It's no secret that children can be very opinionated, but rather than fight against this natural tendency, embrace it with this primary grade writing project. After a shared reading of a children's book about...

Wrap up your unit on The Cay with an engaging argumentative writing assignment. Writers must decide if they believe The Cay should be banned. The resource includes links to several articles, which have been addressed and examined in...

Why do authors write? Practice determining the author's purpose with a categorizing activity. Learners sort twelve short passages into three categories: persuade, inform, and entertain.

Finding good primary source materials to support any study of history can be a challenge and time-consuming. A set of 11 primary source letters, images, and text excerpts provide young historians with an opportunity to sharpen their...

Those new to teaching an AP level language and composition prep course and seasoned veterans will find much to treasure in a unit that is designed to help young language scholars develop the skills they need to analyze the language...

Imagine a list that includes Alan Abelson of Baron's, Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, and Mother Jones. High schoolers select a national columnist, read and annotate five columns by this author, noting the rhetorical...

Does Amir have an obligation to find Sohrab and take him to the orphanage? That is the question class members debate as part of their reading of Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. 

Bring the drama of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea to class with a fun role-playing activity. Given a list of survival items, readers decide which items would be the most necessary for an adventure like...

Guided by close-reading questions, groups examine the similarities and differences between the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. In addition, they look at how the principles are presented in these two foundational US...

What does it take to develop and publish a newsletter? Young academics create a newsletter with original artwork for their school or community. They explore social justice themes and spread messages of tolerance and inclusion. Scholars...

A project-based lesson has pupils create a bulletin board to share artwork, nonfiction articles, and messages based on social justice themes. The finished board is displayed in the community to create a place for discussion. 

Translate the first speaking and listening standard for yourself and your ninth and tenth graders! Learners can focus on communicating in small groups with the two activities presented here. Both activities center around group creation...

You want your class to meet all of the Common Core standards, and here is one way to tackle the first speaking and listening standard. Given a theme to focus on from "How Much Land Does a Man Need?" by Leo Tolstoy, small groups come up...

Everybody's a critic—even your pupils! Using the included resources as a guide, screen films related to social justice and ask film enthusiasts to critique them. Publish the reviews for your school community or develop a film festival...

How can you tell if a text is descriptive, informative, instructional or persuasive? This BBC Skillswise tutorial teaches you how with a factsheet, worksheet, quiz, and game.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether students should or should not get paid to attend class. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether teens should or should not be allowed to play violent video games. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether or not schools have the right to monitor what students post online. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether students should or should not be allowed to use cell phones in class. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text arguing for and against competitive eating contests. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating the death penalty. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about the police being able to search through cell phones without a search warrant. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether dogs should work or just be pets. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

[Free Registration/Login Required] In this informational text passage, facts about cloud forests are shared, along with persuasive language to stress the importance of them and threats to them. This passage is a stand-alone curricular...