This site provides guidance in creating literature circles based on cross-curricular themes that will help to improve literacy. The site emphasizes both theory and practice, with lots of practical suggestions.

[Free Registration/Login Required] A site with links to 29 worksheets that can be downloaded and printed for student use while building skills with standard RL.4.9: Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics (e.g.,...

Twenty-six half hour videos on literary analysis for high school students that feature authors, scholars, actors and noted critics. Topics include The Art of the Essay, Setting and Character in Short Fiction, Responding to Literature and...

In these activities, students will focus on a wealth of drafting material and writer's notebooks to reveal how Angela Carter created her final comic novel, "Wise Children". They will closely examine fascinating source documents and...

This fascinating site gives information on Lewis Carroll's famous works. Read about characters, themes and find useful quotations.

Are dark themes in young adult novels harmful or helpful to teens? Students will explore this question and will create an argumentative writing piece based on textual evidence. Videos of the lesson in action, examples of student work,...

This lesson uses the story Corduroy by Don Freeman to teach the main idea and supporting details of a story, as well as what we mean by the character's point of view. The lesson is done using print materials and a whiteboard with...

This site lists and discusses the characters and themes in Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. Shaw wants the reader to think about the problems caused by "common" language, and how language can separate people from different places and...

Written in 1891, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, depicts the life of a young country girl. The characters in this novel are analysed in detail. The site also includes an analysis of the various themes in the novel that was deemed controverial...

Throughout the course of the 19th century, the middle classes expanded rapidly. Those moving up the social scale had to learn new modes of behavior and ways of life. These articles research how this sector of society was reflected in the...

These articles research how childhood was depicted in the literature of the 18th and 19th century, and how perceptions of childhood were different from those of today.

Arundhati Roy won worldwide recognition for this fascinating novel. Read about the characters, themes and important quotations in this excellent site.

This site, from Ann Woodlief's Introduction to American Romanticism (or the American Renaissance) defines the Romantic movement in American literature and discusses its major themes.

Author Barry Lopez shares his observations about the literature of place in the United States. In this piece he examines how nature writing addresses the universal theme of connection between humans and the environment.

Read about Hugh MacLennan, who is "considered one of Canada's most nationalistic novelists." This article provides information on his education as well as events and themes reflected in his written works.

Find out about All Quiet on the Western Front in this comprehensive site that looks at the characters, themes and quotations from the novel.

The characters, major themes and important quotations are all presented in this informative website which gives important insights into the novel Sense and Sensibility.

This site explores the characters, plot and themes found in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Read about the symbols, imagery and allegories presented in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

Gothic fiction has intrigued and unsettled readers for more than two centuries. These articles research how these works reflect the political, social, and cultural contexts in which they were written.

This tutorial surveys the uses and limitations of first-person narration in literature. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.9

This famous short story is explored in depth in this interesting site. This informative site helps to take the mystery out of the characters, the plot and theme.

This is the text of Chapter 18 of Walden by transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau. By immersing himself in nature, Thoreau hoped to gain a more objective understanding of society through personal introspection. Simple living and...

Learners will compare and contrast various versions of Cinderella in the mini-unit. Students will engage in shared readings, an art project, and dramatic play during the unit.

Published in Spain in 1982 this novel follows a Chilean family and thier connection with upsetting poitical events of the 1970s. Read about the characters, plot and important themes in this comprehensive site.