Good Night, Moon is a classic little ones absolutely love. It's a sweet book that can be used, as in this instructional activity, to start a conversation about the difference between night and day. After reading the story, the class...

A wonderful presentation explains a musical fairy tale. Perfect for an independent work station or as a link to send home for homework, this slideshow comes equipped with full audio. Each character, theme, and instrument from the piece...

Designed to be used with an independent reading book, this activity provides practice with identifying and explaining literary terms. While they read, individuals find instances of literary devices and elements in use in their books....

As you work through Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, try out some or all of the 20 questions and activities included here. Useful for discussion questions, group assignments, or individual projects, this resource covers plot as...

Use a series of extension activities to enhance your class reading of Chris Van Allsburg's holiday classic, The Polar Express. From a biography of the author to filmed book reviews and research about the railroad, kids can take...

Grow vocabulary skills with an understanding of affixes and word roots. Included here are a few activities and plenty of materials you can use to support your learners as the focus on building vocabulary.

Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...

As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a close reading of a section of Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Jigsaw groups then compare the voice in the essay...

What cultural concepts must readers understand in order to connect to Things Fall Apart? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe’s novel, class members research Nigeria and the Igbo culture to create a collaborative, web-based,...

Class members have an opportunity to compare how a film and a play handle the same source material by viewing the opening chapters of George Lucas's Star Wars: A New Hope and acts I and II of Ian Doescher's play, William...

Can beautiful words change the world? Literary scholars discover how to paint their visions of change using poetry in a series of three workshops. Each independent topic gives participants a chance to examine their feelings about...

Explore Inez Haynes Gillmore's The Native Son with this thorough and engaging book report form. A reading schedule provides the opportunity to assign outside reading, and the other reading comprehension lessons could be...

Though this book report form is labeled Siddhartha, the multiple-page format would work for any novel you are reading in class. Complete with a reading schedule, a summary page, a list of generic literature response questions, and a list...

Complete with a reading schedule, literature question page, and supplementary list of literary activities, this book report form on Moby Dick would be an good resource for your junior high or high school class. The guide includes...

Relate literary works and authors to the major themes of English literature from the Anglo-Saxon period through the 20th century. Working in groups, high schoolers will evaluate period philosophy, religion, and politics that influenced...

With several online resources for J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, as well as many reading and literary analysis activities, this novel study guide is a great way to keep your young readers organized during a book report. The guide...

Introduce your class to the elements of Romanticism with these slides. The foundations of the movement, the roles of imagination and nature, and the value of art are all highlighted. Features of Romanticism are explained such as...

Read and discuss "The Yellow Wall-Paper" and the gender issues that the story brings up. Use articles from the time period to analyze, complete with specific discussion questions. After two days, scholars write an essay based on topics...

How are mood and tone similar? Different? Help your readers understand the difference between the two with this helpful guide. On the first page, they read the definition for both tone and mood and identify words that are describe each....

While music lyrics are often used to teach literary elements, the richness of this resource comes from the wealth of exercises, activities, and support materials provided in the packet.  Although designed for gifted learners, the...

Kids love working with their peers. Get your class into small literature circles and have them complete weekly assignments. Before beginning this week's activity, have each learner write a letter from Esperanza in California to Abuelita...

Third graders answer text-dependent questions of the story Nasreen's Secret School both independently and then collaboratively through using the carousel of questions strategy. This plan is the seventh instructional activity in a...

Analyze the use of balanced sentences and parallelism in a narrative. Included in this resource is a narrative about serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kazakhstan titled, "The Train Ride Home". Middle and high schoolers review...

Fourth graders examine the myths of King Arthur. They compare/contrast versions of the story, The Sword in the Stone, write a letter, identify and analyze characters, sequence events, and write observations and answer questions in a...