Waunakee Community School District
Identifying Themes in Literature
If your language arts learners have a hard time determining the universal theme of a written work, use a straightforward learning exercise to help them find it. After reviewing a list of common themes, kids note the title, character,...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Themes in Lord of the Flies
William Golding's Lord of the Flies is the anchor text for a lesson that teaches readers how to distinguish between a literary topic and a literary theme. Using the provided worksheets, groups first chart some themes and propose a...
Curated OER
Writing Diagnostics and Introduction to Literary Terms
Assess your new learners' writing abilities and knowledge of literary terms with these diagnostic activities. Part of a back-to-school unit, this is meant to provide the teacher with information about the ability levels of their class....
Curated OER
Conflict
Though the lesson plan format is simplistic, it's got some good ideas for addressing internal and external conflict in your literary analysis unit. Using "Little Red Riding Hood" and other fairy tales, young readers identify the...
Curated OER
Literary Elements in Of Mice and Men
Ninth graders review an exercise, after reading most of the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. They demonstrate a range of literary elements such as conflict, symbolism, setting, and foreshadowing. Students also are able to provide...
Writing Educators Symposium
Asking the Right Questions
It can be difficult to find the theme of a book or story if you don't know the questions to ask. Teach your kids to discern the universal theme in works of literature with a set of activities that promote critical thinking and...
Curated OER
Conflict and Cooperation
Learners investigate conflict resolution. In this world conflict lesson, students examine the roles of NATO, the UN, and the EU in diplomacy issues. Learners look into the conflict in the Balkans that prompted the Bosnian War.
Curated OER
How Does Power Affect Conflict?
Young scholars use several short stories to analyze different types of power. While discussing the role of power in these short stories, students will practice communication skills essential to conflict transformation, specifically...
Curated OER
How Do Conflicts Escalate?
Students examine, evaluate and understand the concept of conflict, conflict escalation and colflict resolution through a variety of creative interactions.
Curated OER
Conflict and Debate
Students take a medical issue and explore it, debate it, and convince others of their point of view. They improve research skills and writing skills. Students are able to define a problem, debate it, and identify which is the best...
Curated OER
Context Clues, Plot Structure, Conflict, and Personal Narrative Essay
What are the elements of a personal narrative? Get your class talking by reading "The Necklace" and "A Dangerous Game." The instructional activity focuses primarily on defining certain vocabulary terms (like context clues, plot,...
Curated OER
Perfecting My Pal's Poe Paragraph
After analyzing the compelling first paragraph of Edgar Allen Poe's short story "The Masque of the Red Death," high schoolers draft original opening paragraphs using techniques identified Poe's writing. The relationship between suspense...
Curated OER
Pastoralists and Agrarians: Identifying Connections between Historical and Contemporary Migration
Pastoralists and agrarians, livestock raisers and farmers. Using the conflict in Darfur as a lens, class members investigate the conflicts that arise when these groups are forced to migrate from one area to another.
Curated OER
Identify and Analyze Literary Concepts
Young scholars explore plot structure, conflict, setting, and mood. In this literary elements lesson, students read Rosa Parks, My Story and complete the provided plot outline worksheets. Young scholars discuss the text elements of...
Prestwick House
Wuthering Heights
How many ways can you break down a classic novel? Based on the acclaimed Romantic-period novel by Emily Bronte, the Wuthering Heights activity pack includes a pre-reading exercise. Next, learners create a resume for one of the...
Curated OER
Identifying Science Fiction
Students discuss works of science fiction that they read, highlight aspects that made each a part of science fiction genre, identify formal literary elements, and discuss ways each can be developed through science fiction.
Curated OER
The Tell-Tale Heart
Bring Edgar Allan Poe's spooky story to life! After reading the short story "The Tell-Tale Heart," middle and high schoolers identify the theme, character traits, irony, and other story concepts. During pre-reading, they take notes,...
Curated OER
Romeo and Juliet Mix-It-Up
High schoolers identify themes in Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet by analyzing the film or text. In this tolerance lesson, students create their own Elizabethan era terms related to interacting with different social groups. In groups,...
Curated OER
Plot and Conflict
Students review the literary elements of plot and conflict. In this plot and conflict instructional activity, students read a story and answer questions about the plot and conflict within. Students create a concept map for the novel to...
Curated OER
Cooperative Comics
Students create comics identifying conflicts and their resolutions. In this conflict resolution lesson, small groups of students follow specific mapping instructions to illustrate a conflict and its resolution. Students present orally...
Curated OER
Project-Based Learning: Improbable History
Students explore conflict. In this contemporary history lesson plan, students participate in 4 weekly activities that require them to research current conflicts and create time-travel cartoons that illustrate how the conflcits...
Curated OER
Exploring the Nature of Conflict
Students define conflict and violence, and determine the difference between the two. They find positive aspects of conflict while analyzing a conflict which they experienced. They organize their thoughts using a webbing activity.
Curated OER
Dealing with Conflict
Learners identify types of conflict and various responses to anger. In this character education lesson plan, the teacher introduces definitions of conflict and anger responses. Students find examples of types of conflict in newspapers...
K20 LEARN
The Anatomy Of A Story: Story Structure
Somebody. Wanted. But. Then. Introduce your classes to the structure that supports stories with a lesson that teaches readers how to identify the four basic components writers use to craft their tales. After identifying these elements in...