A unit plan uses short texts to teach literary elements such as theme and characterization. Included are passages by authors such as Walter Dean Myers and Sandra Cisneros. Activities include quick writes, filling in graphic organizers,...

Second graders analyze descriptive writing. In this writing instructional activity, 2nd graders read a story with a villain, describe the villain in words, and create a Wanted Poster describing him on paper.

Small, cartoonish pictures of people expressing emotions and actions (blowing his nose, holding her head and frowning, dancing, smiling) provide the basis for writers to describe the feelings and experiences taking place. Help your ESL...

You don't need to be a food critic to describe your meal accurately! A series of activities introduce learners to vivid adjectives when writing about the taste, smell, and feel of food. After working with word choice, parts of a...

Use a set of 30 writing bell ringers to get through the month of February. Writers tap into and write about how February makes them feel, what it smells like, and all types of celebrations that occur during the month.

Second graders practice their creative writing by using descriptive words.  For this language arts lesson, 2nd graders utilize their best descriptive writing to elaborate on one of 20 different bean bag characters.  Students...

Second graders discuss various things that make him/her happy.  In this I feel happy lesson, 2nd graders express feelings in a poem.  Students reflect on the poems they have written.

For this word hunt worksheet, students supply as many words as possible to name things that are described. In this short answer worksheet, students write nouns for thirty descriptions.

In this character development activity, learners write the characteristics of the first character in the story they are reading. They note the characters name, age, appearance, favorite things, and other important details.

Learners use four photos of themselves or draw four pictures of themselves, each showing a different feeling.

Scholars take part in two exercises to boost their knowledge of personification. After reading a detailed description and excerpts from famous poems, writers list action verbs and objects then combine words to create a humorous...

Learning how to draw inferences from text is a key reading comprehension skill. Here's a learning exercise that gives readers a chance to practice by offering 20 descriptive sentences and asking kids to identify the inferred...

Is your music appreciation class feeling a bit adagio this afternoon? Pick up the pace and get them feeling andante with a straightforward music theory activity. After defining several terms for musical dynamics and musical...

Talk about a menu! Who would have thought SAT prep could be so delicious? Treat your class to a full course of SAT words with a timed activity that asks groups to create clues for dishes on their bill of fare. Distained veggies anyone?...

The varying responses of the characters in Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry to the discrimination they experience or perpetrate provides readers with an opportunity to not only examine the feelings of the characters but...

Music is a universal pleasure, but writing about it can be a little trickier. An informative handout discusses common types of music writing assignments that one might encounter in a college-level course. Individuals read about musical...

Ever known the feeling of being stuck between a rock and a hard place? Jody, a character in The Yearling, knows this feeling all too well. Nature forces Jody to choose between his beloved pet and his family's food supply. Readers...

Things sure change in year's time. Suds, from Fourth Grade Rats, went from a third grade angel to a fourth grade rat! Although he is not necessarily happy with his new self, he worries he will lose his popularity. Learners complete...

Explore the paradox of the universe - or, at least, of popular music - with this lesson. Using the songs "Inaudible Melodies" by Jack Johnson and "She" by Green Day, your class will complete a graphic organizer to help them understand...

Break an article down with a SOAPSTone chart. Class members determine the speaker, occasion, audience, purpose, subject, and tone. The chart includes a question for each of these elements, provides some clarifying text for each, and...

Conduct a written literary discussion and diminish stress about public writing. Class members, already arranged into literature circles, compose and post responses to novels, signing with initials or class number. The process continues...

What mood does this story evoke? How are setting and mood linked? Young novelists explore the different emotions brought about by writing, starting by journaling things that inspire their own feelings. Examine the word mood, looking into...

As a writer, how can you show your audience a certain character is showing a certain emotion? Use this worksheet to practice giving detailed descriptions of your characters and their feelings. Writers complete a chart that lists seven...

Students explore the technique of descriptive writing. As a class, they observe a poster and describe it using adjectives. They discuss how descriptive words can be used literally and figuratively in the world of advertising. After...