In this unit, students examine the many different themes in Anne Frank's diary. They connect the themes to their own life and keep a journal to explore the triumphs and challenges in their own life.

Off to Adventure! is the theme of an English language arts unit comprised of a variety of challenge activities. Scholars enhance skills and reinforce concepts by taking part in a grand book discussion, giving an oral...

Scholars learn all about the Puritans in the third installment of a 16-part lesson series. After watching a video, they read and discuss biographies of Puritans and Quakers from American history, write journal entries and poetry, and...

Frequently banned, often challenged, a mainstay of middle school curriculum, Tales from the Secret Annex, is the featured text in the seventh unit in the Teacher Guide Core Knowledge Program. The 134-page guide includes an...

Pupils may not be familiar with Bernardo de Gálvez or Juan Seguín, but these Latinx patriots played important roles in American history. Using biographies of the Revolutionary War hero and Texan politician, historians consider how Latinx...

Students develop a sense of historical empathy as they discuss The Holocaust and roll play activities designed to highlight prejudice in today's society.  In this Holocaust history and The Diary of Anne Frank lesson, students...

The Lord of the Flies and The Kite Runner are the core texts in a unit that asks learners to examine various texts that show how fear can be a destructive force or it can be an agent of change. Individuals they design a project that...

This workshop helps students increase their skills in descriptive writing by following tips and suggestions from writer Virginia Hamilton. After reading about Hamilton, students write their descriptive pieces and publish them online. A...

A summary and full text of A Diary from Dixie, an account of life as a woman in the South during the Civil War, by Mary Chesnut.

Smithsonian in the Classroom presents "Introduction to the Nature Journal." Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students will practice and develop their skills of writing observations and making hypotheses....

Smithsonian in the Classroom presents "Introduction to the Nature Journal." Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students will practice and develop their skills of writing observations and making hypotheses....

This lesson is an introduction to contemporary nonfiction including the definition, types of nonfiction: biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, essays, speeches, and diaries, examples of authors and types, key terms, essential questions,...

[Free Registration/Login Required] This resource offers active ways to learn facts about Shakespeare's life and works such as moving about the room collecting facts about Shakespeare and then creating a group collage with them and...

An informational site on Mary Chesnut. Includes general information about her life, works, and writings, including A Diary from Dixie. Also includes links to other sites.

Here at this site from the University of North Carolina, read the full text to Mary Chesnut's (1823-1886 CE) "A Diary from Dixie." This website include biographical information and illustration from the original book, published in 1905.

Students will explore Anne Frank in historical context in World War II. Lesson 2 explores Anne Frank as a writer, and students will have the opportunity to practice Anne's writing strategies.

In this video, Harley moves in with Harry and makes Harry's life miserable. Harley spies on Harry writing in his diary. When Harley "borrows" the diary, he finds it is written in a code using numbers. Harley figures out a pattern with...

A summary of the events of the American Revolution. Includes diary entries written by a patriot in Boston and a girl stationed at Valley Forge in 1777. Students can also do arts and crafts activities, write a journal entry, and design...

This resource from the University of Virginia contains the full text of Captain John Smith's "Map of Virginia, with a Description of the Country, the Commodities, People, Government and Religion," an excerpt from "Travels and Works of...