“So I’m going to have a copy of this play put in the cornerstone and the people a thousand years from now’ll know a few simple facts about us.” Our Town is used as the text in a Common Core exemplar that examines the dramatic and...

Create meaningful illustrations to accompany stories in a web-based art and literacy instructional activity focused on "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling. The class takes a virtual art safari with the Museum of Modern Art and then...

Louisa May Alcott's Little Women is a literary masterpiece as well as a timestamp of the formative mid-nineteenth century in America. Using a primary source set of photographs, letters, and portraits, readers discuss the ways...

Students analyze fairy tale characters and story elements. In this fairy tale lesson, students label two charts for the characters and settings of a fairy tale. Students view props in story boxes and answer questions about the story...

Students read Charlotte's Web, view variety of trading cards, discuss what they know about trading cards and their purpose, choose character from story, complete bubble map about character, and create character trading card using...

Learners interview a hero. In this heroes lesson, students read Number the Stars to begin a discussion about heroes and then create mind maps on each character. Learners pick a local hero and interview them and then write a personal...

Students study and perform Aesop's fables. In this Aesop's fables lesson, students read and/or listen to a number of the famous fables. They make masks based on the characters and perform a fable using the masks. They write about the...

Second graders investigate philosophy by researching the life of Mahatma Gandhi.  In this biographical lesson, 2nd graders listen to a reading of the book "Gandhi" and make a character map of his actions, feelings and thoughts....

Literary themes don't just belong to literature. High schoolers listen to the lyrics of modern songs by Arrested Development, Lauryn Hill, and others to enhance their study and to connect to characters, conflicts, and themes of...

Sixth graders study the artwork of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith before creating their own. In this painting lesson, 6th graders examine two pieces of work by Jaune Quick-to-See from the online collection of the Missoula Art Museum and read a...

Students write a diary entry or a letter from the viewpoint of a character in a myth.  In this Aztec myths activity, students define myths and read "The Heart of Copil" and "The Eagle of Tenochtitlan" and find the land of the...

Students examine the character of George Washington. In this George Washington lesson, students read "Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior,"  Washington's First Inaugural Address, and his Farewell Address. Students use the...

Students investigate the history of Mali. In this African cultures instructional activity, students research the impact of Sundiata Keita as king of Mali, recognize the significance of historical Malian festivals, and create character...

Fourth graders read about Rose Freedman, a famous American woman. In this famous women in American history lesson, 4th graders read a story about Rose Freedman, answer comprehension questions, and complete an associated worksheet. They...

Students listen to the story The True Story  of the Three Little Pigs and explore a variety of questions related to conflict resolution. In this trade book activity lesson, students listen to the teacher ask a variety of higher...

Here is a lesson that acquaints learners with the 1920s. They will use primary source documents to create original skits. Students choose a character from the 1920s, become that character, and then share what they have learned through...

Students perform acts of kindness.  In this character lesson, students cut out seed shapes and write down their acts of kindness on them.  Students place the seeds on a bulletin board where they "plant" them below the grass line.

Students analyze artifacts to become familiar with the Great Migration.  In this migration lesson, students read an article and answer comprehension questions. Students role play a migration scenario using an artifact to help...

Second graders explore the Egyptian folktale, The Well of Truth. In this folktale lesson, 2nd graders read the tale and discuss the events from the text. Students write a diary entry from the point of view of a character in the text....

Young scholars practice reading comprehension of an Australian folktale. In this Australian folktale lesson plan, students read the story, Why Koala Has a Stumpy Tail, before completing retells with character puppets, discussing...

Students make connections between their own epithets and those used in Othello.

Second graders research their family history and how it connects them to the past. They identify their ancestors, graphically organize relatives in a family tree, and chart significant events in their lives on a timeline.

Learners read biographies of their assigned Founding Father. They present an oral argument that their assignee deserves to be better known by making connections between regional politics and postions defined by character.

Tenth graders read and study, in-depth, a specific classical tragedy, in this case, Oedipus. They explore strategies from making meaning out of or interpreting texts, as well as strategies for determining how authors create meaning in...