Create songs and raps to develop an understanding of the proper use of common misused words and homophones. First, your class defines misused words and homophones correctly by utilizing the words in a rap or song. Then they use...

Students read a series of sentences and decide what literary term is being shown. They also discuss a novel about prejudice.

Students listen to The Seven Chinese Brothers and identify tall tale elements in it. They brainstorm ways they could help each other in school. They create a banner reflecting the style and art of Chinese decorations and clothing in the...

This is probably my students' favorite writing assignment. They obviously tell their friends about it, because every year my ne

Students imagine themselves someplace -- the beach, a mountain top, a city street -- anywhere.

Students read and analyze several highly symbolic poems. They create their own symbolic poem, read it to the class, and discuss whether they can guess any hidden meanings.

Eighth graders study poetic devices and use them in their own writing and apply them when reading poetry. In groups, they describe an item using poetic devices.

Students read the novel, Music from a Place Called Half Moon. They are assigned chapters to analyze for literary elements and to assign titles to the book chapters.

Students explore plants in science and England as they synthesize data from the book, "The Secret Garden in this twelve lessons unit. Comparisons between the nuturing needs of plants and humans are made.

Students create new ways of thinking about old things. They may use a modified approach to make unfamiliar material familiar (after teacher provides brief introductory materials, for example).

Ninth graders explore poetic technique and figurative language in this ten lesson plan unit. Comparisons are made between a variety of forms of poetic expressions and the lives of several poets are studied.

Students create their own environmental art after the teacher shows them a variety of example and has a discussion about it. They then write an initial personal definition of environmental art.

Students explore the definition and derivation of the popular usage of shorten compound nouns. Using worksheets and lecture materials, students provide meanings for the word "cell" when used in varying contexts. They also consider the...

For this literary terms worksheet, students define and review ten key literary terms and then locate and circle those ten terms within a word search puzzle for mastery.

Continue working through Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan, by looking into language choices and discussing text-dependent questions. Pupils converse in small groups and as a class about plot, setting, and figurative language. Using...

Add a literary twist to your St. Patrick's day celebration with a activity that asks kids to explain what they think the Irish proverbs on this activity mean.

Readers of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings are asked to craft an essay in which they compare how Maya Angelou uses figurative language to depict herself and Mrs. Flowers. 

Three of Emily Dickinson's poems, "I like to see it," "Because I could not stop for Death," and "We grow accustomed to the Dark," provide instructors with an opportunity to model for class members how to use close reading strategies to...

Enrich a unit on The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros with a selection of related activities. The packet contains nine activities that go from pre-reading through wrapping up the novel. Young readers work on studying...

After reading "The Bullet," a particularly intense chapter in Victor Martinez's Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida, class members listen to the Spanish and the English versions of "Dimelo" by Enrique Iglesias. They then discuss how the...

Scholars explore a variety of texts to locate wordplay. Partners read their selections and discuss meanings.

Though often used in shows of patriotism, Bruce Springsteen's 1985 song "Born in the U.S.A." is critical of America's role in the Vietnam war and its treatment of American veterans. High schoolers analyze the song's lyrics in an activity...

Are your classes weary of dreary worksheets? Are the learners nearly napping? Thrill them, fill them with delight with an interactive worksheet that asks them to identify the figurative language Edgar Allen Poe uses to add horror and...

Using the text Language Awareness by Eschholz, Rosa and Clark, as well as previous lectures from the class, this slideshow presents students with a midterm addressing key terms and concepts. While teachers might have a hard time...