Curated OER
Common Good
Students explore the concept of philanthropy. In this service learning instructional activity, students read stories and then discuss the meaning of philanthropy as they identify ways the characters contribute to the common good.
Curated OER
Teaching the Novel in Context
Students write a context paper. In this teaching the novel in context lesson, students view a primary sources to recreate the cultural and historical context of the novel. Students make the connection between the literary...
Curated OER
Muslim Arab/Spanish Connection
Ninth graders watch the video, 'El Cid.' They participate in teacher-led discussion about the beliefs, customs, goals, and heroes of both Spaniards and Moors. They create and present an artifact to the class showing the results of their...
Curated OER
Computer Mysteries
Who has been messing with my trampoline? Young writers choose local events as the basis for their own “Who Did It?” mystery. They then devise a plot, problem, and cast of characters and write an introduction explaining the problem and...
Curated OER
Dream Book Collage
Students discuss dreams and they types of dreams they have. They read the book "Dinosaur Dream" by Dennis Nolan and discuss the characters and events in the book. They look up vocabulary words and create a collage utilizing as many...
Curated OER
Venn Diagrams With the Pain And the Great One
Students read the story, The Pain and the Great One, written by Judy Blume, and discuss the characters and the sequence of events. They compare/contrast the two main characters using Venn diagrams.
Curated OER
Tell Me a Whopper!
Sixth graders investigate tall tales as a literary genre. They listen to a number of tall tales to discover how exaggeration is used as a story element. They write and publish a tall tale using word processing software. They illustrate...
Curated OER
Goldilocks and the Three Bears Pantomime
Students investigate acting and performing arts by portraying a story in class. For this pantomiming lesson, students read the story Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and discuss the characters amongst themselves. Students portray the 4...
Curated OER
Aunt Chip And the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair
Students examine Patricia Polacco's web site as an introduction to her life and literature. They listen to "Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair" before discussing how the main character believe in the power of books. They...
Curated OER
Floppy And the Puppies
Fifth graders reinforce and focus on the meaning derived from the text as a whole and identify and describe the main characters, events and settings in a fiction piece of writing. They incorporate a wide-range of adventurous vocabulary...
Curated OER
Morning Girl
Fifth graders read the novel "Morning Girl" by Michael Dorris. Using the text, they compare and contrast the two cultures, Arawak and Taino in the novel and research the landing of Columbus in San Salvador. They create a family tree...
Curated OER
Finding My Hat
Sixth graders explore the Korean culture through the book, Finding My Hat. They read and discuss the book in literature circles and write in response journals after each chapter. Comparing the main character to themselves, they note the...
Curated OER
Hallo-Wiener Lesson Plan
Students listen to the story The Hallo-Wiener by Dav Pilkey in order to learn about the "monster" character. In this reading and art lesson plan, students cut a "bun" from beige construction paper, cut out an image of the main character...
Vanier College
Analyzing Short Stories/Novels
Good questions can help focus readers' attention on the elements writers use to add depth to their stories. The questions on this worksheet do just that and encourage readers to think critically about a story and author's purpose.
August House
Anansi and the Tug o' War
Combine art, math, language arts, drama, and delicious Jell-o with a instructional activity based on the African folktale Anansi and the Tug o' War. Kids make predictions and discuss plot points of the story before joining in...
Curated OER
Points of View
Cinderella is a classic love story when Cinderella is the protagonist—but what happens if a stepsister tells the story? Focus on point of view with a instructional activity about fairy tales and story elements. After reading a few...
Curated OER
The Study of Theme and Figurative Language in Poetry and/or Prose
Identify and analyze the use of figurative language used in select pieces of writing. These pieces of literature will represent at least two pieces by one writer and at least two pieces by different writers. This lesson would be a great...
PB Works
The Cay by Theodore Taylor
Record the plot elements of The Cay on this worksheet. Pupils note basic information about the book and answer questions about the introduction, point of view, character, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution of...
Curated OER
Understanding a Narrative: The True Story of Balto
Strong comprehension questions and a list of initiating events that drive the plot make this resource worth a try in your classroom. Intended for use with tools specific to the mindwing concepts reading strategy system, the outline...
Novelinks
The Devil’s Arithmetic: Concept Analysis
A helpful guide to Jane Yolen's The Devil's Arithmetic for your literature unit. Use the sections on point-of-view, dramatic irony, and background knowledge, among others, to frame your lessons in an engaging and educational way.
Teaching English
Fairy Tales; Not Just for Kids
"Once upon a time . . ." Language learners examine the key elements of well-known fairy tales and then craft their own.
Curated OER
Artist's Storyboard
In this storyboard worksheet, students fill in squares on a blank storyboard: how I picture the main character, how I see the setting, problem, solution, 3 important events and ending. Worksheet is a generic graphic organizer.
Curated OER
"Theseus and the Minotaur"
Students analyze the features of myths and legends. They read the myths "Theseus and the Minotaur" and "Orpheus and Eurydice," identify the myth story elements, evaluate each story for the overall theme, describe the characters, and...
Curated OER
Details and Observations IQ or the Eyes Have it
Fourth graders study Chaucer as a master of details. Then, they create a short story linking unrelated details into a logical plot with a clear setting and established characters. This lesson has some excellent worksheets attached!