Explore literature through the completion of reading comprehension worksheets in class. After reading the classic book, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, middle schoolers review each chapter by completing study questions and story webs....

Tenth graders complete a variety of activities related to the first two chapters of the book The Outsiders. They define metaphor, simile, idiom, and hyperbole, and take a vocabulary pre-quiz. In small groups, they write a character...

Prompt your class to interact with Jack London's Call of the Wild. By analyzing the events in the novel, middle schoolers discover how human experiences create who a person becomes. They critique and analyze the reading, focusing on...

Students observe the book, "The Outside Dog," and predict the events of the story. At the conclusion of the story, students act out various paragraphs from the book and write about specified characters. Additional cross-curriculum...

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...

"The Masque of the Red Death" provides readers with an opportunity to research and plan a presentation about a topic related to Edgar Allen Poe's classic short story. 

Students examine pictures of people who lived during the feudal system. In groups, they research the role and lifestyles of the nobility and commoners. To end the lesson, they draw their own fictional person and write their own narrative...

Explore environmental care by conducting a pollution experiment. You'll discuss the causes of pollution in our environment and what the overall impact will be if we can't change our ways. Clear plastic tape, a can, and compass are used...

Students explore energy production by participating in a class discussion. In this renewable energy lesson, students discuss the differences between solar, coal, wind and fossil fuel energy sources and why some are better for the...

Students review Emily Dickinson's biography and examine themes and forms of some of her poems. They measure ways Graham integrates aspects of Dickinson's life and the themes and forms of her poetry into Letters to the World.

Students study Greek literature. In this Greek tragedies lesson, students explore the dance-dramas of Martha Graham. Students study the choreography that brings ancient Greek literature to life.

Eighth graders create a poem about homeless people using images they saw on websites. After reading the book "The Outsiders", 8th graders make connections of real life homeless people with characters in the book. Students search the web...

Students read Florence Parry Heide and Judith Heide Gilliland's, Sami and the Time of Troubles before discussing it as a class. They brainstorm ideas for a letter to the main character, Sami. Next, they write a rough draft of a letter to...

Imagine a project that informs and entertains. Replace book reports with a bulletin board that highlights all the important elements of a novel. Readers research the author, create a timeline of events in the story, write a...

Useful for literary analysis, citing textual evidence, or summary skills, this lesson about the Kumeyaay Indians would be a good addition to your language arts class. Middle schoolers read novels and summarize the literature in their own...

Youngsters visit the classroom library to complete various reading activities, pushing their motivation to read! They will discuss different library books and read two specific books that use "Building Block" reading skills. They also...

Pupils read and discuss the short story "The Red Convertible". They participate in extension activities related to each of the three parts of the story, planning a road trip, researching the Vietnam War, and writing a paper on their view...

Fifth graders research life in Alaska and compare life there to their lives in this lesson. They read "Julie of the Wolves." They research through the novel and other reference books facts about the Alaskan climate and geography. They...

Students conduct research through library and Internet resources. They research in a multidisciplinary fashion, and make creative leaps in their analysis and interpretation of the novella.

Learners read about the Alaska Gold Rush, its characters and the impact on the history of Alaska. They write a response as if they are a Klondike Stampeder in the late 1900s.

Young scholars use information from a visit to an historical exhibition to write stories about someone who lived during that time period.. They use handouts to record information to use in their writings. Students choose identities, real...

Students explore language arts by utilizing word choice to compose a paragraph. In this phonetics lesson, students discuss the importance of a "voice" in their writing as they read the book Rattletrap Car. Students write paragraphs about...

Students read and analyze the novel, "The Invisible Man," by Ralph Ellison. They participate in class discussions, write an essay, and in small groups create a multimedia essay on a group that they consider socially "invisible."

Pupils explore biology by writing fictitious stories in class. For this insect life lesson, students identify many different types of insects in the animal kingdom and the classifications they fall into. Pupils collect insects on a field...