Students examine the art of Anime and note its characteristics. Using scenes, they identify the plots, characters and themes trying to be portrayed. In groups, they compare and contrast the animation in America to that of Anime and...

Students create outlines of folk tales and legends. They read a folk tale or legend in the target language. They complete an outline of the key events of the story including the main characters, plot, story elements and theme or moral.

Students examine setting in a work of realistic fiction. In this literature lesson, students read The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and then write an essay that compares real-life settings to the settings in the novel.

Students use video and the Internet to make predictions, draw conclusions, determine conflict and point of view while reading a short story. In this short story analysis lesson, students watch a related video and complete a prediction...

Middle schoolers create literature pyramids. They read selections of various societies, eras, and ideas. They complete two pyramid sheets for the same literary element including either plot, character, setting, or theme. They color-code...

Students practice dramatic 'living' through various drama activities. In this drama lesson, students define drama, view examples of dramatic elements in Cyrano de Bergerac and Roxanne, define characterization within the dramas, study the...

Young scholars act out opening shipwreck scene of The Tempest, or watch and direct others doing it.

Students read a story about fire safety and create their own ending to the story in order to learn about fire escape plans and to demonstrate their writing skills. In this fire safety lesson, students discuss the parts of a story, read...

Tenth graders write an original story using a picture of a scene inspiration. In this short story lesson, 10th graders write short stories using a picture.

Sixth graders analyze character traits and create a life size character outline. In this character analysis lesson, 6th graders analyze character traits of a character using character webs and poems. Students then create a life size...

In this online interactive reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 5 multiple choice questions based on the themes of Anna Karenina. Students may submit their answers to be scored on this timed quiz.

In this reading comprehension learning exercise, students respond to 3 short answer and essay questions based on themes in Animal Farm. Students may also complete their choice of 3 reading activities suggested.

Pupils read a story together then choose a favorite character to portray. In this inference lesson, students pretend to be one of the characters in the story, they prepare drawings or actions then present them to the class. Pupils...

Students gain a better understanding of perceptions and how different points of view about the same set of events leads to conflict.

Students work in small groups and prepare an analysis of a short story to be presented to their peers. They research the story and create a handout or a visual aid that cites sources of information and summarizes the main points of the...

Learners study situations where rights are in conflict. In this conflict in rights lesson, students review a conflict situation and the Supreme Court ruling for the issue. Learners review the Bill of Rights and then receive their own...

Ninth graders read "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty." As they read the story, 9th graders list characters on a chart, define the characters as dynamic or static, make predictions of each character and justify their reasoning. Students...

Eighth graders use M&M's to experiment with data. They use a graphing calculator to determine the best equation for their data; linear, quadratic or exponential. They analyze the data to find the half-life of their M&M's.

Students read the story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty". As a class, they discuss what they daydream about and discuss why the character in the story does it. To end the instructional activity, they identify the characters, indirect...

Pupils listen to two versions of the story The Mitten and create a chart or a Venn Diagram to compare the two versions. In this literary comparison instructional activity, students create a chart or Venn Diagram and discuss the...

Students read "The Giver" after finishing the unit on inventions and inventors. Using the information in the novel, they develop a geographic map illustrating the community in the story. They identify human and physical features and...

Students complete an exploration of the 1930s. Using artwork and primary source documents, they compare, contrast and identify cause and effect relationships in the events of the decade. They discover how the events then affect people...

The video "The Tales of Aesop" traces for viewers the history of fables and identifies their characteristics. The class then goes to the web site "The Fisherman and the Little Fish" where they examine the classic and a modern version of...

Middle schoolers discuss vocabulary words and compare definitions. They read chapters 6-9 of the novel, Dragonwings, and discuss point of view, and complete a plot diagram. Then they review the four types of conflict and identify the...