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Poetry Project
Choosing a poet or a theme, eighth graders conduct research in the world of poetry. They conduct Internet research and select five poems that fit their poet or theme, and create a seven slide PowerPoint presentation on their selected...
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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....
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Individuality vs. Conformity
Have your middle schoolers participate in numerous activities designed to spark their awareness of literature. They express ideas and concerns clearly and respectfully in conversations and group discussions. Next, they view a music...
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Creatively Creating Expository Essays
Young scholars, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.
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Lifestyles of Civil War
Eighth graders, after viewing a website on Civil War Time, explore and analyze the lifestyles of Civil War times as well as those of the soldiers through the writing of a composition of a narrative letter and story through the eyes of a...
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Historical Agency in History Book Sets (HBS)
Study historical events by combining the study of historical fiction and non-fiction. Learners read about true past events in historical fiction novels and then research non-fiction accounts of the same events. What are some differences...
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Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: Journals
Like the characters in Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel, class members write frequently with a series of journal topics that form the basis of the final writing assignment about their personal “heavy boots.” Alas, no list of topics is...
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Graphic Organizer: Venn Diagram for Briar Rose
Compare and contrast the characters of Gemma and Becca from Briar Rose. Using a Venn diagram (not included but easy to create), readers will explore the characters. Not much direction or explanation is included here.
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Tuck Everlasting Unit
Natalie Babbitt's award winning fantasy, Tuck Everlasting, is the anchor text in a unit plan that focuses on identifying similes, metaphors, imagery, and personification in the text and analyzing how these elements effect the...
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Characteristics of Anne Frank
Eighth graders read selected passages from The Diary of Anne Frank. Working in pairs, 8th graders determine what qualities and characteristics they would assign to her from their selected diary entry.
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Legends
Students are introduced to the topic of legends. Using the text of Irving's novels, they gather information on different cultures. They practice using new vocabulary and their listening skills. They retell the stories in chronlogical order.
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Rest in Peace, Maniac Magee
Scholars read Maniac Magee and create epitaphs for each of the major characters using precise words reflecting the individual characters personality and nature. They will learn what an epitaph is and practice writing their own. They can...
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Studying the Great Depression Through Novels
Eighth graders view pictures of life in a small town during the Great Depression in Illinois to gain an understanding of living conditions during the era. They read novels based on life of this era.
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A Long Time Ago in the Future
Students read and discuss Canadian young adult literature. They compare/contrast the elements of citizenship, characterization, and themes, write journal responses, and identify the elements that define Canadians.
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911 As History
Students recognize persuasive techniques, think criticaly about the messages contained in various media, and discuss controversial issues in constructive ways. They analyze the deeper messages contained in children's literature, and...
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Jewish Stars of David
Students examine the history of the Holocaust and complete a KWL chart. Using the Internet, they research an aspect of the Holocaust they are interested in and watch a documentary. They read testimonies of survivors and identify other...
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Using Algebra to Explore Problem Space
Learners apply their knowledge of math by rewriting word problems using equations. In this word problem lesson, students build upon previous knowledge as they set up the correct steps to solve word problems. This lesson is full of hints...
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Help Me Learn About the Holocaust
Young readers select a book from a provided list to use as the basis for an intensive class study of Holocaust novels. After completing their novels, groups create a multimedia presentation highlighting the elements of literature...
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Comparing Themes Across Texts
Read various texts to compare the themes across each text. Learners write a journal entry describing the most beautiful scenery they've seen and use a map of the United States to locate the Sequoia National Park and Muir Woods. They then...
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Poetry Cyberbook
Emerging poets design a website and then post seven original poems as well as their written critique of these poems. Although the resource mentions Inspiration and FrontPage technologies, any software could be substituted.
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Interpreting Meaning in Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”
Launch a study of Maya Angelou's "I know Why the Caged Bird Sings" with the Youtube video of Alicia Keys singing her "Caged Bird." Groups then read Angelou's poem and discuss the symbols employed. Although the text of the poem is not...
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Journey Into Self
Eleventh graders examine the concept of the journey into self through a variety of literary genres. They express the personal notion of self by creating a picture poem and writing a personal reflection esssay.
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What Has Happened Here?
Students read a passage from Geraldine Brooks's novel Year of Wonders. They generate questions to clarify the meaning of the text and make connections between the text and information learned in their history and science classes.
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Book Share
Sixth graders meet in small groups to reflect on and share their thoughts after reading a short story, poem, or chapter in a novel. Groups of students utilize a book share evaluation worksheet that's imbedded in this plan.