Curated OER
Short Story Lesson Plan: "The Californian's Tale"
Middle schoolers read the short story "The Californian's Tale" by Mark Twain and complete related activities. They discuss vocabulary for the story and complete a vocabulary matching definition activity. They complete writing activities...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Mark Twain and American Humor
“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is famous, in part, because it established a uniquely American form of humor. For this famous story, Mark Twain combines the tall-tale, the dialect story, and satire. Here is a resource...
Curated OER
Unit Plan for Mark Twain and American Humor
Students create brochures about the humor of Mark Twain. In this literature-analysis lesson plan, students read "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and other short stories by Twain. Students write analytical paragraphs and...
Curated OER
"The War Prayer" by Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain)
Students explore the story "The War Prayer" by Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain. Students are introduced to the life of the author, read the story, and respond to prompting questions about the text. The story is included in this lesson plan.
Curated OER
American Frontiers
Students study the settlement of the American frontier through literature. In this literature lesson, students read and discuss works by James Fenimore Cooper, Bret Harte, Mark Twain, Willa Cather, and Hamlin Garland. Students compare...
Curated OER
Language Arts Jeopardy
Be the next Alex Trebek in this language arts themed Jeopardy game! Categories include Lit Terms, Short Stories, Romeo and Juliet, Tom Sawyer, and The Miracle Worker. By clicking on each category (points from 1-5), a slide with the...
Curated OER
American Literature Authors and Their Works
Students match American Literature authors with their short stories, poems, and books. In this American Literature lesson, students are given an overview of the authors and their main works. Then students independently do a matching...
National Endowment for the Humanities
"Old Southwest" Humorists and George Washington Harris
Young scholars discover the work of George Washington Harris and his influence on American humor. For this George Washington Harris lesson, discuss cultural differences in the United States and read Sut Lovongwood stories by George...