Young grammarians review the proper usage of colons and semicolons in writing. Given a list of sentences, they determine which are direct characterizations and which are indirect characterizations. They also decide where the punctuation...

Explore the concept of rhyme scheme within a Shakespearean sonnet. After writing out their favorite (appropriate!) rap song and explaining why they like it, middle schoolers define a rhyme scheme. Afterward, they examine a Shakespearean...

Evaluate the use of vocabulary in written paragraphs to make the determination of its appropriateness for a particular audience. As a class, seventh graders develop a fictional team and write three paragraphs to different audiences based...

In this vocabulary worksheet, students select the best word to complete the sentence. They are challenged by the difficult words that contain a sl-blend.

Get your historians motivated to research the Titanic through this crossword puzzle! Students use 12 clues about the ship's history, maiden voyage, and sinking to complete the puzzle. Consider using as a way to solidify information...

Play James Taylor's song, "You've Got a Friend" to kickstart this lesson. After the initial play, encourage listeners to record the missing verbs in the lyrics provided. A word bank is included, but consider challenging your learners and...

Fourth graders present research on war. In this debate lesson, 4th graders create a power point presentation debating for or against the American Revolution. Students share their presentations with the class.

Students examine how a scene in a movie or in literature is constructed. In this film and literature lesson students answer questions based on film clips then create storyboards depicting a scene from their life.

Start your poetry unit with this basic overview of Robert Frost's life and works. A PowerPoint presentation starts off the lesson, which ends in a short recall quiz about Robert Frost. The presentation would be sufficient for your lesson...

SMART boards a great way to create interest in any subject - even grammar! Using the provided SMART board lesson, have your 10th graders come up to the board and combine two independent clauses using a "glue" word (coordinating...

In this parts of speech worksheet, students identify nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and more in sentences. Students complete 30 problems total.

In this word matching worksheet, students fill in the blanks with the correct word given and write the word on the line. Students complete 8 problems.

Reinforce comma rules with this exercise. Learners add commas to a series of sentences and, using a list of eleven rules, match the rule they followed to each sentence. This learning exercise would be best for classes that have had...

Define foreshadowing for your upper graders with this well designed resource. While there are only two slides, the definition and example provided are excellent and if coupled with additional literary devices could make for a great lesson.

Help your writers get started with these hooks! Twenty-five opening lines from the "Lives" column in the New York Times Magazine act as prompts for creative writing. Have your learners choose one prompt and write an original essay....

Help your learners attain vocabulary and practice reading comprehension with this cloze activity. Created by The Learning Network, this resource provides a New York Times article with the words already removed. Pupils can fill in the...

Four thought-provoking questions encourage readers to develop and support their opinions about strategies to end a friendship after exploring excerpts from a New York Times article. The reading is brief so this could be a lead-in to...

After hearing or reading a New York Times article on Twinkies, kids attempt to fill in the blanks by memory alone. They re-read the article, only this time words are missing, it's up to them to fill in each blank with a word from the...

Ask your learners this question as a quickwrite: why do you write? This prompt can begin a unit on writing and open up a dialogue about the motivations writers have. Tap into your scholars' reasons for writing and make the activity more...

Drawn from the New York Times' superb Learning Network program, this multiple choice question checks readers' knowledge of two vocabulary words in a paragraph from a review of the 2011 film Take Shelter. An interactive answer key clearly...

First instituted in New York City in 2002 and recognized nationwide in 2009, "Poem in Your Pocket Day" is part of National Poetry Month (April) and celebrates poetry in everyday life. A brief news story includes 9 ideas about how to...

"I'm just going to cry!" One fan said while waiting to meet The Hunger Games cast. Read an article with your class about the mobs that waited for a chance to meet the cast of the movie sweeping the country by storm. Read this article...

Introduce your class to ghostwriting while practicing comprehension. From The New York Times' The Learning Network, this article covers the topic of ghostwriting for cookbooks. There are blank spaces and a word bank. Learners can use the...

A New York Times article about a 15-year-old style maven who in 2011 launched the fashion magazine "Rookie," based on her blog, makes high-interest nonfiction reading for secondary learners. This page asks 9 comprehension questions...