“Anyone who thinks small towns are friendlier than big cities lives in a big city.” Mary Alice, the fifteen-year-old narrator of A Year Down Yonder, is forced to leave Chicago and spend a year with her Grandma Dowdel in a small rural...

Teaching tools designed to support student-centered literature study. Geared toward homeschoolers reading Harper Lee's book To Kill a Mockingbird, I would use these in my classroom. The materials are applicable to any text: graphic...

Students explore philanthropy in literature. In this cross curriculum literacy and character development lesson, students read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and note charitable acts described in the story. Students relate story...

Action! Delve into character development in the play Fences by August Wilson, setting the stage for learners to analyze character nuances. Thespians choose a scene from the script, responding with a written account of the...

Young readers discuss how they would deal with problems faced by the main character in Maniac Magee. They write down their own problems and exchange them with others to analyze and provide possible solutions. They establish a "Dear Abby"...

Sixth graders participate in a brainstorming activity in which they identify the types of decisions they make everyday. Individually, they complete a worksheet on making decisions effectively. After reading a poem, they identify the...

Reinforce the actions, emotions, and characteristics that determine what a character is like by having your middle schoolers create a biopoem using the model presented here. You could engage them first by having them write a poem about...

What is the difference between myths, legends, and folktales? From greek mythology and creation myths to heroes and heroines, here is a nice series of lessons for providing your kids with solid foundational knowledge about myths.

West Side Story is widely known as a modern-day Romeo & Juliet. Learners read a list of characters from the play and list their counterparts from Romeo & Juliet before completing a vocabulary enrichment activity and word...

Playing team sports is about more than just scoring the most goals or winning the most games. Read this passage with your class and learn how athletes build character as members of a team. When finished, individuals identify the main...

Have fun with history and turn your kids into news reporters of the past. Each group will research, script, and deliver a news report on a historic event they are studying in class. They'll identify the main characters of the historical...

Students brainstorm the definition of honesty. For this honesty lesson, students read Ostrich Egg Wife and discuss events in the story relating to honesty and breaking a promise. Students explore ways the main character showed he was not...

Second graders investigate the accomplishments of Amelia Earhart. They read and discuss a biography of Amelia Earhart, complete a Venn diagram, and conduct an interview with a classmate and write and publish a biography of their classmate.

Students read a book from the Dear America series and contrast different points of view. They respond to the book either by participating in a literature circle or completing a journal entry. They compare and contrast two books or a...

Fifth graders complete an analysis of the Revolutionary War through literature. After "My Brother Sam Is Dead," students create a time capsule containing items that would be relevant during the Revolutionary War. They identify key...

Students discover the postal service through a letter writing activity.  In this U.S. Government lesson, students read the book Mr. Lincoln's Whiskers, and discover the life history of President Abraham Lincoln.  Students write...

Students explore the basic concept of micro-financing. In this economics/literacy lesson, students listen to One Hen by Katie Smith, in which a small loan changes the life of the main character. Students employ comprehension strategies...

Students critique, discuss, and identify characters in a film about Latin America. In this Latin America lesson plan, students watch the film and discuss the film and everyday life.

Fourth graders read Cassie's Journey: Going West in the 1860's. For this pioneer literature lesson, 4th graders develop a timeline of the major happenings in the story by creating a timeline. Students discuss new discoveries about the...

Eleventh graders study the Kansas Territory.  In this American History lesson, 11th graders read ten biographical cards and summarize the main ideas.  Students create cards to play Who am I?

Students become acquainted with historical people of Greece through research and role playing. They develop interview and research strategies which get to an historical person's achievements and personality.

Students read and discuss the text Miss Rumphius. In this philanthropy lesson, students discuss how the characters in the book made the world beautiful and create a class book of good deeds.

Students explore the purpose of a garden. In this Earth Day lesson, students read the story The Gardener and complete a Venn diagram comparing life in a city to farm life. Students discuss Earth Day and plant flowers in a garden .

Students identify bias in books. In this character education lesson, students read a text and discuss any gender or racial bias which may be present. Students retell and rewrite the story in a fair way.