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Academy Awards for Books
Young scholars are exposed to literature and create an Academy award for their piece of literature. They play an author or a character and present themselves, a category, and each of the nominees in that category to gain awareness of...
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Chapter Six
In this quote analysis activity, students study the strategy for quote analysis of reading material. Students practice using quotes from Harry Potter.
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings: Preface and Chapter 1
Students complete chapter analysis activities for Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.In this chapter analysis lesson, students read the preface and chapter 1 and complete vocabulary activities, journal activities, and use the...
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The Tell-Tale Heart
Bring Edgar Allan Poe's spooky story to life! After reading the short story "The Tell-Tale Heart," middle and high schoolers identify the theme, character traits, irony, and other story concepts. During pre-reading, they take notes,...
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Building Believable Characters
Students use descriptive strategies such as physical descriptions, background, and comparison of characters when writing narratives. They develop the topic with supporting details and precise diction to paint a visual image in the...
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Different People/Different Times
Learners read and compare two selections by two different authors with the theme man vs. nature. They complete a literary analysis paper comparing and contrasting the author's treatment of the topic with emphasis on setting, historical...
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The Road
Use psychodynamic theory as a part of analyzing a career cluster.The class defines vocabulary words, brainstorms a list of career traits, and completes an online career analysis inventory. They analyze 5 concepts of psychodynamic...
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Voice and James Joyce
After reading a text written by James Joyce, middle and high schoolers find examples of passive voice. They share their findings with the class. Use this lesson to emphasize the effect of passive voice in writing.
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Using Aphorisms to Help Dealing with People
Here's a formal plan for what many effective teachers already do: Provide a week's worth of aphorisms and have learners choose one to write about in their journals each day. They reflect on the meaning of each aphorism and project how it...
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Thank you Ma'm Langston Hughes-Devoloping the concept of Theme
Middle schoolers complete various activities linked to several stories and movies, to reinforce the concept of theme in a story.
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Identifying Irony
In this identifying irony activity, 9th graders read 6 paragraphs, identify the type of irony being used (dramatic, situational, verbal) and explain their answer.
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Cooperative Jigsaw Expert Report of Fables
Students research literary elements of fables. In this literature lesson, students analyze literary elements of fables. Students work collaboratively using a jigsaw strategy to analyze literary elements.
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Making a Pictorial Timeline
Students create a pictorial timeline of a biographical character. In this timeline lesson, students create a slide show illustrating the life of the person from a biography they've read. Students also use Kid Pix to create a pictorial...
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Courage in Action
Seventh graders explore what it takes to be courageous. In this social studies lesson, 7th graders analyze different character traits. Students explain their feelings on their specific character traits.
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Writing and Literature
Students participate in a layered unit that includes activities like: Write a character study (minimum 250 words) of a character you are familiar with from a book or play. What is their personality like? Who would you compare them to (in...
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Young Learner's Writing Workshop 2
Students choose a short story or book and a student takes on the role of one of the characters in the story. They complete an interview worksheet and then students question each other further about the character they are playing.
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Stephen Crane: The Open Boat
High schoolers explore the genre of American literary naturalism by reading,"The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane. They examine the relationship of man and nature through analysis of the characters, narration and descriptive vocabulary.
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Writing Worksheet
In this writing worksheet, students answer five questions relating to plot, write about a character and how they develop in four chapters, and answer questions about four characters. Students complete twenty short answer questions.
Orange County Department of Education
The Lost and Found
Third graders explain the definition of integrity and respect and provide examples from the story The Lost and Found's characters and their own lives that illustrate both. They describe in their journals why and how they think Wendell...
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Who Is That Ghostly Character?
Eighth graders listen to a taped version of the radio play, "The Hitchhiker". They write a conclusion to the play and work with a partner to evaluate it before a final revision.
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Analyzing Two or More Nonfiction Texts
How does recognizing the author's purpose help you draw conclusions about a topic? Using two articles (both are attached), learners brainstorm why each author wrote each article. Are their purposes similar or different? Learners use a...
Novelinks
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: Writing Assignment
Ask learners to focus on one scene in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in order to write an analytical essay about Twain's ideas surrounding childhood. The final assignment in a unit, this writing prompt requires learners...
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Pirate Wanted Poster
Young scholars investigate the character traits of a 17th and 18th century pirate by internet research and the creation of a Pirate "Wanted" Poster using iPhoto and a program called Comic Life.
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Family Responsibility and Commitment
Students discuss the meaning of family and how they can community love and affection. Using an analysis of the work of Picasso, students define who is in their family. They discuss the various ways family members express their affection...