Main Memory Network
Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and Whitman's "Song of Myself"
Although the work Americans do has changed over time, the plight of the American worker has largely remained the same. Facilitate a class discussion aboutAmerican workers using Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and...
Curated OER
Figurative Language
What is figurative language, and why do we use it? Introduce your high schoolers to some examples and discuss the importance of including this element in your writing. After studying a text and searching for examples, writers will...
Syracuse University
Harlem Renaissance
The music and literature of the Harlem Renaissance defined American culture, including its poetry. Using a poem from the period, individuals explore its musical qualities and how it is reflective of the period. Then, they use what they...
Curated OER
Writing Women: The Yellow Wallpaper
Students examine the historical, social, cultural and economic context of Charlotte Perkins Gilman's story, The Yellow Wallpaper. Students determine the place of the middle class woman and her role in society.
Intel
Play Ball!
Math and sports meet on the baseball diamond in the first STEM lesson in a series of six that asks pupils to collect and perform comparative analyses of data specific to baseball. Following the analysis, scholars create a presentation...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Characters from a Box
Character analysis is a skill we use when we read literary works or want to write a good story. Learners will use drama to practice character analysis while focusing on the details that make characters act the way they do. They'll each...
Spreading Gratitude Rocks
Live and Learn and Pass It On
What are some of life's most tried-and-true lessons? Pupils listen to examples from the book Live and Learn and Pass It On by H. Jackson Brown, Jr. They write down their own life lessons to later compile in a class booklet. As...
Curated OER
Communities in Crisis Lesson 1: Primary Source? What is That?
Distinguish between primary and secondary source documents using the theme of philanthropy. Middle schoolers discuss Anne Frank: The Diary of Young Girl as a way to study the past using a primary source. Then they investigate how to...
Curated OER
Different Strokes For Different Folktales
Young readers use graphic organizers, such as Venn diagrams and story maps, to analyze a variety of folktales and the elements of a story. They use writing, sequencing activities, and creative art to identify the morals learned from a...
Curated OER
The Conclusion Paragraph
Strike a note of hope or despair. Give a symbolic detail. Use a meaningful quotation. These strategies and others are part of a presentation on the purposes of and how to craft a conclusion. Sample conclusions are included for the class...
Gourmet Curriculum Press
Author's Purpose
Who knew determining author's purpose could be turned into a game? Four teams compete to correctly identify the author's purpose for writing a series of passages.
Curated OER
Poetic Elements
Poetry is all about sound and rhythm. The sound of the words, the rhythm of the lines, and the emotional atmosphere created by these elements and the literary devices poets use, compress whole stories into a few stanzas. The specialized...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Character in Place: Eudora Welty’s “A Worn Path” for the Common Core
How do writers use the interaction between elements like characterization and setting to create meaning? Readers of "A Worn Path" create a series of comic book-style graphics of Eudora Welty's short story and reflect on how Welty...
EngageNY
Introducing Module 4B: “Water Is Life”
Learners take a gallery walk around the classroom to view various images and quotes. As they walk, they write down what they notice and wonder about what they see. After discussing their notice and wonder notes, they read the...
Prestwick House
The Poetry of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan's selection as the 2016 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, the first songwriter ever to receive the honor, has focused the attention of a new generation on the work of the legendary artist. Class members...
Novelinks
The Tempest: QAR
Asking questions about a text is an effective way to improve reading comprehension. Apply the Question Answer Response strategy to your unit on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. As kids read each passage, they decide if the answer...
Curated OER
Generating Topic Sentences
A great look at topic sentences is presented here. First, the function of a topic sentence is explained and common errors are listed. Then, you will walk your class through the five example topic sentences to discuss their quality.
Curated OER
Comparing Poems
Young literary analysts compare two poems by the same author. Readers look for slant rhyme, observe the beat and rhythm of each, and search for repeated vowel sounds. After re-reading, they observe the lack of punctuation and the stanza...
Curated OER
Exploring War Themes in Art and Poetry
What is war? Students discuss the ethical dilemma of war by viewing Picasso's painting entitled "Guernica" and write down everything they see in the painting. Then they choose one emotion that best summarizes their emotional response to...
Curated OER
Lincoln Theme--Gettysburg
Fifth graders explore the significance of the Gettysburg Address. In this United States history lesson, 5th graders listen to a Gettysburg Address recording and look at photos of the battlefield. Students discuss their observations and...
Curated OER
Twelfth Night Act 2 Scene 5 Lesson Plan
Students read and complete activities for the Shakespeare play Twelfth Night. In this play analysis lesson, students discuss the themes, characters, and literary devices used in Act 2, Scene 5 of the Twelfth Night. Students complete a...
Curated OER
Media Analysis--Culture and Gender Roles
Ninth graders participate in class discussion about culture and how it influences our lives then complete an analysis of advertisements from popular magazines to derive what effects they have on our culture. They use analysis of adds to...
Curated OER
Lift Every Voice and Sing
Students analyze sculpture, poetry, and music to gain an understanding of historical events. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at African-American history as they examine "Lift Every Voice and Sing'"...
Curated OER
Analyzing Sonnets
Model for your class how to craft an analysis of a sonnet by examining the literary techniques used, the background of the poet, and critical reviews of the poem. As guided practice, learners are assigned a sonnet, complete a preliminary...