ReadWriteThink
Dear Librarian: Writing a Persuasive Letter
Everyone deserves to read a great book! Here, pupils write a persuasive letter to the school's librarian detailing their favorite story and why it should be found on the shelves. Class members' persuasive reading passages are shared with...
National Geographic
Rivers and the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project
Damming rivers has been a case of necessity versus negative environmental impact since the process began. Kids take on the role of a stakeholder in the proposed damming of the Danube River. They begin by reading arguments for and against...
Prestwick House
Reading Nonfiction: Analyzing Joseph McCarthy's "Enemies from Within" Speech
Looking for a lesson that teaches class members how to analyze nonfiction? Use Joseph McCarthy's famous "Enemies from Within" speech as a instructional text. Worksheet questions direct readers' attention to the many historical references...
Curated OER
Formal versus Informal Language
Engage in an activity that focuses on the concepts of formal and informal language use. Middle and high schoolers compare and contrast each style by using a Venn diagram that includes some examples. They read and hear a passage of lyrics...
Curated OER
Let's Put You in a Louisiana University
Considering a college search project? After picking a possible career choice, and determining if that career needs a technical college or university education, individuals examine a wide variety of sources and select three schools that...
Curated OER
Apply Post-Reading Skills and Discuss Persuasive Text
Students put their reading comprehension skills to practice. In this interpreting text lesson, students read "Chief Red Jacket's Reply," and then respond to questions that require them to reason, infer, and analyze the selection.
Curated OER
Pride and Prejudice: Discussion Web
Both Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy have proud moments, but who is more prideful? Explore Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice with a discussion web that compares both characters in a brainstorming graphic organizer. Each side provides enough...
Curated OER
Writing a Persuasive Essay
Students consider the attributes of persuasive essays. In this written communication lesson plan students examine sample persuasive essays and discuss their impressions of the essays by completing the provided post-reading strategy.
Curated OER
Fifth Grade Reading
In this 5th grade English/Language Arts standardized test practice worksheet, students read 7 fiction and non-fiction selections and respond to 25 multiple choice questions about the readings.
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
An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die
English language learners have an opportunity to closely examine the academic language in portions of Nelson Mandela's famous 1964 Court Speech, "An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die," with a lesson plan that looks at key passages...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 1, Unit 1, Lesson 4
Connect with the text using helpful annotation strategies. As your class reads the first section of Karen Russell's short story, "St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves," they note important passages that establish character...
K20 LEARN
The War of the Words: Grammar and Parts of Speech
Here's a lesson that adds some zip to a study of parts of speech. Class members read two versions of the same article, one loaded with evocative nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, while the other is missing this sensory language....
Turabian Teacher Collaborative
Parts of Argument II: Article Critique
Break down the parts of argumentative writing with a critical thinking activity. High schoolers read an article of your (or their choice), and use a graphic organizer to delineate the ways the author structures his or her arguments.
Novelinks
The Crucible: Questioning Strategies Bloom's Taxonomy
Enrich your unit on Arthur Miller's The Crucible with a list of reading questions based on Bloom's Taxonomy. Kids answer questions and provide context for the knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation...
Curated OER
Self-Assessment: Habits of Effective Readers, Writers, Speakers, Listeners, and Viewers
Fifth graders study how to read fluently. In this reading lesson plan, 5th graders practice reading and recording any miscues. Students time each other and graph their progress each day.
Curated OER
Examine Persuasive Elements by Reading, Analyzing, and Discussing Persuasive Text
Students identify persuasive strategies and analyze arguments. In this persuasive writing instructional activity, students read "Chief Red Jacket's Reply" and "Reverend Cram's Speech to the Iroquois Nation" and chart major elements of...
Curated OER
The Outsiders: Anticipation Guide
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton is always a favorite for middle and high school readers because it addresses issues that hit home to them, decades after the book is set. Have learners fill out an anticipation guide that encourages them to...
Curated OER
Stewardship
Students explore deforestation and cultural mandate. In this stewardship lesson, students complete a KWL chart about deforestation and discuss how stewardship relates to the cultural mandate after reading silently in Genesis. Students...
Curated OER
Romeo and Juliet: To Tell, or Not to Tell
Should Romeo and Juliet have revealed their engagement to their parents? After reading Acts I and II of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, your class discusses this question with a SMARTboard presentation (though the lesson still works if...
Curated OER
Shizuko’s Daughter: Discussion Web
Is Yuki a selfish character? Analyze her motivation and behavior during a unit on Shizuko's Daughter by Kyoko Mori. Readers fill out two sides of a graphic organizer with reasons why or why not she is selfish, and then come up with a...
Prestwick House
Understanding Language: Slant, Spin, and Bias in the News
We live in a time of fake news, alternative realities, and media bias. What could be more timely than an activity that asks class members to research how different sources report the same topic in the news?
Prestwick House
Rhetorical Devices in Political Speeches
Have you ever watched a political speech and felt your heart beat a little faster, and your opinion either solidify or begin to slightly change? Rhetorical devices can be a strong tool in an effective and powerful speech. A short lesson...
Curated OER
Poet Naomi Shihab Nye
Students read and analyze poetry by Naomi Shihab Nye. They define stereotypes, view and discuss a video interview with Nye, present an oral reading of a poem, and write a persuasive letter to an author.