Curated OER
Literature: Satire in the American Dream
Eleventh graders examine cartoons for examples of satire, irony, and sarcasm. They write essays about cartoons, art work, or literature analyzing it for satirical elements. Finally, they create their own piece in one of the three areas...
Curated OER
Chaucer's Wife of Bath
A thorough and well-designed resource for older students, this lesson focuses on Chaucer's character the Wife of Bath from his classic novel, The Canterbury Tales. As a way of understanding Chaucer's complex characterization and...
Curated OER
Exploring Satire - Jonathan Swift
Learners study about satire and find examples Part One of GULLIVER'S TRAVELS. They then write an essay about the examples they found and how the writer used satire in his literary work.
Curated OER
Literature: Oliver Twist In The Classroom
Learners view the Masterpiece Theatre presentation of Oliver Twist. the activity includes plot summaries of the three episodes as well as before and after viewing activities. In addition, there are discussion and activity suggestions...
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The Rest Cure: Gender in Medicine and Literature
Read and discuss "The Yellow Wall-Paper" and the gender issues that the story brings up. Use articles from the time period to analyze, complete with specific discussion questions. After two days, scholars write an essay based on topics...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Mark Twain and American Humor
“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is famous, in part, because it established a uniquely American form of humor. For this famous story, Mark Twain combines the tall-tale, the dialect story, and satire. Here is a resource...
Curated OER
Exploring Satire - Jonathan Swift
Students explore satire. In this literature lesson, students read Part One of Gulliver's Travels. Students then write an essay explaining how Jonathan Swift used satire in his writing.
Curated OER
Constructing Narrative from the Migrant Experience in Literature
Excerpts from John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and from John Fante's Ask the Dust, as well as a variety of primary source documents provide the background for an examination of the migrant experience from 1920-1945.
Curated OER
Extreme Poetry Vocabulary
Challenge your class with this comprehensive list of literary vocabulary words. Learners take a pre-test, look up definitions, come up with an example, and then take a post-test. You might use this prior to a unit about poetic devices in...
Curated OER
Literature: Porgy and Bess
Students examine the various portrayals of African-Americans in literature, focusing on the opera, Porgy and Bess. They conduct Internet research on African-American culture between the two World Wars. Students write fictional or...
Curated OER
Literature: Isabel Allende
Young scholars watch and respond to a Bill Moyers Now video on the Chilean author, Isabel Allende. They brainstorm a list of recent events that might inspire writers and choose one to write about in poetic, diary, or short story form.
Curated OER
Poems with Tone and Mood
Young scholars examine the use of tone in poetry. In this literature lesson, students read "We Real Cool," by Gwendolyn Brooks and use the provided graphic organizer to chart the poem's tone and mood.
Curated OER
Mark Twain: Straddling the Civil War
Mark Twain's life, politics, writing, and role as a mirror of pre- and post-Civil War American culture are the focus 11th and 12th graders in this section from an expansive author study. A critical writing assignment comparing Twain to...
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Poet Naomi Shihab Nye
Students read and analyze poetry by Naomi Shihab Nye. They define stereotypes, view and discuss a video interview with Nye, present an oral reading of a poem, and write a persuasive letter to an author.
Curated OER
Tennessee Williams: Exploring the American Dream
High schoolers read and analyze selections of Tennessee Williams' work. They write journal responses, conduct Internet research, perform various scenes from one of Williams' dramas, and create a presentation.
Curated OER
Early Industrialization
Eighth graders analyze primary source documents emphasizing young people in factory labor (mill workers during 1840-1860). They study hours of labor, ages of laborers, reasons for working, and working conditions. They write a poem or song.
Curated OER
Mocking Modern Life
Twelfth graders read "The Nun's Priest's Tale" and "The Rape of the Lock" then brainstorm possible topics for a contemporary mock epic and possible
"grandiose" words and phrases for common objects and activities. They write a mock epic...
Curated OER
The Crucible
Twelfth graders use an Internet scavenger hunt, vocabulary, sample essay questions, and short answer questions suitable for study and review of the play, The Crucible.
Curated OER
The Red Badge of Courage: A New Kind of Courage
Students examine how Stephen Crane treats the process by which a youth matures in his novel the Red Badge of Courage. They study how he exemplifies manly virtues associated with soldiers in war and examine the three endings that were...