Reed Novel Studies
The Outsiders: Novel Study
The greasers and Socs, both gangs in S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, came from opposite sides of the tracks, yet seemed to live in two different worlds. Scholars answer comprehension questions, create alliterations, and work with...
Reed Novel Studies
A Series of Unfortunate Events - The Bad Beginning: Novel Study
Scholars read about the unlucky events that continue to fall on the children in A Series of Unfortunate Events - The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket. A set of worksheet activities include completing sentences with vocabulary...
Reed Novel Studies
The War That Saved My Life: Novel Study
Most people think of war when they think of casualities. However, Ada used war to regain her life. A ten-year-old girl in The War That Saved My Life is a prisoner in her own home. However. when her brother goes to war, she takes the...
Reed Novel Studies
The Underneath: Novel Study
Do you have a place that makes you feel safe and secure? Ranger, a hound in The Underneath, finds his new friend, a calico cat, and her safe place—underneath a porch. Scholars complete sentences using vocabulary from the novel as they...
Reed Novel Studies
Robinson Crusoe: Novel Study
If you were stranded on a deserted island, what book would you want with you? Robinson Crusoe of course! During his years stuck on an island, Crusoe learns to survive by making a canoe, finding food, and living in solitude. Scholars read...
Reed Novel Studies
The Railway Children: Novel Study
How can you prove your innocence? After being falsely accused and placed in prison, the father in The Railway Children is looking for the answer to the question. The children make friends with an elderly gentleman who helps them prove...
Anti-Defamation League
Shirley Chisholm: Unbought, Unbossed and Unforgotten
A 13-page packet introduces high schoolers to a lady of amazing firsts. Shirley Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to Congress, the first Black woman to run for President of the United States, and a leader of the Women's Rights...
Curated OER
Kumeyaay Indians
Useful for literary analysis, citing textual evidence, or summary skills, this activity about the Kumeyaay Indians would be a good addition to your language arts class. Middle schoolers read novels and summarize the literature in their...
Curated OER
Identifying Themes in Children's Literature
Identifying themes in literature is the focus of the language arts lesson plan presented here. Learners read short pieces of fiction and practice the skill of identifying the themes present in each one. The bulk of the lesson consists of...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 15: Theme
Build understanding of theme with an activity designed for The Cay and the Common Core. Small groups or pairs use graphic organizers to determine themes, find and record related details from the text, and formulate theme statements. In...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 2
Use Langston Hughes's poem, "Words Like Freedom," to explore the concepts of freedom and liberty. Learners read the poem, determine the theme, and use the provided graphic organizer to examine the connotative and denotative meanings of...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 12: Story Event
Focus on plot and the impact-specific events in The Cay. Class members use their double-entry journals, created in a previous lesson in this series, to record their thinking about the guiding question as they read chapters 15 through 17....
Speak Truth to Power
Elie Wiesel: Speaking Truth to Genocide to Power
Invite your learners to discover the efforts of Night author Elie Wiesel to promote awareness of genocide in the world. After watching and reading an interview of Elie Wiesel, high schoolers work to create a living Holocaust...
Student Handouts
Comparing Countries’ Constitutions
Analyze the constitutions of five different countries and see how they relate to each country's culture and traditions. Pupils read the preambles to the constitutions of India, Ireland, Russia, Suriname, and the United States. After...
Read Works
Bat News
Get the bat facts with a short nonfiction reading passage. After reading the passage, readers respond to questions that focus on main idea, inferencing, vocabulary in context, and author's purpose.
National Endowment for the Humanities
In Emily Dickinson's Own Words: Letters and Poems
Analyze the depth and beauty of American Literature by reading Emily Dickinson's letters and poems. The class analyzes Dickinson's poetic style and discusses Thomas Wentworth Higginson's editorial relationship with Dickinson. They pay...
Curated OER
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Explore Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" in this literature analysis lesson. Middle schoolers read and summarize the plot of the story. They then adapt passages for a contemporary audience and analyze the...
Channel Islands Film
Cache: Lesson Plan 3 - Grades 4-5
Should the excavation of what is believed to be the cave of the Lone Woman of San Nicholas Island be allowed to continue? As a practice exercise designed to prepare pupils for a timed writing exam, individuals read two Los Angeles...
New York State Education Department
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 5
Are video games sports? Pupils investigate this question as well as various nonfiction selections to learn more about claims and the support that defines them. All of the selections mimic the rigor on state tests and encourage close...
Reed Novel Studies
Flush: Novel Study
Standing up for beliefs sometimes leads to trouble! The father in Flush takes knows this all too well when he sinks a boat in protest to its illegal dumping. With his dad behind bars, the son, Noah, takes matters into his hands by...
Reed Novel Studies
I Am David: Novel Study
Many people dream of getting a fresh start or starting over again. David, a main character in I am David, gets that chance and must learn to live life outside of the concentration camp. Scholars read about David's adventures as they...
Reed Novel Studies
The Invention of Hugo Cabret: Novel Study
If the walls could talk, you might hear Hugo from The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Hugo lives in the walls of a train stations in Paris. Scholars read and complete worksheet activities as they discover Hugo's secrets. They show their...
Reed Novel Studies
James and the Giant Peach: Novel Study
Everyone wants to feel like they belong. James, in James and the Giant Peach, finds a feeling of belonging in a very odd place—inside a peach! Scholars read the story of James and the Peach and work through vocabulary, language, and...
Reed Novel Studies
Julie of the Wolves: Novel Study
Blood may not always be thicker than water. Julie, in Julie of the Wolves, soon depends on a wolf pack to be her family. Scholars read about Julie's adventures as they complete sentences with vocabulary words, answer comprehension...