After a brief discussion of their independent reading texts, pairs exchange their college narratives and, using the provided peer review tool, give their partner suggestions on how the draft may be improved.

As a mid-unit assessment, class members demonstrate their understanding of the concepts covered so far by crafting a formal, multi-paragraph essay in which they analyze how Rainer Maria Rilke's word choices develop the meaning and tone...

As the class concludes its close reading of “The Palace Thief,” groups consider how the narrator's character has changed throughout Ethan Canin’s short story.

What are the qualities of a strong written response to a prompt? Class members use the provided text analysis rubric to self-assess their responses to their homework assignments to prepare for the mid-unit assessment.

Revenge, mortality, madness—what are the central ideas from Shakespeare's Hamlet? Scholars answer the question by writing multi-paragraph responses. They also identify and discuss literary devices from the play.

There's a fine line between madness and genius. Using the resource, scholars complete a mid-unit assessment based on their study of Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. They write a multi-paragraph response, analyzing how two central...

Shake up the writing process with a peer critique. The second of four lessons in the Grade 8 ELA Module 2B, Unit 3 series first has young writers compare their interpretations of a scene from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's...

Class members choose an ad they want to analyze for their performance task. They then read specific text based on the ad they chose. The instructor guides learners through a Model Research Synthesis document in which they try to...

When it comes to comparing texts, it's apples to oranges. As part two of the mid-unit assessment, learners compare and contrast two texts about the Internet and brain health. While reading, scholars use a Venn diagram to compare two...

Read and reread for better understanding. Scholars listen to a read aloud of Shrouded in Myth. They talk with a partner about the things they noticed and wondered about the text. They then listen to the text a second time to focus...

Readers of Nineteen Eighty-Four engage in a close reading exercise that directs their focus to the key details Orwell provides in the opening paragraphs to introduce his dystopian society. The included worksheeet is divided into three...

Not dreadful, but mighty, this learning exercise for “Divine Sonnet X” (aka “Death Be Not Proud”) models for individuals how to recognize John Donne’s argument for why Death should not be proud and how to recognize the sonnet structure...

Learn about the diverse perspectives involved in the Six Day War by having learners examine and annotate presidential speeches given by the three nations—Egypt, Israel, and the United States—at the heart of the conflict and producing...

Here is a handout that outlines six great steps to structuring an argumentative essay, which can be continually referenced as you teach your class about persuasive writing.

Judge Learned Hand's "Spirit of Liberty" speech delivered during the July, 1944 "I Am an American Day" celebration is the subject of a close reading activity that models for learners how to approach a dense, difficult text.

Was Thomas Jefferson a hypocrite? That is the question facing class members as they examine excerpts from documents that relate to Jefferson's beliefs about slaves and slavery.

At the heart of this resource is a beautifully detailed PowerPoint presentation (provided in PDF form) on the overall physical geography of Australia, basic facts about the country, Aboriginal history, and Australia culture and lifestyle.

As part of their study of the vocabulary used in Sonia Levitin's The Cure, class members create a card, filling in words from the novel, and then engage in a bingo game.

Eleventh hour. Eleventh day. Eleventh month. 11th year. As part of a study of World War I and Remembrance Day, class members consider what it was like to be a soldier during war.

The odds that readers will enjoy a summer reading project will be in your favor if you choose Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games as the anchor text. The richly detailed plans included in this resource make it easy to volunteer...

Imagine an entire course devoted to dystopian literature. If that concept appeals to you, check out this course that uses 1984 as the anchor text and includes classic short stories as well.

How affected is Thinks Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe's personal biography? Using a four corners strategy, and evidence from their readings, class members debate the degree of biographical influence in Achebe's novel.

A probability activity presents a lottery game as an idea for a fundraiser. Pupils analyze the game to determine the number of possible outcomes, then determine whether the game would be a good way to raise funds and to support...

This is how long we mow the lawn together. The assessment requires the class to work with combining ratios and proportional reasoning. Pupils determine the unit rate of mowers and calculate the time required to mow a lawn if they work...