Learners combine creativity with the rigor of careful editing by adding music to their story. It forces them to focus on how they communicate the meaning of their story to the listener.

Researchers say that we need to hear and see new language 12 times before we remember it! Here's a plan that details a series of games that can be used as memory exercises. Bingo, Noughts and Crosses, Pelmanism, and repetitive speaking...

Young scholars read "I Had a Hero" a memoir written by a Peace Corps volunteer serving in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They discuss the story, respond to it in writing, complete comprehension activities and relate the account to...

Students read excerpts from Peter Hessler's River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze and discuss his difficulties in learning the language, cultural clashes and how cultural perceptions shape our understanding of the world.

Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.

Young scholars 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.

Students read "A South African Storm" by Allison Howard and participate in a class discussion that examines Howard's letter for both content and writing form. They write a letter using some of the techniques they identified in Howard's.

Students write a list of steps to be taken in making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. They observe as the instructor literally follows each step. After realizing the importance of clear communication, students write a scientific...

Practice vocabulary and speaking skills in this ESL reading comprehension lesson. Middle and high schoolers participate in a number of before, during, and after reading activities based on an article entitled "Footballer Sent Off for...

Welcome to America, the land of liberty and freedom. Examine the ways in which the terms liberty and freedom have been used in the United States. After researching and analyzing quotations from the past and present, students create an...

Students sample goodies from an unseen ocean floor and try to accurately describe their composition. This simulation helps students explain the limitations of sampling and the problem of obtaining representative samples of sea floor...

Students observe swimming and resting patterns of aquarium fish to determine how different parts of the habitat are used. Different pairs of students should compare their results after several days to look for daily patterns.

What a pair! Older pupils interview younger ones and use what they learn to write a short, illustrated storybook that features the youngster as the main character. The youngster responds with a thank-you note in which they identify their...

Using Visual Thesaurus software, class members participate in a computer-based spelling bee. Then they work in groups to analyze the words and use deductive reasoning to infer spelling patterns. They then present one of their "rules" to...

How can word choice affect a political speech? Middle and high schoolers examine the text of the 1999 State of the Union Address, and then determine how newspaper articles and television reports describe and analyze the event. Use this...

Study the importance of word choice in informational text. Middle and high schoolers locate unfamiliar words and phrases in newspaper articles of their choosing, and use online word sites to explore the definitions and histories of each....

Can word choice affect a candidate's likeability? Use a New York Times lesson to explore how a presidential candidate's likeability factor can fluctuate in public opinion polls. Young readers choose a presidential election from...

Study word choice and connotation in advertising. Readers examine campaign ads, both negative and positive, from the 2006 mid-term election before discussing an article and analyze a campaign of any candidate they choose. Finally,...

Knock, knock, knock...Creep out your class with a critical thinking lesson focused on word relationships in Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart." They investigate  the relationship between word choice, mood, and interpretation of...

What does your dialect sound like? Examine variation in English as it relates to geographic regions with your class. They recognize some of the major differences between regional dialects and determine that everyone speaks a dialect....

A reading of a New York Times review of the movie Beloved launches research into how the Civil War affected the lives of people living during this period. Creative thinkers select a person from an included list of historical figures and...

Prompted by a viewing of Emiko and Chizu Omori’s Rabbit in the Moon, a documentary about the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, high schoolers examine a series of documents, including the Bill of Rights and the UN’s...

Ever heard of CTE? A passage about Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) provides the text for a reading comprehension check. The subject matter is sure to engage your readers and the questions, based on the passage, assess whether high...