PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Heroes
Three creative activities follow reading a fiction and nonfiction book about heroes. Scholars build hero action figures out of clay for make-believe play, explain in written form how they show bravery, kindness, patience, thoughtfulness,...
Curated OER
The Pearl: Found Poem
It's hard to beat the beauty of John Steinbeck's prose, so borrow a little of it to form your own found poetry. After kids finish Chapter One of The Pearl, they select the most evocative and vivid words to create found poems.
New York State Education Department
Comprehensive English Examination: June 2015
Heroes rise from adversity. That theme forms the focus of the critical lens essay in a sample comprehensive English examination. The exam, which is part of a larger series of sample standardized tests, also includes two short response...
New York State Education Department
English Language Arts Examination: June 2016
The English Language Arts Examination handout contains a variety of multiple-choice questions to assess reading comprehension, in addition to a source-based argument essay and text-analysis response prompts.
K5 Learning
Time for Everything
Read a historical fiction poem that explains how there is a time for everything in our daily lives. From sitting to sleeping, pupils read a rhythmic poem and respond to four comprehension questions.
Core Knowledge Foundation
Unit 5: Realms of Gold - Vol. 2 Poetry and Short Stories Teacher Guide
Seventh graders have a golden opportunity to learn how to read poems and short stories with a unit that introduces them to the techniques writers use to craft their works. They examine poems by William Carlos Williams and Edgar Allen Poe...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
8th Grade Poetry: A to Z Poem
A two-part lesson asks eighth graders first to draw connections between the myth of Aengus and William Butler Yeats' poem "The Song of Wandering Aengus." In the second part of the lesson, writers craft an "A to Z Poem."
Utah Education Network (UEN)
8th Grade Poetry: Narrative Poem
The first lesson of a five-lesson unit designed for eighth graders has class members reading and watching a video of Edgar Allen Poe's narrative poem, "The Raven." They then craft their narrative poem, illustrate it, and share their work...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
7th Grade Poetry: Metaphor Poem
The second instructional activity in a five-part poetry unit asks seventh graders to construct a metaphor poem. First, pupils examine Emily Dickinson's "The Railway Train" and identify the metaphor. They then select an object and an...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
8th Grade Poetry: Catalog Poem
After conducting a close reading of Billy Collin's poem "Forgetfulness" and responding to questions on a worksheet, young poets craft catalog poems and share their work with a partner. The lesson ends with the partner using the provided...
K12 Reader
Make the Same Shape
Make sure your class has a grasp of words that include the long /a/ sound and follow the _a_e pattern. They can read the short poem on this page, which includes many examples of this pattern to practice, and then complete the three...
New York State Education Department
Comprehensive English Examination: January 2011
Scholars read an excerpt from the short story "The Bonfire" by Kunikida Doppo as well as a nonfiction passage about handcycling. Next, they answer comprehension-based multiple-choice questions. Additionally, they respond to short-answer...
New York State Education Department
Comprehensive English Examination: January 2013
It's out of my control! Pupils read passages about characters in situations beyond their control. They answer comprehension questions to demonstrate understanding of their reading and answer short answer questions. Scholars complete the...
New York State Education Department
Comprehensive English Examination: June 2011
Get those pencils sharpened—it's time to see what the class knows! Using the resource, scholars complete a four-part English examination. They read passages and respond to multiple-choice comprehension questions. They also complete two...
Curated OER
Listening Comprehension
In this listening comprehension worksheet, students listen to the teacher read the poem entitled, "Annabel." As the teacher is reading the poem, the students are called upon to answer the 41 comprehension questions included on the...
Curated OER
Poetry As Oral Performance
Reciting poetry is a great way to build oral language skills and build classroom community. Pupils look at the text elements of poetry and choose a poem to read aloud. They focus on rhythm, fluency, and expression. This is a great way to...
Curated OER
"The Wind" by James Reeves
Inntroduce primary learners to essential critical reading strategies with an activity based on James Reeves' poem, "The Wind." Learners listen as the poem is read, first as a riddle, and then re-read with the title visible. The...
Curated OER
The Poetry Archive
Listening to poems about feeling lonely and feeling like an outsider set the stage for a group activity that focuses on Stevie Smith's "Not Waving But Drowning." Groups examine the three stanzas of Smith's poem separately and identify in...
Curated OER
Comparing Poems
Young literary analysts compare two poems by the same author. Readers look for slant rhyme, observe the beat and rhythm of each, and search for repeated vowel sounds. After re-reading, they observe the lack of punctuation and the stanza...
Curated OER
Poetry/Music: Let It Snow!
Students create poems and sound compositions using instruments, sounds, and pictograph notation. After listening Debussy's Children's corner suite, they brainstorm a list of snow vocabulary words. Students write poems and in groups...
Curated OER
Poems: Eating Treats
Which poem is best? Your kindergarten class follows along as you read three different poems. They decide which one they like best, then draw a picture to illustrate it. The class can also discuss why they chose the poems they did. A...
Curated OER
Poetry: Walking With My Iguana
Bring a little excitement to your next poetry analysis lesson. Using the highly energetic poem "Walking With My Iguana," learners consider poem structure and rhyme. They listen to the poem, discuss the rhythm and tone with their...
Busy Teacher’s Café
"Smart" by Shel Silverstein
Find out just how smart your young mathematicians are with this cross-curricular math and language arts lesson. After first reading Shel Silverstein's poem "Smart", students draw pictures of coins to model the different exchanges...
EngageNY
Examining a Model Two-Voice Poem and Planning a Two-Voice Poem
Successful poetry writing requires three P's: planning, preparation, and practice. Pupils read a model two-voice poem and discuss how the author uses evidence to develop the theme. With a partner, scholars use a rubric to analyze the...