Curated OER
What's the Purpose Anyway?
Examine author's purpose in newspaper articles, comic books, cookbooks, encyclopedias and other forms of written materials. Working in groups, middle and high schoolers read teacher-selected articles and write an explanation of the...
Curated OER
"The Island of Plenty": Reading Guide
Johnson C. Montgomery’s controversial plea for American social isolationism, “The Island of Plenty,” launches an in-depth study of the structure and logic of the essay. After responding to a series of questions, individuals craft a...
Curated OER
Main Idea in Informational Text
Individuals complete a pre-assessment to gauge their ability to determine the main idea and supporting details in nonfiction text. They examine a new piece of nonfiction reading by looking at the table of contents, headings, and index...
Curated OER
Using Details from Text to Identify Author's Purpose
Explore writing techniques by analyzing newspapers and magazines with middle schoolers. They will collaborate in small groups to read local news stories and identify the main ideas and author's intent. They also utilize an information...
Curated OER
The Hundred Penny Box with Multiple Viewpoints and Persuasive Letter
Third graders read The Hundred Penny Box and complete comprehension activities. In these perspectives and letter writing lessons, 3rd graders read and discuss the story then complete a Venn Diagram to explore the different viewpoints in...
K12 Reader
National Symbols
What are the most prominent symbols of the United States? Learn about the bald eagle, the American flag, and the Statue of Liberty in a reading comprehension activity that includes a short passage and five reflective questions.
K12 Reader
An Independent Nation
If your kids are curious about the American Revolution, help them understand more about its background with a reading passage and comprehension questions. Kids use context clues to answer each question, some of which require more...
Curated OER
American Dream and The Great Gatsby
Is the American Dream alive and well or has it dried up and died? As part of a study of The Great Gatsby, class members search for articles on the state of the American Dream, analyze the arguments presented in those articles, and then...
ReadWriteThink
Persuasive Techniques in Advertising
Help your 21st century learners develop their media smarts with this resource that has them examine the persuasive techniques advertisers use to influence specific demographics and then to use these techniques to craft their own ads.
Curated OER
English Lesson Plans for Grade 12
HIgh schoolers respond to a persuasive article on using animal research. In this english lesson, writers listen to a conversation, and discuss the point of arguments. They write a critique on a certain film and share it with their...
Curated OER
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Discuss the life of Franklin D. Roosevelt. This story, called "Franklin D. Roosevelt" by Laura Hamilton Waxman, is used to explore comprehension skills. Some of these skills include identifying prefixes and suffixes, making comparisons,...
Curated OER
Descriptive Persuasive Texts
In this Language Arts worksheet, students read about persuasive writing. Students read an example and complete a chart that organizes the information into facts and opinions.
Curated OER
Movie Poster: Persuasive Text
Young scholars create movie posters based upon short stories they've recently read. In this persuasive writing activity students analyze a poster that is intended to persuade people to want to see the movie and convince Steven...
Curated OER
Storyboard for Persuasive Text
Students demonstrate their knowledge of the main elements of a story by creating a storyboard. In this persuasive writing lesson students create storyboards that are intended to persuade a director to make a movie out of the short story...
Curated OER
My Name is___________.
Read to gain an understanding of the author's intent or purpose. Learners analyze a persuasive text, identify the author's purpose, and evaluate the claims used as support. They then compose a persuasive essay of their own.
Great Schools
Letter of Complaint
If you've ever received bad service or disagreed with a company's decision, writing a letter of complaint might be a good skill to have. Review the format of a letter, author's purpose, and other aspects of persuasive writing with an...
EngageNY
Making a Claim and Advocating Persuasively: Preparing for the Practice Fishbowl
Scholars consider their reading in The Omnivore's Dilemma to develop a claim answering the question, "Which food chain would you choose to feed your family—the local sustainable food chain or the hunter-gatherer food chain?" To guide...
Curated OER
Determining Author's Point of View: The Sneeches
Determine the author's point of view in a text. Young readers read Dr. Seuss' The Sneeches and identify the author's purpose in the story. They identify persuasive techniques in writing, asking and answering questions to better...
Curated OER
Jim Murphy, The Great Fire - Grade 6
The Great Fire by Jim Murphy provides the text for a study of the Chicago fire of 1871. The plan is designed as a close reading activity so that all learners have the same background information require for writing. Richly detailed, the...
Curated OER
Hic-Hic-Hooray!
What is really the best way to get rid of hiccups? Investigate some old wives' tales and folk remedies related to health. Middle schoolers explore the science behind why people might believe these myths to be true and find the real...
Curated OER
Main Idea in Informational Text
Readers identify main ideas and supporting details using informational texts. In this literacy activity, they make predictions and read the text to find the main ideas. They use a table diagram to define the main idea and supporting...
Curated OER
Rhetorical Devices
Twelfth graders identify and analyze examples of rhetorical devices as valid or invalid inferences. In this text analysis lesson, 12th graders research a controversial topic in teams and identify rhetorical devices for the topic....
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Writing Prompts for Middle School
Scratching your head when it comes to engaging writing prompts? Check out a list of prompts designed for middle school classes, which includes topics for persuasive writing, expository writing, how-to essays, personal narratives, and...
Santa Ana Unified School District
The Power of Point of View
Sometimes a whole story can change based on the perspective of the person telling it. Practice identifying and analyzing point of view in various reading passages and writing assignments with a language arts packet, complete with Common...