Young writers read excerpts from Gary Paulsen's memoir to identify figurative and literal language that contain sensory details. They determine which selections are examples of sensory language and fi the language is used literally or...

Have your writers identify and use words that appeal to the senses. They create a chart of sensory words and record some of their favorites, then write a journal entry in which they describe eating at a restaurant using sensory details....

Your class can identify idioms, metaphosr, similes, hyperboles or personification by reading poetry and interpret meaning.

An examination of the figurative language in Gwendolyn Brooks’ To Young Readers challenges your writers to think about the richness of language. Ask your class why Brooks says, “Good books are bandages.” This discussion of alliteration,...

Though this activity on colloquialisms in English songs might be fun, it's hard to see an application for it in the classroom. The best way to use this activity, which provides a list of words like "gimme" and "gotta" to be paired up...

In this language arts worksheet, students match abbreviations that are used in the English language but come from Latin derivatives. They draw a line from 19 abbreviations to their definitions.

In this language arts worksheet, students locate and identify various vocabulary terms related to English and spelling. There are five words/phrases located in the puzzle.

Students inspect visual arts by exploring images on-line. In this art analysis lesson, students discuss the history of art and the its ability to communicate with people through images. Students utilize pencils and charcoal to create...

Adding -ed to the ends of most verbs can change a sentence to the past tense—but what about verbs like think or draw? Provide class members with practice activities that focus on both regular and irregular verbs in the simple past...

When Europeans first came back with tales of China, they provided vivid written accounts and minimal visual imput. This resulted in art rendered mostly from descriptive language. Learners explore this phenomena by listening to...

Write short stories in which events are presented in logical order, point of view is clear, theme and characters are developed. Middle schoolers also work on sensory language, concrete language and/or dialogue. They establish their...

Students hone their skills at identifying the principle story in a work of art and text. Through discussion, students assess the central and supporting stories of a work of art that is characterized by multiple layers of action and meaning.

Exploring the baroque era can be exciting and fun when it's done thorugh the arts. Middle schoolers examine the music and art history of the baroque era through research. They use their findings and class notes to create an expository...

Use some provocative modern art to get your class considering stereotypes and the impact they have on us all. Your class will discuss the print art Indian Look-Alike by Melanie Yazzie and stereotypes in general before...

Writers compose an original found poem by searching for words that inspire them. Words are taken from everyday conversation, books, cut from magazines, the mail, or an already written poem. 

Guide your readers to explore character traits. As a class, discuss and record the traits of a commonly-known fairy tale character. Then do the same with the main character in the class novel. Finally, have learners use magazines...

Interrogatives—who, what, where, when, why, and how—are the focus of a grammar worksheet that reinforces writing questions and using auxiliary verbs. 

Put the fun back in reading fundamentals with an interactive set of lessons about homophones. Learners of all ages explore the relationships between words that sound the same but have different meanings, and complete a...

What might a papaya symbolize? Using the resource, scholars look for examples of symbolism in the novel Inside Out & Back Again. They also participate in a silent discussion called a Chalk Talk, writing their responses to a...

As part of their study of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, class members participate in a silent discussion of the novel using a Chalk Talk chart. They then respond to the teacher's questions by writing their thoughts on the chart....

As part of a mid-unit assessment, scholars draft their inside-out poems and then work on their "Back Again" poems. Learners use a rubric and graphic organizers to guide their writing.

Team up! Scholars begin working with their research teams to review the components of an effective poem. They then move on to independent work by beginning the end-of-unit assessment. Writers complete the draft of their "Back Again"...

Scholars analyze a model poem to help guide their poetry writing. They use Think-Pair-Share to discuss word choice and meaning in "Papaya Tree" and "Wet and Crying." To finish, they use their discussions to collect evidence on what makes...

It's task time! Scholars complete the final lesson plan of the unit by completing a performance task. Readers begin in groups, working on a task card. Once complete, they move to an independent task, writing responses to a prompt about...