Get some giggles from your class and build understanding of the mood of a literary piece with this printable. Pupils fill in the mood in the gem part of the ring, and write down supporting details below (inside of the actual ring). While...

Teasing, mocking, and disrespect can be the hallmarks in the life of those with disabilities. Disrupt the cycle of abuse with a toolkit designed to turn peers into advocates for all those who are bullied. Everything needed to create a...

Shed light onto the subject of happiness with a instructional activity that focuses on how the emotion—much like other emotions—does not last forever. Scholars read brief passages and answer nine short-answer questions that...

Students create punctuation marks using different sizes and shapes of macaroni. They show their understanding of proper use of quotation marks.

Cover character development and indirect characterization in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck with a graphic organizer. Class members search through the text and fill out a box for each character. The activity provides some notes for...

Here is a fantastic poster that you can easily and frequently reference in your class whenever you are asking your young writers to cite their sources. Using the acronym ICE, learners are reminded to introduce, cite, and explain...

As your class reads "The Cask of Amontillado," have them search for examples of irony and foreshadowing. In one square, readers record textual evidence, and in an accompanying square, they comment on the quotations. One example is...

Designed to be used with an independent reading book, this activity provides practice with identifying and explaining literary terms. While they read, individuals find instances of literary devices and elements in use in their books....

Use a presentation on dialogue tags in a narrative writing unit or a literature lesson. The first two pages of the resource detail the information and examples in the following slide show, making it a good reference page for your...

There are “a million things to talk about. . .” in Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine; however, the focus of this socratic seminar is the issue of living and dying. Class members prepare for the discussion by writing about their own views of...

This is a week-long lesson on analyzing the similarities and differences between sources of tension and terrorism in eight locations around the world. The class is divided into eight groups and assigned one of the locations to research....

"Who says a pen has to be called a pen? Why not call it a frindle?" Inspired by this quote from the award-winning novel written by Andrew Celements, this lesson allows children to invent their own...

Help learners respond in the best way possible to open-ended questions. Go through the ACE method with a text and question of your choice. Scholars work in groups to post their responses on the board. An attached rubric is used for...

Familiarize your class with commonly used editing marks. They apply the use of editing marks to a letter and examine different types of literary tools before making a note card resource for the tools. They add their own examples for each...

Hop on the stock market rollercoaster! This political cartoon analysis has scholars examine a cartoon about the ups and downs of a volatile market. Background information and a quote provide context for analyzing the cartoon, and 3...

Class members create literary mandalas for two characters from Maus, Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel about his father’s experiences with the Holocaust. After finding quotes that reveal three good traits and three bad traits of each...

Pause in your reading of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead to take an in-depth look at the characters. Learners examine a chosen character by drawing a body and assigning quotes and traits to specific areas of the body, thinking...

Help readers learn to create their own open-ended questions for any text you are working with. Using Bloom's Taxonomy, learners begin on the lower levels and work their way up to form questions that focus on synthesis instead of simple...

Focus on presentation techniques with this lesson, which prompts middle schoolers give an impromptu speech. They practice public speaking by giving a short unprepared speech. Some preparations are made to include an introduction, body,...

Explore a story's character by using this character wheel. Kids will love this graphic organizer. It's easy to use, and there are spaces to write character traits and textual evidence that supports those traits. This is a great middle...

Why does Steinbeck use animal imagery to describe Lennie in Of Mice and Men? Readers examine a series of descriptions and comment on the effect Steinbeck creates with his word choice. 

Here is a one-stop planning resource for Louis Sachar's Newbery Award-winning book Holes. You'll find 21 links to worksheets and various activities designed to span the entire book. Learners draw to help analyze settings and...

Stereotyping and discrimination based on religion catalyze many atrocities in the world. Explain the awful treatment of Jews and the lies Nazis spread by using an informative yet sensitive resource. Learners participate in a warm-up and...

How do you create (and punctuate) really good dialogue so that it moves your story forward and provides strong characterization? Use this literary worksheet loaded with examples, clearly stated directions, and fun exercises.  Fifth...