If you are reading works by Walter Dean Myers in your class, this resource might be worth a look. Included here are activities and discussion questions for Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary, Somewhere in the Darkness, Scorpions, Fallen...

Make the thought process visible with a handy concept map organizer. As learners develop their main ideas in research, writing, or creative development, they can add details and like ideas to the worksheet as needed.

Show your class that there is more than one way to communicate an idea. Pupils note down their ideas and then brainstorm a few things they want to include in their pictures. Then, in the box provided, they sketch and describe their...

Small groups brainstorm their roles in the community. Then, individually, complete a community roles web worksheet. Peers share their completed product and extend the conversation to include the feelings and character traits that go...

A thorough unit on literary analysis and character development culminates in a final writing assessment. Prompted to compare the parent-child relationships in Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club and H.G. Bissinger's Friday Night Lights, high...

If it's true that preparation is the key to success, the English Language Arts Examination handout should help pupils ace their exams. Scholars read several texts and answer multiple-choice questions. Then, they write source-based...

If readers don't understand key portions of a text, it may seem more like a foe than a friend. The second resource in a series of three ESL lessons designed to accompany the texts in Nature: Friend or Foe makes the texts easier to...

When you think of one topic, related ideas and details invariably follow. That's concept mapping! Jot down ideas with a straightforward graphic organizer that works both electronically and as a printed resource.

The intricate craft of narrative writing can make a happy story feel exuberant or a sad story feel devastating. With 42 extensive lessons that include poignant discussion questions, standards-aligned self-reflections, engaging writing...

Close readers and forensic detectives alike deal with collecting strong evidence. Ninth graders become involved in an instructional activity about Sophocles' Oedipus the King, in which they find connections between Oedipus' stated words...

Prepare for a mid-unit assessment based on Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club with a brainstorming and discussion lesson plan. Focused on two chapters from the novel ("Rules of the Game" and "Two Kinds"), the lesson plan guides tenth graders...

What happens when a tenuous grasp on sanity begins to slip? Compare Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" and Emily Dickinson's "I Felt a Funeral, in my Brain" with a lesson plan focused on developing a common central idea. High...

Combine a study of biography writing with some tips for spicing up writing. After reading two passages, one much more descriptive than the other, pupils examine what makes one more interesting. They then brainstorm some ideas for writing...

Can three works of literature work together to establish and develop a common central idea? Put your thoughts into writing with a final assessment focused on a unit-long analysis of Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepard to His...

Refugee & Immigrant Transitions is an organization that helps newcomers adjust to life in the United States through education and community leadership opportunities. As part of a mid-unit assessment, pupils independently read a...

Plan on using Gone with the Wind as a reading selection? Here's a packet of prompts for activities and assessments.

How does an author develop and contrast character points of view in a work of literature? Using a graphic organizer, readers continue gathering evidence about character point of view from Linda Sue Park's A Long Walk to Water. Next,...

What would you wish for if a leprechaun were to grant you three wishes? This is the question posed in a St. Patrick's Day writing activity. 

Scholars discuss the many ways they use persuasion in their everyday lives and brainstorm specific ideas for encouraging someone to do something. With the list of persuasive techniques they made, young writers complete a graphic...

Webs can be spooky, but they can also help learners build vocabulary! Use these Halloween-themed word webs to inspire your pupils when brainstorming related words and concepts. Two different styles are provided.

What do you do when faced with a bully? Scholars answer this question when presented with a scenario regarding two learners and their spelling test grades. They take part in a grand conversation that leads to problem solving and...

Feelings of loneliness and alienation drive the characters in John Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Use this handout to set your class members up for a lesson on these big ideas. In addition to finding a couple of definitions...

Follow up a reading of The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me by Roald Dahl with this collaborative lesson on teamwork. Starting with a fun team game, learners go on to investigate examples of teamwork in the story before...

Two scholars walk into a room arguing, what is happening? Peers observe the two actors in preparation for a whole-class discussion about conflict. Learners establish a conflict, name the three approaches—passive, aggressive, and...