Scholastic
Scholastic: Writing With Writers: Write a Book Review With Rodman Philbrick
This online activity invites students to plan, draft, revise, and publish a book review. Important writing tips and a professional writing model, provided by the author Rodman Philbrick, are included. Plus, enjoy the online library of...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Cover to Cover: Comparing Books to Movies
A 7-instructional activity unit where middle schoolers critically analyze how a film adaptation portrays a novel to see what impact it had on the retell of the story. They then design a movie DVD cover and write a DVD insert based on...
University of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin Madison: Writing Center: Reading a Book to Review It
Advice on steps to take and things to think about while reading a book to be reviewed. These directions will be particularly useful when reviewing non-fiction, but can be modified to work for fiction, too.
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Paying Attention to Technology Reviewing a Technology
Contains plans for five lessons that ask students to write reviews of pieces of technology (cell phones, webcams, ink pens, satellite dishes, etc.) like they would write reviews of books. In addition to objectives and standards, this...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Book Sorting: Using Observation and Comprehension
Critical thinking, comprehension and analysis skills are the focus of this physical activity. Good beginning to teaching different ways of looking at things.
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Book Report Alternative: The Elements of Fiction
Analyzing a book takes the form of creating their own when students complete this activity. The stated goal is to help students "Read like writers." Includes link to a template for student use.
University of Toronto (Canada)
University of Toronto: The Book Review or Article Critique
This site presents a series of questions to ask yourself before writing a book review or article critique. Most appropriate for non-fiction works.
Other
Tidewater Community College: Book or Article Review or Critique Guidelines
Many students are not sure what type of information to include in a book or article review. This site provides some general guidelines. It covers not only the type of content to be included but also the format.
Other
New York Review of Books Archive
At this site, you can conduct a search for critical reviews that have been published in the New York Review of Books. Currently (July, 2000), only reviews published since 1996 are available, but that is supposed to change. This is a good...
Other
Civil War Book Reviews
This site provides good examples of critical book reviews of Civil War literature.
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Flying to Freedom: Tar Beach & the People Could Fly
Comparing and contrasting works and looking for underlying themes and messages are at the heart of this multicultural lesson plan. Provides links to several background resources, and suggestions for assessment.
EL Education
El Education: Adolescent Anatomy and Disease [Student Project]
10th grade students at Dayton Regional STEM School in Beavercreek, Ohio, created this book, Adolescent Anatomy and Disease. This project is the culmination of several months of student work and represents a collaboration between the life...
EL Education
El Education: E Is for Egypt
This book was written and illustrated by sixth grade students at High Tech High Middle School in San Diego, California. As part of a three-month study of Ancient Egypt, students researched topics to feature in this children's alphabet...
PBS
Pbs: Culture Shock: Huck Finn in Context
This site features information on themes from Huck Finn. You will find activities and discussion questions to accompany the different sections.
Other
Robert Fulford: Robert Fulford's Column About Irony
Robert Fulford, an author from Canada, writes a column on irony in Globe and Mail, September 18, 1999. In this column, he critiques Jedediah Purdy's book called For Common Things: Irony, Trust, and Commitment in America Today and...