Varier wag? I'fecks? Posterns? As part of their vocabulary study, readers of The Winter's Tale try their hand at crafting Shakespearian-style sentences using words drawn from the play.

Middle schoolers complete a writing assessment task to demonstrate their ability to craft a narrative based on a variety of informational texts. They view West of the West's documentary Magic Isle, read three print resources about...

Mean girls and bully packs are favorite topic for films and TV shows that focus on the destructive power of cliques. High school freshmen are asked to reflect on both the positive and negative aspects of cliques by reading a short...

For some, getting to the polls to vote is no easy task. Voting may mean needing to choose between a job and civic duty. But what if Election Day was a national holiday? After reading an article about the pros and cons of designating...

The fourth and final lesson in the Gratitude series has learners craft and deliver a Gratitude Letter to a significant person in their lives. Writers include information about how they benefitted from the attention of the benefactor, an...

Shakespeare's Macbeth has something for everyone. Scholars complete a mid-unit assessment. They craft multi-paragraph essays to analyze how the author's structural choices create tension and suspense in the play's first two acts.

As part of their preparation for a visit to the Museum of Tolerance, individuals are asked to write about a time when they witnessed or experienced unjust, biased, or prejudicial treatment. A great way for writers to make a personal...

Encourage narrative writing with a clever exercise. Class members watch episodes from movies and describe what happened to a character, including details about the setting, plot, and characters. Writers then craft a narrative about a...

If your students made a list of their favorite things, would writing poetry be on it? After this poetry writing lesson, it might! Young writers make a list of what they like—or what they don't like—before crafting the list into...

Communication is the key. Prompts from the 2005 AP® English Language and Composition Free-Response Questions Form B allows scholars two opportunities to analyze the use of communication to express thoughts. First, pupils look at...

Move beyond the five-paragraph essay with a lesson introducing young writers to various forms of expository writing. Class members examine description, cause and effect, problem solution, sequence, and comparison forms. They create an...

The opening exercise in this instructional unit introduces class members to the writing process they will follow to craft an informative, expository research paper that addresses their research question. To begin, writers are asked to...

Writers review the provided essay rubric, edit and rewrite if necessary, polish their work, and then submit their argument essay.

Esther Forbes' award-winning Revolutionary War novel, Johnny Tremain and excerpts from Julie Otsuka's When the Emperor Was Divine are used to model how imagery brings alive the setting of a story. The young writers then craft their...

The beginning, a very good place to start, is also a very difficult thing to craft. Provide your writers with this handout that identifies, and provides examples of, six different types of narrative leads.

Upper elementary and middle school writers learn how to craft an expository paragraph by following the six steps detailed in a 48-page instructional guide. Learners learn how to write six different types of informational paragraphs:...

Angela Shelf Medearis' Poppa's New Pants provides third graders with an opportunity to stitch together their own narrative filled with sensory details. After reading the story and noting the sensory and concrete details in the tale...

Crafting a personal statement for college admissions, job applications, or other post-high school programs does not have to be a nightmare. The "Telling My Story" packet describes the key components of successful essays and includes...

Help readers make a personal connection to Homer's The Odyssey with a narrative writing assignment. Scholars select one of three prompts and craft a first-person narrative rich in sensory details that describes an experience they had...

Here's an assignment sheet that models for readers how to craft a literary analysis of William Golding's Lord of the Flies. The packet includes a graphic organizer, a model outline, a model essay, and a detailed rubric.

"Who am I?" is not only a great philosophical question that requires a lot of reflection but is also at the heart of a letter of introduction. The challenge, of course, is figuring out where to start. Middle schoolers get a little help...

Senior Spotlight! Read all about them! Young photojournalists put together their articles and photographs, craft a layout, and publish their interviews with a senior from their high school.

O. Henry's short story, "The Give of the Magi," launches a study of what motivates people to act as they do. Class members identify what they believe are the motivations of the characters in O. Henry's tale and then craft a one-page...

The big idea in this lesson is that implicit bias often clouds perceptions. High schoolers watch a short video, read research articles, and engage in discussions about implicit bias and how these biases lead to stereotyping. They craft...