turn the information into a script or dialogue for narrative, persuasive, or expository text. Use this instructional activity in any writing unit to reinforce proper...

Scholars use technology to explore poetry and its related elements, such as theme, figures of speech, and other literary devices. They complete four poetry projects including a poem analysis with a concept web, an interactive poem...