Fifth graders explore poems of African Americans. They research a famous African American, write a report, create a timeline of events in African American history, create a map of the New World, and research Molly Walsh. After...

Students brainstorm qualities that they look for in a good friend. They use those qualities to write a class poem. They are to illustrate their poems with crayons or markers.

Young scholars describe their feelings through writing, art or music.

Students, in groups, reflect on their attitudes towards poets and poetry. They read excerpts from George Puttenham's The Arte of English Poesie, which was written during Shakespeare's day. They compare their attitudes toward poetry to...

After listening to the Hans Christian Anderson story, "The Nightingale," students research more information about the bird. They then write an "If" poem, using facts about a nightingale. Next, watercolors are used to illustrate the poe

Students study the following terms and concepts: word choice, dialect, invented words, concrete terms, abstract terms, figurative and sensory language. In cooperative groups, they select three of the terms, research them, and pick poems...

Students discover how to express their feeling poetically. In this poetry lesson, students discuss their feelings, descriptive language to describe these feelings, and create poems.

Seventh graders explore how to spice up their work using vivid words and images. Afte a lecture/demo, 7th graders try their hand at writing poetry using a lot of adjectives and vivid verbs.

Students, through demonstration and example, write and answer questions at different levels of Bloom's taxonomy.

Sixth graders study Haiku. In this Haiku lesson, 6th graders explore the history of the poetry form. Students also examine the structure the Japanese poetry as they read examples. Students write their one Haiku.

Eighth graders explore the life and works of Pablo Neruda. They complete an author map concerning his personal and professional life. Students identify the key components of an ode. They write an ode to a common object around their...

Learners use Shakespearean sonnets as part of a poetry analysis lesson plan. In this sonnet lesson plan, students perform a sonnet by Shakespeare but treat it as a script to be acted out. Learners work in pairs to create motions for two...

Twelfth graders research the history to Haiku Poetry. They read classical haiku to comprehend their special sensibility and form. Students encounter the Buddhist philosophical background of this poetry and its roots. They write original...

Pupils write a dramatic scene based on The Odyssey and perform it for the class. In this living literature lesson, students work in small groups to discuss the way the characters look, act, and sound. They then choose scenery and props,...

Learners discover literature by conducting a free writing experiment. In this sonnet lesson, students read the sonnet "The Parting" and compare it to modern-day songs about breaking up. Learners listen to pop music in class and...

Middle schoolers write a personal narrative that is designed to help them reflect on the nature and meaning of change in their lives.

Eighth graders study the 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner.' They study the ballad and explore style and technique. Students use the internet and search previously identified news sites for current items of interest. They use images copied...

Students determine a positive physical feature of themselves. They participate in an online writer's workshop and write descriptive poem about their favorite feature. They create a display of poetry and pictures.

Students brainstorm independently first, then ask their best friend on the team, or seat partners, depending on the year & student mix, to add to their list of personal characteristics and/or to name three words they think of...

Students view a film about Shakespeare and his poetry. They complete a worksheet while viewing. They discuss how to properly read a poem and practice reading his sonnets.

Learners compare and contrast what they are thankful for and what the pilgrims were thankful for, and create a Thanksgiving placemat. They read and recite the poem "I'm Thankful For," and create a laminated landscape placemat that...

Eleventh graders examine the concept of the journey into self through a variety of literary genres. They express the personal notion of self by creating a picture poem and writing a personal reflection esssay.

Wes Magee's poem "The Chimney Boy's Story" about chimney sweeps/climbing boys is used as an introduction to a lesson that asks groups to research child labor in Victorian Britain. 

Learners are introduced to the various types of dinosaurs and write in their journals about their favorite one. After listening to a story and watching a filmstrip, they color a few pages in their Dinosaur Friends Book. They also examine...