National Endowment for the Humanities
Animal Farm: Allegory and the Art of Persuasion
Introduce your class members to allegory and propaganda with a series of activities designed to accompany a study of George Orwell's Animal Farm. Readers examine the text as an allegory, consider the parallels to collective farms...
Curated OER
The Gift of Gatsby
A reading of “Gatsby’s Green Light Beckons a New Set of Strivers,” a New York Times article by Sara Rimer, triggers a discussion of the American Dream and what it means to strive for something. Following the discussion, class members...
Carnegie Library
Creative Writing: Middle School Lesson Plan
Enhance a unit on historical fiction with an engaging writing lesson. Learners bring the Industrial Era to life as they compose their own historical fiction pieces based on primary source images of Pittsburgh steel workers.
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 6 Close Reading
Look back at the third chapter of The Cay with your class. Pupils will conduct a close reading, taking a second look at a chunk of text and responding to a series of text-dependent questions. Wrap up with an analytical writing prompt...
Penguin Books
Folklore and Fairytales: A Guide to Using Traditional Tales and Reimagined Classics
Every culture has its own stories to tell. An interesting educator's guide shares a large collection of fairytales and folktales, some from different cultures and some re-creations of classics. A summary and brief teaching ideas...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Robots
Two activities work with a fiction and nonfiction book about robots‚—Robot Dreams by Sara Varon and Robot by Roger Bridgman. Scholars read each story, then build a robot out of found objects, examine robot sensors, and search for...
Curated OER
The Spread of Enlightenment Ideas
Looking for a simple and straightforward reference on the Enlightenment for your young historians? Check out this list of key terms and important figures from the period, followed by a traditional assessment where your learners will be...
Curated OER
Immigration/Migration: Today and During the Great Depression
Eleventh graders compare experiences of their families to those living through the Great Depression using famiy interviews, photographs, films and document from the Library of Congress.
Curated OER
Science Fiction Lesson Plans
Students can explore a literature genre through science fiction lesson plans.
Curated OER
1984
Young scholars read 1984, noting the potential dangers of government. They keep private diaries to parctice freedom of expression. They create political cartoons for a secret publication and design posters and T-shirts with warnings on...
Curated OER
What a Garden Can Teach Us
Third graders read "Seedfolks" and "What a Garden Can Teach Us" and discuss how a garden is like a community. They create a class quilt illustrating how their classroom community the lines of the poem.
Curated OER
I, Juan de Pareja
Students examine a work of historical fiction based on the life of an actual person who modeled for the painter, Diego Velazquez. Elizabethy Borton de Trevirio's story, "I, Juan de Pareja" provides opportuities for the reader to discover...
Curated OER
Animal Farm
An exploration of "Animal Farm" can be a way to get students thinking about politics, history, and literature.
Curated OER
Book Project Lesson Plans
Long term book projects can help engage students and enhance their critical thinking skills .
Curated OER
"The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" Lesson Plans
"The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" provides a great way for students to delve into literature, history, and the imagination.
Curated OER
The Days of Jane Eyre's Life
Students watch the movie Jane Eyre and complete a viewing log. They take a test on their findings.
Curated OER
Biotechnology, GMOs and Food
Twelfth graders explore controversy around genetically modified foods, identify source of controversy, and role play town hall meeting on genetically modified foods, to examine viewpoints and arguments for and against genetic modification.
Curated OER
"Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen
Students complete a variety of activities that revolve around the book "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen. They view and discuss stills from the move "Hoot" and compose original storylines, conduct Internet research about the life of Carl Hiaasen,...
Curated OER
Brutal British
Students read and predict the outcome of a story set during the Civil War, then map the story. To prepare for the activity, students determine why it is important to look at historical events from all angles by using primary and...
Curated OER
Mark Twain Lesson Plans
Celebrate the birthday of Mark Twain and learn about American life and literature along the great Mississippi River.
Curated OER
Exploring Science Fiction
Twelfth graders read a variety of science fiction short stories. Using the text, they identify the components that make it science fiction and a well written piece of literature. They record their observations and share them with the...
Curated OER
Native American Living Museum
Seventh graders complete a unit of lessons on Native Americans. They analyze Native American cultures, create a Native American artifact for a Living Museum, and develop a tour of the museum using a digital camera and a Powerpoint...
Curated OER
Meet the Press
Students give their book reports as oral "Meet the Press" type interviews. They team up with another student "reporter" and answer questions about main idea, details, and the point of view.
Curated OER
Prejudice and the Navaho Indian Long Walk
Students read Scott O'Dell's book, Sing Down the Moon, and answer questions about the forced migration of the Navahos from Arizona to Fort Sumter, New Mexico. They conduct research and describe a tenebrae service and its importance.