Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to Sue Monk Kidd's: The Secret Life of Bees
A 12-page teacher's guide to Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees provides the discussion questions and activities that lead readers to understand not only Lily's fears, but her reasons behind them.
Novelinks
The Dark Is Rising: Problematic Situation Strategy
What items would you need to save the world from an evil wizard? Prior to reading Susan Cooper's young adult contemporary fantasy The Dark is Rising, and to generate interest in the tale, class groups must reach consensus on a...
Novelinks
The Hobbit: Problematic Situation
As part of a unit study of The Hobbit, class members engage in an activity that asks group to practice the skills needed to reach consensus in a discussion.
Curated OER
Romeo and Juliet: KWHL Strategy
Introduce Romeo and Juliet with a KWHL strategy that asks learners to record what they know, what they want to learn, and how they will find this information on a large chart posted in the classroom. During the reading of Shakespeare’s...
Curated OER
Dandelion Wine: Vocabulary Strategy
Prior to reading chapter 17 of Dandelion Wine, partners look up and illustrate level three words found in Colonel Freeleigh’s many allusions. Pairs then share with the whole class. Detailed instructions for the activity are included.
Curated OER
The Illusion of Race
This is mostly an exploration of race through an interactive website, class readings, and discussion. Individuals take an online quiz about race, they answer questions on a worksheet by visiting another website, and discover that race is...
Curated OER
The Wright Brothers on Hollywood Squares
Students test their knowledge of the Wright brothers by playing "Hollywood Squares." They read (or listen) with comprehension. Students follow the rules as they actively participate in a game to test their reading (or listening)...
California Education Partners
Glass Menagerie
As a reading comprehension assessment, ninth graders are asked to use evidence drawn from The Glass Menagerie to support an analysis of how Tennessee Williams uses specific lines to develop Amanda's character as well as her...
Curated OER
Round-Robin Reading Quiz
Small groups of learners read text round-robin style, and then work individually to answer three questions based on the text. Next, they share their questions and responses and add ideas from the group. The reading strategies detailed...
Facing History and Ourselves
First Chapter Fridays
Fridays can be a challenge with learners already dreaming about their weekends. Here's a routine that will bring their minds back to the classroom. Read aloud the beginning of a story, sure to engage your listeners.
Curated OER
Introduction to Ozone Reading Activity
Simple, but suitable, this lesson gives mini-meteorologists a glimpse at ozone in the atmosphere. By reading an article, they find that ozone in the stratosphere is vital to life, but ozone in the troposphere is problematic. A reading...
Curated OER
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2003 - Information for the Public
An information-packed eight-page article detailing the history of understanding active transport across cell membranes makes up the bulk of this handout. Two pages of reading comprehension and critical-thinking questions follow. The...
Curated OER
Paradise Lost: Picture Book Activity
Readers of Paradise Lost draw parallels between Milton's tale and Gene Zion's Harry the Dirty Dog, an illustrated children's book.
Penguin Books
An Educator's Guide to The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
Jack the Ripper terrorized London in the late 1800s. An educator's guide for the novel The Name of the Star places the historical figure in a modern context. Readers complete a pre-reading activity before answering a series of discussion...
Curated OER
Fears and Phobias
Take the fear out of reading with this series of three lessons from HotWire Magazine about fears and phobias. Each lesson plan contains pre-reading and post-reading activities aimed at improving learners' reading comprehension skills...
Curated OER
Unwind: Pre-Reading Strategy, K-W-H-L
Readers of Neal Shusterman's young adult science fiction novel, Unwind, record what they know, what they want to know, how the will find answers to the questions, on a KWHL chart.
Curated OER
Wildwood Dancing: K-W-H-L Reading Strategy On Prejudice
As part of a study of Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, class members create a KWHL chart listing what they know, what the want to know, how they will find information, and what they have learned about prejudice.
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 1, Unit 1, Lesson 8
You can often track a character's development based on others' reactions to their words or actions. Using Karen Russell's "St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves," ninth graders work in a jigsaw activity to analyze how Mirabella's...
Curated OER
Cinco De Mayo: ELD Reading and Language-Building
A brief passage about the Mexican holiday Cinco de Mayo is accompanied by an array of language activities for ELD: cloze exercise, phrase matching, word jumble, multiple choice, sequencing, interview, group presentation, fluency writing,...
Pearson
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Activity Worksheets
Designed to accompany a reading of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, this packet includes before, during, and after reading activities. Individuals respond to questions about events in the story, match characters with quotes, and draft...
Curated OER
News Quiz : April 8, 2011
Find out what the hot topics were on April 8, 2011. Kids will read several New York Times articles for that day to answer five multiple choice questions. Tip: Have struggling readers complete this activity with a peer partner.
Curated OER
Ana Finds an Apartment
Because of the topic of this reading comprehension and vocabulary activity, it would probably be best used with adults in an ESL class. The 10 question reading activity, which focuses on vocabulary involving renting an apartment, could...
Scholastic
Reading Characters
Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass provides the text for a study of how writers bring characters to life. Using the provided character mapping worksheets, readers respond to questions and then write a short character sketch.
Phantom of Opera
The Phantom of the Opera: Ideas for Research and Discussion
You could spend a full day discussing The Phantom of the Opera and not scratch the surface, but a set of lessons about the literary elements and themes of the musical production is a great start. Young thespians build upon the...