Here’s an interesting approach to the analysis of similar subjects in different mediums. Based on the methodology of Professor Jules Prown, learners apply his three stages (description, deduction, and speculation) to a painting and a...

Introduce your middle schoolers to the lives of past Native Americans. First, learners work together to put photographs in a sequence. Then, using their sequence, they create stories to share with the whole class. No matter how old your...

One of the Common Core standards requires learners to make connections between literature or media of the past and the present. Provided here, are key elements found in medieval poetry and literature that are connected to several more...

Japan's Taisho Period was a time when authors like Akutagawa and other Japanese modernists began to experiment with point of view and literary form, making the literature produced during this time period a natural choice for teaching...

Introduce young learners to the subject of economics using their favorite stories and books. Including 24 separate lessons, this guide covers economic principles such as trade, scarcity, consumer goods and services, renewable and...

What characterizes modern literature? The first few slides of this 31-slide PowerPoint discuss what sparked the change to Modernism and discuss some of the key figures of the time (like Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud). The 20s and 30s are...

This outline introduction for a college course covers the idea of humanities and various language forms and literature genres. Beginning with the human species and our influence on the world around us, take a very thorough look at the...

Students read one of the following books: Minn of the Mississippi, Paddle-to-the-Sea, or Seabird, all by Holling C. Holling, and identify the five themes of geography as well as make a literature journal with chapter field notes. They...

Following the six-step process for a talking sticks literature circle, group members choose a leader for the discussion, summarize the reading, discuss journal entries and questions, set reading goals, and write reflections. I think this...

Bring literature to life with your SMART board and this literary analysis lesson. While reading "User Friendly" by T. Ernesto Bethancourt (from the Holt Elements of Literature textbook by Kylene Beers), have your class discuss the theme...

Bud followed a series of rules from Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis. The question is, how did he use those rules to thrive or survive? After a grand discussion, class members explore the novel to locate and cite textual...

To conclude a unit on the concept of diversity in world literature, class members conduct a symposium on "African Literature in Global Perspectives." In order to earn a spot on the panel, individuals craft an original thesis that...

A six-week unit takes high schoolers through various works of African-American literature, including poems, plays, and short stories. The lesson plan format includes a week-by-week description of activities, goals, materials, and...

For this literature circle worksheet, students form groups and choose a leader, summarize the book, discuss journal entries, make connections, and write reflections about the novel they are reading. Students provide short answers for...

Are you are considering a unit on Beowulf or Superman, on myths, or tricksters? Here's a great overview you can use to launch a study of universal themes and archetypes. The focus here is on the oral tradition, but the concepts apply to...

Use drama techniques to recreate the story, Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse by Leo Lionni. They engage in problem-solving as they identify the roles they will fufill in their groups for the performance. This is a motivating way to...

“Romanticism aims at enlarging experience by exploring the real.” This excerpt from Jacques Barzun’s From Dawn to Decadence introduces a PowerPoint that examines the characteristics of and the major figures in music, art, and literature...

After reading up to chapter 12 of Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis, scholars read chapter 13 and take part in a grand conversation about the author's writing techniques. Pupils discuss how his writing conveyed literary themes...

Become acquainted with Robert Frost's life in order to allow your class to fully appreciate how his background influenced his poetry. They analyze specified poems in relation to theme, setting and the use of imagery.

High schoolers form opinions about children and television censorship after analyzing literature. They complete a journal writing activity to identify the topic and make a list of inappropriate television shows for children. Next, they...

Over the course of the lesson plan, your pupils read and analyze a translated eight-line poem from the Tang Dynasty written by Du Fu, a poet caught behind enemy lines during the An Lu-Shan rebellion (755-763). Literary/historical context...

Help your class transition as the setting in the novel Esperanza Rising, by Pam Muñoz Ryan, moves from Mexico to California. Beginning with prior knowledge, and moving into jigsaw research groups, class members add to and create posters...

We're off to see the wizard! Practice making inferences in literature with two sample paragraphs from L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Each passage provides questions about the pleasantness of the place it describes, and...