Curated OER
Teaching Selected Poems from Jim Wayne Miller's the Brier Poems
Students explore the basic elements of poetry through Appalachian life poetry. For this poetry lesson, students read seven poems from Jim Wayne Miller's the Brier Poems and complete poetry analysis activities for each poem.
Curated OER
The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper
In this literature worksheet, students respond to 25 short answer and essay questions about James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans. Students may also link to an online interactive quiz on the novel at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Understanding Genres
Young scholars identify genres of literature. In this literature instructional activity, students read definitions of the various genres. Young scholars choose books and list clues in the texts that help them identify the appropriate genre.
Curated OER
Different Strokes for Different Folks
Fourth graders are taken to the media center to review various genre of literature, apply information and concepts to evaluate examples and locate specific genre, and search for materials for reading enjoyment. A good lesson for genre...
Curated OER
I Knew Him When
Students research the life of Abraham Lincoln and write a first-person account from the viewpoint of someone who knew him. They develop a timeline of Lincoln's life, research a particular period of his life, and write a first-person...
Curated OER
Picture a Nation
Students research immigration data from a specific time period. They create a graphic organizer that depicts the information and share the information with the class.
Curated OER
Stain My Days Blue
Students read several poems related to the life and culture of the Appalachia region. They are introduced to the poetic forms of simile, alliteration and onomatopoeia and respond to the poems through journal entries and poetry of their own.
Curated OER
SAT Sentence Completion Practice Test 03
In this sentence completion instructional activity, learners choose the answer that best completes each sentence. Students have 10 minutes to complete 12 sentences in this SAT practice instructional activity.
Other
Realistic Appalachian Picture Books
Use this list for books about life in the Appalachian area of the county. Most are stories of contemporary life.
![De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Changing Our Street [Pdf] Unit Plan](https://d15y2dacu3jp90.cloudfront.net/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Changing Our Street [Pdf] Unit Plan")
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Changing Our Street [Pdf]
"Changing Our Street" is a one page, realistic fiction, reading passage about how the problem of people driving too fast in a neighborhood was solved. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Community Progress [Pdf]
"Community Progress" is a one page, realistic fiction passage about how students created a mural for their school, which generated lots of attention from the press, parents, and other schools. It is followed by constructed-response...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Flying [Pdf]
"Flying" is a one page, realistic fiction, reading passage about someone set a goal to be a pilot and worked hard to accomplish that goal. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from...
Read Works
Read Works: A Tornado Is Coming
[Free Registration/Login Required] This realistic fiction passage tells the story of a family taking cover after learning that a tornado is nearby. This passage shares basic facts about tornadoes. This passage is a stand-alone curricular...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Community Progress [Pdf]
"Community Progress" is a one page, realistic fiction passage about how students created a mural for their school, which generated lots of attention from the press, parents, and other schools. It is followed by constructed-response...
Curated OER
Mc Graw Hill: Part 1 Reading: Literature: Compare and Contrast Settings
To comprehend a story, students need to be able to compare and contrast the setting. Learn how to compare and contrast setting in this reference article.
Other
Literature Unit: "A Day No Pigs Would Die"
This site features questions for each of the chapters in Robert Newton Peck's "A Day No Pigs Would Die."
Read Works
Read Works: Bridge to Terabithia 5th Grade Unit
A Grade 5 literature study unit for the novel "Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson. The concepts covered include cause and effect, character, genre, plot, predicting, and theme.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Comprehension and Vocabulary Henry and Mudge and the Starry Night
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart is correlated to Houghton Mifflin Reading, Grade 2 and is a guideline for comprehension and vocabulary for Henry and Mudge and the Starry Night by Cynthia Rylant. Interactive vocabulary...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Community Meeting [Pdf]
"Community Meeting" is a one page, fictional reading passage about the needs of a community and how they need to work together to meet those needs. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide...
Curated OER
Mc Graw Hill: Part 1 Reading: Literature: Determine Theme
Determine the theme of a story with this reading activity. See the model and then practice identifying the theme.
Read Works
Read Works: Finding Salinger
[Free Registration/Login Required] This passage shares the story of a lost cat. This passage is a stand-alone curricular piece that reinforces essential reading skills and strategies and establishes scaffolding for vocabulary learning....
Read Works
Read Works: Finders Keepers?
[Free Registration/Login Required] This passage is the story of a lost wallet and the returning of it to the owner who lost it. This passage is a stand-alone curricular piece that reinforces essential reading skills and strategies and...
Other
Database of Award Winning Children's Literature
This is a phenomenal resource. It allows the user to create a reading list of quality children's literature based of choices such as reading level, type of book, genre, ethnicity, gender, etc. In addition, one can determine if a book won...
McGraw Hill
Mc Graw Hill: Part 1 Reading: Literature: Compare and Contrast Events
Compare and contrast are skills students need to have to comprehend a text. Learn how to compare and contrast events on this site.