College Board
AP® English Language: Reading and Writing Analytically
How can teachers ensure their pupils are well prepared for the AP® English exam? The reference material is a good place to start! Educators read seven essays detailing best practices for teaching scholars to read critically and write...
National Endowment for the Humanities
García Márquez’s Nobel Prize Speech: “The Solitude of Latin America”
To conclude a study of One Hundred Years of Solitude, class members analyze Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Nobel Prize in Literature acceptance speech. After a whole-class discussion of the main ideas in the speech, individuals draft a...
Teaching Women's History
Georgian Women
Britain was and is a stratified nation. History sleuths investigate the Georgian Era (1714-1830) of British history to gain an understanding of how the roles women played during this period were influenced by class, race, and religion....
ReadWriteThink
Decoding the Dystopian Characteristics of Macintosh’s “1984” Commercial
Known as one of the most iconic advertisements of the 20th century, Macintosh's "1984" commercial has become more of a social statement. Present the ad to a new audience of viewers with a lesson focused on identifying dystopian...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Hamlet Meets Chushingura: Traditions of the Revenge Tragedy
Students read texts, view film and video and conduct research in an analysis and comparison of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and the Kabuki piece "Chushingura". They focus their analysis on the theme of revenge.
Curated OER
Literary Analysis of Theme
Remember reading "The Lottery" and "The Possibility of Evil" by Shirley Jackson? Learners can experience and analyze the tension, themes, and human experience found in these pieces through reading and class discussion. They use...
Curated OER
Spring: Paul Laurence Dunbar
Explore the abundance of spring, no matter what season you are covering in your class! Using the poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar, GALE Biography Resource Center, and Litfinder, pupils work on researching the poet and analyzing the use of...
Curated OER
Speech in the Virginia Convention
“. . .different men often see the same subject in different lights. . .” but the great orator Patrick Henry used all the skills at his command to craft a speech to convince listeners to see things as he did--that liberty was worth dying...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 7: Pronouns
Take a break from literature study to address some grammatical concerns. Using a text you've already read in your class, show how to analyze pronoun use. After watching the master, pairs analyze a short excerpt on their own, identifying...
Curated OER
Enemy Pie
Third graders pair up with a partner via an online classroom. They analyze half of the story "Enemy Pie" and communicate with their online peer to predict the outcome of the story.
Curated OER
Common Visions, Common Voices
Students analyze common recurring motifs and themes found in literature and artwork from various cultures. They research and report of the "trickster" motif found in Native american, Mayan, and Ethiopian cultures.
Bright Hub Education
Don Quixote
The ideas present for analyzing Don Q are tried and true, and the beginner to the novel will find the information helpful. The most productive activity on this resource would be the mind map (link available) that gives readers and...
Curated OER
Plot of a Short Story (SMART Board)
Using the SMART Board, teacher reviews the elements of a short story while students follow along in their notebook. Continuing with the SMART Board, teacher introduces the definition of plot and the five parts as students take notes....
Curated OER
How Do You Know?
What is the difference between primary and secondary sources? Help your middle schoolers develop a knowledge of appropriate sources to use when doing accurate research. They develop unique ways to incorporate literature in historical...
Curated OER
Transparency Review
Students investigate and distinguish between primary and secondary sources when analyzing works of literature. They present their information on transparencies that are displayed to the class.
Curated OER
Taxi: A Book Of City Words
First graders engage in a literature study that helps them to focus on the concepts of goods and services. They describe the various skills people may need at home, school, and work. Students create a map of businesses found in the city.
Curated OER
A Good Man is Hard to Find
Young scholars, in groups, read and analyze the short story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, by Flannery O'Connor. They present their findings tot he rest of the class and then connect the various themes discussed to outside material, events...
Curated OER
Assessing Reading Fluency Using the Flip Video
Utilizing a video camera, learners will read a story while being recorded. Later, they analyze the footage. After identifying their strengths and weaknesses with the teacher, they discuss reading fluency techniques. Adaptation: Instead...
Curated OER
Doodle Splash
Students navigate Doodle Splash to create a painting. In this doodle splash lesson, students explain their splash painting relationship to a piece of literature.
Bright Hub Education
The Winter of Our Discontent
The resource gives some basic concepts concerning the title of the novel, basic literary elements, student developed assessments, and a philosophical notion concerning honesty in literature. The instructors are shown where they can...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.2
There is nothing more frustrating than discussing theme in literature, and now the Common Core requires that your learners determine two or more, and discuss the development of it throughout the text. This is crazy, but manageable with...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.8
It is no easy feat to wade through legal and political documents. And incorporating this type of informational text into a literature class can also be a challenge. Here’s a resource that includes suggestions for how to address this...
Curated OER
CD Cover Project
Students create CD covers using computer generated pictures, self-drawn depictions, or collages. They read and analyze books, and write one sentence book reports to be included with the CD covers.
Curated OER
Creating and Using a Checklist of Performance Techniques to Critique and Find the "Message" in Mass Media Performances
Learners analyze and critique theater events by evaluating and constructing meanings from improvised and scripted scenes and from theater, film, television, and electronic media productions.