Novelinks
Tuesdays with Morrie: K-W-H-L Strategy
Readers of Tuesdays with Morrie are directed to use a K-W-H-L chart to record what they know, what they want to learn, how they will find information, and what they learned about a particular topic related to Mitch Albom's book.
Curated OER
Making Connections between Robert Frost's Life and His Poetry
Become acquainted with Robert Frost's life in order to allow your class to fully appreciate how his background influenced his poetry. They analyze specified poems in relation to theme, setting and the use of imagery.
Curated OER
Visions for Students: A Study of British Ghost Stories
Ghost stories are the hook suggested in this proposed unit to engage reluctant readers.
Curated OER
Don't Stop the Weaving
The importance of oral tradition is evident throughout time and across space. Introduce your learners to some interesting stories and then test their knowledge with these questions. Ten multiple-choice questions focus on characters and...
Curated OER
The Shape of Home
Students define home and understand that home is not the same to everyone. In this homes lesson, students participate individually and in groups to create a classroom definition of home. Students discuss the events in the story the Shape...
Curated OER
Literature: Isabel Allende
Students watch and respond to a Bill Moyers Now video on the Chilean author, Isabel Allende. They brainstorm a list of recent events that might inspire writers and choose one to write about in poetic, diary, or short story form.
Curated OER
A Togolese Tale: The Big Fire
Students identify common elements found in folk tales and read a Togolese folk tale told by Fred Koehler. They analyze the folk tale for its elements and compare and contrast it with well-known Western folk tales.
Annenberg Foundation
Social Realism
Many American writers in the late nineteenth century wanted their writing to reflect real life. Individuals watch and discuss a video, read and explore author biographies, write a journal entry and a poem, and complete a multimedia...
Annenberg Foundation
Migrant Struggle
The American Dream is a goal that many pursue, but is it truly attainable for all people? An in-depth lesson explores the plight of migrants in twentieth-century America. The resource includes a video and author biographies and...
Curated OER
Summer Reads for Teachers
Keep up on current trends in education while taking some time to relax with the perfect book.
Annenberg Foundation
Slavery and Freedom
How do nineteenth-century texts by African American and Native American writers contribute to the country's ideals of freedom and individuality? Learners explore the topic by watching and discussing a video, reading biographies, writing...
Curated OER
Picturing America: Images and Words of Hope from Romare Bearden and Langston Hughes
A carefully crafted three-day lesson integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The lesson activates...
Curated OER
Native American Literature
Introduce your class to the writing of the indigenous Americans and, even more well known, their story telling. An engaging presentation describes what kinds of texts would be included in the oral stories performed and some common themes...
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension: Nepal
It's important to build reading comprehension in your growing learners whether English is their native language or not. Give your eighth and ninth graders this passage about Nepal, a small country north of India. The reading comes with...
Novelinks
The Good Earth: Concept Analysis
Designed for teachers, this resource provides an overview of Pearl S. Buck's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Good Earth. Information about the organizational pattern of the story, issues and themes addressed, historical background on...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Tales of the Supernatural
Scary stuff! Whether approached as the first horror story or a "serious imaginative exploration of the human condition," Frankenstein continues to engage readers. Here's a packet of activities that uses Mary Shelley's gothic novel to...
Curated OER
Lesson: Urs Fischer: Reviving the Past Art Movements
Seven major abstract art movements are analyzed by learners in groups. Each group analyzes various works by determining which work belongs to which movement. They then read Flatland, engage in an art and literary analysis discussion,...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Walt Whitman to Langston Hughes: Poems for a Democracy
Explore the idea of democratic poetry. Upper graders read Walt Whitman, examining daguerreotypes, and compare Whitman to Langston Hughes. They describe aspects of Whitman's I Hear America Singing to Langston Hughes' Let America Be...
Curated OER
Reliving History through Slave Narratives
Helpful for an American literature or history unit, this lesson prompts middle schoolers to examine slavery in the United States. They read slave narratives that were part of the Federal Writers' Project and then conduct their own...
Curated OER
Mythology Study Guide
After exploring the wonderful world of mythology, give your high schoolers this multiple choice quiz to assess their ability to recall pertinent information. There are 15 questions posed, and users can press "submit" to receive immediate...
Curated OER
Wild Swans Reader's Guide
While reading Wild Swans by Jung Chang, guide your scholars with these questions. Twenty-nine questions challenge their comprehension, which they use to create a double-entry journal for marking down important quotes and their relevance...
Curated OER
Modernism: American Literature 1914-1945
What characterizes modern literature? The first few slides of this 31-slide PowerPoint discuss what sparked the change to Modernism and discuss some of the key figures of the time (like Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud). The 20s and 30s are...
Maine Content Literacy Project
Introduction to The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson
"The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson is a great story to share with your class, and this lesson focuses on just that story! The eighth in a fourteen-lesson series on short stories, the plan has learners study some vocabulary, read the story,...
British Council
Shakespeare’s Idioms
Lie low. Break the ice. He's a night owl. Idioms, in this case idioms created by Shakespeare, are the focus of resource that includes a PowerPoint presentation, an activity, and a brief instructional activity, all intended to give kids a...