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 background...
Santa Ana Unified School District
Lord of the Flies Unit
How does a society influence and shape individuals? Class members ponder this essential question as they read Lord of the Flies, as well as primary source materials about the historical background of the novel. As a final assessment,...
Curated OER
Agamemnon: Symbols Quiz
In this online interactive reading comprehension worksheet, high schoolers respond to 5 multiple choice questions based on symbols in Agamemnon. Students may submit their answers to be scored on this timed quiz.
Curated OER
Light in August by William Faulkner
In this literature worksheet, students respond to 16 short answer and essay questions about Faulkner's Light in August. Students may also link to an online interactive quiz on the novel at the bottom of the page.
Penguin Books
Teacher’s Guide: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
A 10-page guide to John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men includes a brief plot summary, information about preparing readers for the language in the novel, pre-reading, during reading, and post-reading questions, essay prompts, and project...
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...
Star Wars in the Classroom
"Shakespeare and Star Wars": Lesson Plan Day 12
Class members compare the final 30 minutes of Lucas's Star Wars: A New Hope with Act V of Doescher's play, William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope and consider how the choice of media influences viewers' impression of the...
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 11: The Historical/Biographical Approach to Literature
How affected is Thinks Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe's personal biography? Using a four corners strategy, and evidence from their readings, class members debate the degree of biographical influence in Achebe's novel.
Curated OER
Pioneer Values in Willa Cather's My Antonia
Included in this resource are a variety of activities to do while reading Willa Cather's My Antonia. The activities, which range from mapping out Nebraska to writing activities about pioneer living, are all designed with one guiding...
Curated OER
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: Symbols Quiz
In this online interactive symbols quiz learning exercise, students respond to 5 multiple choice questions about symbols from Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Students may check their answers on this timed quiz.
Curated OER
Dr. Heidegger's Experiment
What are the pros and cons of prolonging life? Incorporate real-world issues into the study of literature using Dr. Heidegger's Experiment. Through the exploration of pre-determined websites, scholars consider several related literary...
Curated OER
Lesson 1: Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury
I love Faulkner, his experimental style and stream of consciousness are so exciting. Your learners can analyze William Faulkner and his novel, The Sound and the Fury by defining his place in American literary history and exploring his...
Curated OER
The Metamorphosis: Vocabulary Bingo
Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis is one of the most fascinating pieces of literature from the 20th century, and its rich vocabulary is one of the reasons it has endured for over a century. Help learners of all levels work through new...
Curated OER
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Students write a paper in which they analyze a quotation or symbol from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this American literature lesson, students choose a famous quotation or symbol from the novel and analyze the importance and...
Curated OER
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Theme of Visions of America
In this reading comprehension worksheet, learners respond to 4 short answer questions about themes from Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Curated OER
Colors and The Great Gatsby: Fun Trivia Quiz
What is the symbolic importance of certain colors? This online, interactive quiz on The Great Gatsby asks questions related to colors and their symbolism; however, it requires little analysis. For the most part, test-takers match colors...
Curated OER
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: Symbols Quiz
In this online interactive reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 5 short answer questions about symbols from Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Students may check their answers in this timed quiz.
Prestwick House
The Book Thief
Review main characters, story events, and important quotes from Marcus Zusak's The Book Thief. A crossword puzzle with 29 clues gives high schoolers the opportunity to check their understanding and revist Zusak's haunting work.
Mr. T Davis
Major Works Data Sheet
Ease the anxiety of preparing for the AP English exams with a four-page packet test-takers can use to record key information about major works they have read. In addition to biographical information about the author, historical...
Louisiana Department of Education
The Metamorphosis
How can something be true even if it didn't happen? Invite your classes to investigate the truths found in the world of magical realism as they analyze short stories, poems, informational texts, video, and art from this genre.
Deer Valley Unified School District
Close Reading: Analyzing Mood and Tone
The AP Literature and Composition exam is all about close reading. Test takers are presented with a passage and asked to analyze how an author uses literary devices to create a desired effect. Prepare your students for the exam with a...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Burying Addie's Voice
High schoolers explore the use of voice and title in William Faulkner's, "As I Lay Dying". They identify and discuss the use of image, symbols and narrative voice in the story.
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.2
There is nothing more frustrating than discussing theme in literature, and now the Common Core requires that your learners determine two or more, and discuss the development of it throughout the text. This is crazy, but manageable with...
Curated OER
Combining Geography and Literature by Mapping a Story
Students listen to or read a story on their own. Using the text, they describe the relative locations of the main events. In groups, they develop two and three dimensional maps of the story. They create a key and a title for their map.