A read-aloud anthology focuses on fables. Over three weeks, first graders listen to various stories and then participate in lessons that cover story elements, including plot, characters, setting, and personification and explore...

West Side Story, the modern retelling of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, won ten Academy Awards for its rousing depiction of the tale of star-crossed lovers. But how closely does the plot align to its source material? Compare and...

Order up! Welcome to the World Café, where scholars engage in small-group discussions based on Katherine Paterson's novel Lyddie. As pupils circulate around the room, they talk with classmates about the novel's characters, setting,...

Readers understand a text better when they discuss it with someone else. Scholars continue reading the novel Lyddie by Katherine Paterson, engaging in text-related discussions with five classmates. Next, they add to their chapter three...

Speaking your mind and standing up for yourself is the message of Laurie Halse Anderson's novel Speak. Readers review key details about characters, setting, and plot points with a crossword puzzle all about Speak.

Eliminate the hard work of creating an entire literature unit with this reading guide for the novel Sarah, Plain and Tall. From background information about the author and her motivation for writing the story to...

Help young learners understand friendship and empathy with two reading comprehension lessons. Each lesson focuses on a story about a child with autism, and encourages readers to compare and contrast the characters to each other and to...

Teach learners how to interact with both fiction and non-fiction text with a packet of activities and worksheets. After looking over text structure and the difference in text features between different types of writing,...

What is a dynamic character? Using an interesting resource, scholars set out to answer the question. They create graphic organizers to collect details about character development as they read the novel Inside Out & Back Again. They...

What could be more fun than two birthday parties in one day? Compare and contrast two parties with a short reading passage and a graphic organizer that focuses on character, setting, and events from the story.

A mouse on a motorcycle—what could possibly go wrong? Using the novel study that accompanies Beverly Cleary's The Mouse and the Motorcycle, pupils complete a brief vocabulary activity and then answer questions about the text. Next,...

A royal read-aloud anthology offers a look inside the life of kings and queens. Songs and stories showcase royal characteristics and story elements and boost reading comprehension skills. Discussions highlight the difference between...

Can science ever go too far? Learners explore this topic with the Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde study guide. They read about the connection between scientific experimentation in fiction and real life and then compare a scene from the novella...

Surprise! is the theme of a unit covering such topics as consonants, blending, short vowels sounds, high frequency words, and number words. The unit's lessons also include teachable moments covering story structure, illustrations,...

Strap on those backpacks, it's time to travel through history with this literature unit based on the first four books of The Magic Tree House series. While reading through these fun stories, children create story maps, record...

Encourage scholars to share their love of reading with informative and engaging book reviews. Here, you'll find a series of guides that walk learners through the review writing process. Included in the collection is information about...

Accompany a reading of Madeleine L'Engle's classic tale, A Wrinkle in Time, with a detailed guide equipped with 15 informative and useful chapters. Scholars discover who the author is, why she wrote the book, and crucial story elements...

Record the plot elements of The Cay on this worksheet. Pupils note basic information about the book and answer questions about the introduction, point of view, character, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution of...

Kids can get all their plot points in line by filling out this graphic organizer with information from a story they have read. Pupils note down the title and author, the characters, the setting, and four events from the story.

Dig into any piece of fiction with a series of analysis questions. There are two levels of questions provided: basic and in-depth. The basic questions can be copied double-sided onto a single piece of paper, while the in-depth questions...

Scholars work in pairs to analyze the characters, plot, and setting of Katherine Paterson's novel, Lyddie. Next, they apply what they learned about the characters' feelings and motivation to perform a mini reader's theater. 

Guide young readers through their first book report with a story map designed for a Dr. Seuss book. After your class finishes their story of choice, they list the title, characters, conflict, and other elements of literature on the book...

Young readers compare and contrast digital and print versions of tall tale text. The resource includes a character analysis in which pupils compare and contrast traits, and make inferences about what the characters do and say. They...

A solid, straightforward book report form is an excellent addition to your literature unit. Class members note the main characters, point of view, plot elements, and other important details from a story, adding their favorite part...