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Cause and Effect
Learners identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task that...
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Comparing Fairy Tales
Students read and review common fairy tales and come up with a list of characteristics from them. The Teacher models filling out either a compare & contrast graphic organizer comparing two fairy tales.
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Color My World
Students identify colors created by mixing primary colors and describe the process. They then design a book using the colors of a given season entitled "Colors of the Season".
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Heart (and Arm) of Darkness
Learners read and translate a 19th-century American ghost tale into a Japanese hanging scroll in this exciting lesson for middle-level Language Art classes. The lesson can be completed in four or five days.
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Persuade or Die!
High schoolers read Patrick Henry's speech. They review prior learning about persuasive writing, and the American revolutionary war. Students listen as the teacher reads Patrick Henry's speech aloud to the class using lots of emotion and...
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Cinderella Stories From Around the World
Fifth graders are read a variety of Cinderella stories from around the world. In groups, they complete a comparison chart for each story and how it compares to the American version. To end the lesson, they participate in a fairy tale...
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Writing a Narrative
Sixth graders read the short story "Eleven". They write a narrative composition focusing on the use of voice. Students use a computer to create a pre-writing graphic organizer and type their final draft.
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Ugly? Says Who?
Students explore biology by writing animal poetry in class. In this animal characteristics lesson, students research the Internet for facts about an "ugly" animal such as a bug or small critter. Students complete worksheets about animal...
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Memior: The Stuff of Our Lives
Fourth graders reflect upon the significance of remembered events and to keep a "notebook" of their thoughts and feelings. They read books that exemplify memior writing. They write their memiors, taking it through the writing process.
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Comparing Characters Across Two Short Stories
Ninth graders listen to a read aloud of two short stories focusing on literary devices. The write about the settings and realism of the stories, and decide each main character handles the conflict he faces with nature.
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Novel News
Students, working in groups create a newspaper based on the events that take place in a novel. Groups complete sections of the newsletter based on criteria and publish it using newsletter publishing software.
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ESL Network: Exploring Racial Identity
Twelfth graders drill for the Regents Comprehensive Exam in English by answering questions about selected readings as preparation for writing essays. After answering the questions, they compose essays adhering to formal written Spanish...
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The Great Depression and Now: The Migrant Worker Experience
Students identify the concerns of people caught in desperate times during the Great Depression. They make connections between The Grapes of Wrath and historical images from the Great Depression. Students make connections between the...
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What's Your State Symbol?
Students explore their state symbols. In this symbolism lesson, students use a variety of resources to research the symbols that represent their state. Students discover the state flower, state flag, and state bird.
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Character Comparison: Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Fourth graders compare and contrast Fudge and Peter, two main characters from "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing". They use a software template to analyze and compare the characters in a rough draft, edit their work and then produce a...
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What Difference Does it Make How Old I Am?
Students identify subtle messages advertisers send (often unintentionally) about age in the course of trying to sell products; to analyze the consequences, both positive and negative, those messages have on the American audience; to...
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Editing Emily's Way: An Exercise in Diction and Its Implications
Students examine the poetry of Emily Dickinson and the diction in her poetry. In this poetry analysis lesson, students read Dickinson poetry and analyze the diction in the poems. Students journal about the poetry and rewrite their own...
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The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Students research the American Revolution through the story of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. In this American Revolution lesson, students research folktale and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Students view illustrations for the story....
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In The Eye Of The Beholder
Students, in groups, research Rembrandt's life and works. They find critiques of his work, as well. Each group reports their findings back to the rest of the class. Finally, they create abstract drawings and write interpretations about...
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African Art and Personal Adornment: African Folktales
Students write a folktale based on an African adinkra symbol. They research its meaning and relate it as the theme.
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Find a Book
Student receives one book description card and in less than 2 minutes, they walk through the Media Center to find a book matching that description. After a matching book is found, each student evaluates the book.
Austin Independent School District
Austin Independent School District: A Taxonomy of Literary Genre [Pdf]
A series of graphic organizers shows the progression of learning about literary genre, beginning in kindergarten and building through to fifth grade.
British Library
British Library: Discovering Literature: Print and Perception
Margaret Cavendish and Katherine Philips both wrote across a range of genres and achieved considerable success in their day. This article explores their different approaches to the difficulties of being a 17th-century female writer.
University of Illinois
University of Illinois Extension: Character Education "Two Sides"
Excellent resource for empowering students to become better learners. This lesson includes promoting the love of reading, helping students understand different points of view, different genres in literature, and critical thinking skills....