Provided here are activities and questions for Part I of To Kill a Mockingbird (although one activity is also included for Part II). Readers study the novel's plot, characters, and setting. I wouldn't recommend using this as the sole...

So your class is just about to start the Odyssey. Although you'll undoubtedly help them define vocabulary words in context, present them with this list of nine words to get them started. Each is defined, but consider also providing...

Provide your class with this reading guide for chapter two of Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. They grapple with new vocabulary words like swamper, cesspool, and mollified before checking out literary terms and answering a list of questions...

Frankenstein is a rich, eerie text, but only if your class can understand it! Help them develop the vocabulary necessary by providing them with this two-page sheet. Designed for the beginning part of the novel (although neither page...

Read Our Town with your class, and introduce them to new vocabulary words. Twenty words (like agrarian, crestfallen, and ennui) are the focus, and learners complete to exercises to better acquaint themselves with the new words. Although...

Twenty challenging vocabulary words are the focus of this assignment, created for The Catcher in the Rye. Example words include brassy, rile, and pacifistic. Although specific chapters are not indicated, this worksheet was designed for...

What has rules and has no rules? What has rhythm and rhyme, and no rhythm or rhyme? What is arranged carefully and is scattered? Why, poetry, of course. Although text-heavy, this PowerPoint does provide a context for the study of poetry...

Are your kids always mixing up the colon and the semicolon? Help make their purpose clear with this short presentation. Thirteen slides offer explanations, examples, and a short practice opportunity. Although it serves its purpose, the...

Prepare to be impressed! Although text-heavy, the slides in this presentation concisely define and offer clear examples of the use of the colon and semicolon.

A standard peer editing activity, young writers get into groups and pass their papers to each of their peers in turn; each person checking their peer's paper for spelling, punctuation, and grammar mistakes. In a fun twist, your class...

"List reading strategies you have learned that will help you start (and finish) reading a class novel." "What do you like knowing about a novel before you read it?" Although labeled for Of Mice and Men, the prompts included on this...

Youngsters review Spanish words and the articles associated with each. Eight graphics are shown, and learners must decide if un, una, unos, or unas is the appropriate article. Note: although the task itself is not higher than an...

Brian was devastated when Hostess® filed for bankruptcy, and he was also fearful that his favorite snack treat would be lost forever. The snack food was in danger of being lost, your class won't be lost when using Twinkies® as the...

Although dated in appearance, this PowerPoint presents current content in how learners can identity a theme, main idea, subject, and topic. The information is formatted for easy note taking, but offers no explanation of the themes...

Here is a lab activity where teens experience the respiratory system first-hand as they dissect lungs and identify key structures within the system. Although the website is written in British English with some slightly different verbiage...

Launch a study of Maya Angelou's "I know Why the Caged Bird Sings" with the Youtube video of Alicia Keys singing her "Caged Bird." Groups then read Angelou's poem and discuss the symbols employed. Although the text of the poem is not...

Although it contains some formatting issues, the Word document here contains good questions about osmosis and diffusion, and is easy to edit as needed. Designed as a study guide, you could use the information here for warmups, ideas for...

Google it! Like Kleenix, Google has genericized. But when beginning a project, young researchers need to go beyond search engines and become aware of the different types of research resources available. Introduce the options with a...

Get your young writers outside of the traditional essay writing mode with Free Write Friday. Free Write Friday encourages your class to use personal experiences or knowledge to write more creative pieces. Young writers could experiment...

This basic handout would be good for skills practice or a review of parallel and perpendicular lines. Review the definitions, then practice writing equations of lines that pass through a specific point and are either parallel or...

Although the ideas on how to implement the skill RI.9-10.2 are lacking, the assessment would work well for challenging learners to summarize, and identify the main ideas of presidential speeches that are of similar topics. One could use...

Your learners need to develop skills to argue effectively, and this comes by understanding the traditions that make claims valid, and what detracts from their effectiveness.  Although this resource does not give advice on how to...

Although it does not properly address how to use the Common Core standard, this resource does provide a decent writing prompt that explores how minor characters influence Hamlet's decisions throughout the play. The prompt can be used for...

Your students have mastered using textual evidence in literature, but what about using this skill in informational texts.  Uh oh! That is right—they are not the same thing. Darn the Common Core! See options on how to differentiate...