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Owen
Students read Owen by Kevin Henkes. In this literature instructional activity, students listen to the story and compare it to other Kevin Henkes books. They answer comprehension questions and bring their own treasured item to share.
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Unleashed: Poems by Pets
Students create a poem from the first person perspective of a pet. In this Writing/Poetry instructional activity, students read a short poem from, Unleashed. Students brainstorm what their animal may say. Students write a poem using the...
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Poetry Voices
Students investigate the performance aspect of poetry by reading, writing and discussing poetry pieces.
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Multimedia Book Reports
Students read a chapter book of 100-200 pages in length. They create a story map and multimedia book report. Pupils review the elements of a story map such as: characters, setting, problem, important events, solution, etc.) Students...
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Author Study
Students examine and identify the characteristics of the different genres of literature. After being read and reading various stories, they identify how different books by the same author carry the same story elements. They discuss how...
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Octavio Paz
Tenth graders read and analyze the poem, "The Street," by Hispanic author, Octavio Paz. They research the life of Octavio Paz and identify his literary contributions. They complete an online scavenger hunt and create an author map of...
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Desert Views - First Impressions: Travelers on the Gila Trail
Students draw animals and plants that are described to them as they read passages of people who traveled across the Gila Trail in the Southwest. In this Gila Trail lesson plan, students also write a letter describing a plant or animal in...
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Voices of Tragedy and Horror: Remembering the Holocaust
Students consider the implications of the Holocaust. In this World War II instructional activity, students read the graphic novel Maus at the end of a unit on World War II. Students discuss the impact of reading about the Holocaust as...
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The American Dream Poetry
Students analyze how poetry can reveal themes of 'The American Dream.' In this poetry themes lesson, students discuss the elements of poetry and define imagery. Students read 'Lost Sister' by Cathy Song and complete a related worksheet....
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Imagery
Students read the poem The Worker by Richard W. Thomas as an example of the effective use of imagery. Then they complete a 5-senses chart describing some part of nature, e.g. sea, clouds, etc. Then they write their own poem using the...
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Still I Rise: Maya Angelou
Learners read the poem, Still I rise, by Maya Angelou. They examine how language, poetic devices, and format contribute to the poet's message. They identify poetic devices used in the poem.
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Twelfth Night Act 2 Scene 1
Students perform a close reading analysis of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night Act 2, Scene 1. Students examine the characters of Sebastian and Antonio and discuss themes, particularly those of the potential for tragedy within a comedy and...
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A Weekend With Wendell
Students complete activities with the story A Weekend With Wendell by Kevin Henkes. In this literature lesson, students listen to the story and answer comprehension questions. They compare this story and its characters to other ones...
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Christmas Poetry
Middle schoolers explore writing using literary terms. In this Christmas poetry lesson plan, students write a poem about a Christmas tree or a snowman using at least one example of each: metaphor, simile, and personification.
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Political Cartoons: Thinking Broadly, Communicating Succinctly
Students think broadly about the tsunami disaster and its aftermath through studying cartoons. Students critically think about the literary devices the authors/artists use, such as satire, metaphor and personification.
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It's All Poetry to Me!
Fourth graders explore language arts by analyzing poetry styles. In this writing analysis lesson plan, 4th graders read several sample poems in class and identify similes, metaphors and other figurative language within them. Students...
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Oliver/Kenyon
Learners, through two pieces of writing, identify poetic/language devices through the speakers, personification , imagery, metaphor, etc. They assess the patterns those devices are used in and analyze the theme of each. Each student...
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Safe from the Storm
Fourth graders read the poem "Snowbound" after brainstorming what a place of refuge is and why it's needed. They, in pairs, meet and write a list of ten attributes that describe a refuge. They write a paragraph describing the look, feel,...
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Modern American Poetry
Students identify different types of literary terms in poems. They read different poems and create a packet summarizing them. They write a poem of their own and a biography of one of their favorite poets.
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How To Identify Figurative Language
Students investigate writing techniques by analyzing a chart. In this figurative language lesson, students define similes, metaphors and identify the difference between them and personification. Students demonstrate their understanding...
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Journeying to Create
Show a video clip that descripes how taking a journey can change a person's outlook on life. Learners write a paragraph about a place that uses imagery and tone to create a specfic effect. They evaluate their journal entries as well.
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Back to School: Style Analysis
Jump back into expository writing and analysis at the start of a new school year! Start with a review of an authors' stylistic choices in diction, syntax, treatment of subject matter, and figurative language. Writers choose a text to...
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Animal Diaries
Launch this lesson with Doreen Cronin's Diary of a Worm! Discuss the format and content of a diary, and ask learners if they've ever kept a diary before. Then, after an introductory discussion, have learners choose an insect or another...
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My Antonia: Body Biography Book Report
Examine the characters in Willa Cather's My Antonia with a group project. Small groups illustrate their chosen character on a large piece of paper and choose quotes from the text that tell about the character. Where learners choose to...