Explore the characters in My Antonia by Willa Cather with a biopoem assignment. Pupils use the provided format to write their poems about any character from the book.

Sad, depressed, miserable, inconsolable, forlorn: so many synonyms have a lot of variety with their connotations. Through the guided imagery activity, writers explore the use of connotation and its influence on imagery and description by...

Four steps to Open Mic Night! The location, invitations, supplies, and party favors are all part of the process in planning and hosting a fun-filled gathering where scholars read aloud an original poem or one by their favorite author. 

Chapter II of John Milton's Paradise Lost provides the text for a series of comprehension questions crafted using Bloom's Taxonomy.

Frederic Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, although dissimilar in their backgrounds, were united in their views about slavery. A set of 14 primary sources permits scholars to examine the views of these two powerful men.

What caused the collapse of the environment on Rapa Nui (Easter Island)? Who constructed the Moai? What was their purpose? Class members assume the role of investigators and use evidence drawn from field studies, ships' logs, and...

Prepare students on how to use the library's card catalog system as well as the online version. Author, card catalog, the Dewey system, and so much more is addressed. This would be a great tool to use in the classroom or library.

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” Ambrose Bierce’s short story, is used to model how structural moves, the decisions an author makes about setting, point of view, time order, etc., can be examined to reveal an author’s purpose. Groups...

Analyze the motivation, purpose, and value of letters to the editor by examining letters written in response to the violence at Columbine High School. For homework, middle and high schoolers write their own letters to the editor about an...

Students explore fiction and nonfiction writing. They identify the elements of fiction in a short story and identify the criteria necessary in a nonfiction piece. Students distinguish the author's purpose in an expository text,...

Ninth graders read "The Gift of the Magi". While reading the story, they share their predictions about what they believe might happen next and the author's purpose of writing the story. To end the lesson, they work together to analyze...

Fourth graders research authors on the Web each month in based on the themes in their reading book. They create an author booklet which includes a picture and biographical information.

Students discover how the Declaration of Independence transformed from a draft to a treasured historical document. For this Declaration of Independence lesson, students discuss the context in which Jefferson wrote the document and...

Second graders explore weather. In this weather lesson, 2nd graders read Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs and participate in four supplemental science activities. Students participate in Internet research, create weather maps,...

Explore the history of the American novel in the contexts of literature and US history. How does a novel or piece of writing from a particular time showcase the mood during that historical period? After conducting research and discussing...

Paul Laurence Dunbar's poem "He Had His Dream" is the focus of a quick exercise. Pupils read the poem and answer four multiple choice questions and one short answer question about specific lines in the poem and the author's purpose....

After a close reading of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" individuals copy the rhythm and rhyme scheme and rewrite the final stanzas of the poem.

Students recognize what features make a play. In this reader's theater lesson plan, students read the play Master Man: A Tall Tale of Nigeria told by Aaron Shepard and determine what features make this a play and what the author's...

What types of questions help readers learn the most? Sixth, seventh, and eighth graders learn how to ask four types of questions from the Question Answer Response (QAR) reading strategy to help grow their comprehension of Touching Spirit...

Readers analyze paragraphs from the "Letter From Birmingham Jail" and determine King's purpose and how he supports it. Scholars discuss given questions with their peers, learn new vocabulary words, and complete a quick writing prompt.

Joan of Arc, Mother Teresa, Rosa Parks ... many inspirational women have paved the way for future generations, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton is no exception. Scholars continue reading and analyzing "An Address by Elizabeth Cady Stanton."...

It's time to put it all together! Using the resource, scholars complete an end-of-unit assessment. They write a multi-paragraph essay comparing Audre Lorde's "From the House of Yemanjá" or "An Address by Elizabeth Cady Stanton" to...

Scholars discuss a reading selection in Unbroken by writing to a partner about text selection. After completing the writing, learners revisit the use of active and passive sentences by reviewing a second Active and Passive Sentences...

How can opinions slant facts? Workshop participants learn how to examine primary and secondary sources and identify the author's point of view. They also examine how visual art impacts the meaning and rhetoric of sources. Full of...