Combine informational text and creative writing with one fun activity! Middle and high schoolers write found poems based on newspaper headlines that they find. The resource includes a thorough lesson plan and many links to articles that...

There's nothing like a provocative image to inspire a creative writing session. In the language arts instructional activity presented here, middle schoolers bring in digital photos of scary objects, such as a big spider, or a hornet's...

After reading Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (and possibly shedding a few tears), middle schoolers work on their own sixteen-word poems with a Six Trait writing activity. They focus on word choice in this activity to capture an...

Use this model, based on urban youth poetry competitions, to create an engaging venue for your poets to share their work out loud, with expression. Build class community, have fun, and celebrate your authors' original verse....

Examine letters written during war-time. In this cross curricular history and English lesson, middle and high school scholars read letters and poems written by soldiers in the Vietnam war. They will examine the perspective and emotions...

Students read through poems in a book called Pass it On. There are 19 poems from famous African American poets contained in the book. The poems are specialized for children and after the children have learned about the author and about...

Students practice naming various features or parts of their bodies using similes and vivid adjectives. The format is extended to poetic expressions as they develop a self-portrait and extend the creative experience through art.

Get the word out about friendship, support, and a safe school community with a media literacy lesson about bullying. Young journalists investigate instances of bullying and take descriptive pictures as they compile a magazine to fight...

Students create a "Hands" poem for the author/character in a reading selection.They make inferences for reading selection and back up inference by citing specific lines in text. They relate author's or main character's experiences to...

Fourth graders are introduced to famous works of art and begin to discuss the artist's work. Use art to explain and reflect their own emotions. The write about feelings in a work of art and make connections between art and other...

Students use tempera paints to create blots. They use the blots as inspiration for poetry writing by brainstorming and organizing all words they associate with the blot. They present their poetry along with their inspiration.

Eighth graders study poetic devices and use them in their own writing and apply them when reading poetry. In groups, they describe an item using poetic devices.

Young scholars create poems using a group of four predetermined words. In this poetry lesson students incorporate each of the four words into a poem that makes sense.

Students analyze "The Road Not Taken" and discuss examples of "roads traveled" by their own age group.  In this poetry lesson plan, students read and discuss the meaning of the poem.  Students choose another poem and review it...

Are you working on an Outsiders unit? Use this list of activities to deepen your middle schoolers' understanding of the novel. After reading S.E. Hinton's novel, young readers work on three required activities, including participating in...

Ninth graders appreciate the value of words, review the parts of speech, create original poetry, shape the poem, and write an explanation of the images he/she has created.

Students improve their creative writing skills. In this writing skills lesson, students learn about picture captions, story writing, critiques, poems, reports, letter writing, creative writing, and a rap poem.

Immerse your class in the Middle Ages with a thorough history instructional activity. After viewing examples of illuminated manuscripts such as the Book of Kells, they discuss how these were the mode of keeping and storing...

Sixth graders understand how Thoreau can serve as both inspiration and model for the investigation of home places. They explore ways to become better observers of natural and cultural history. Students find out how to connect with their...

Students participate in various poem-related lessons to learn how they can make a difference in the lives of people they don't know. For this poetry lesson, students discover that this pound a poem competition is about raising money for...

Students view photographs from the Civil Rights Movement and write an essay from the point of view of someone in the photograph. They artistically represent various aspects of the Movement.

Students write haiku poems on leaf paper.

Students imagine what it would be like to enter a landscape painting and then write a poem on nature.

Primary learners grasp sequence of events by discussing morning routines and reviewing the story of Little Red Riding Hood. They explore the necessity of correct order of events. As a class, create a story with a beginning, middle, and...