After viewing slides and reading about child labor, young authors compose an original narrative story. They practice note-taking skills and work to effectively engage a reader by incorporating plot, logical order, complex characters,...

Students explore historical events by writing a research paper using personification.

Here's a clever technology twist to writing in the round. Participants rotate through a series of computers adding to stories and editing by keystroke and mouse click. "Locked" forms prevent the loss of stories filled with suspense and...

A speaker, a message, an audience. After analyzing these elements in Queen Elizabeth's speech to the troops at Tilbury, groups analyze how other speakers use an awareness of events, and their audience to craft their arguments....

Discuss the themes and events of Elizabeth George Speare's The Sign of the Beaver with a collection of journal topics. Each chapter contains two or three questions for kids to consider and write about, for a total of 24 questions.

What does it mean to come undone? Scholars consider the author's use of the phrase as they read paragraphs 12–15 from Julia Alvarez's autobiographical essay "A Genetics of Justice." They complete a quick write to analyze how Alvarez...

It's time to put it all together! Using the resource, scholars complete an end-of-unit assessment. They write a multi-paragraph essay comparing Audre Lorde's "From the House of Yemanjá" or "An Address by Elizabeth Cady Stanton" to...

How much does the environment affect how and what man creates? Children explore the effect of the environment on primitive man as they research raw materials from a specific location. They use their findings to write a short essay about...

Twelfth graders read and analyze the literary elements of Alphonse Daudet's "The Last Lesson" and Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address. They compare the two works and write an essay describing the reasons they feel the authors...

Pupils create taxonomies of Halloween-related terms. Drawing from their compiled vocabulary lists and previous reading, they compose personal essays of their own memories of the holiday. Students present their essays at a...

Young scholars complete literary analysis activities using proverbs. In this proverbs lesson, students interpret a proverb and discuss the structure of poems. Young scholars write essays explaining the summary statement and complete a...

Pupils identify heroic character traits that they admire and that inspire trust and result in service to others. They identify the heroic traits of a character of their choosing and defend their reasoning using evidence from the text and...

Students complete literary analysis for modern fables or urban legends. In this modern fables instructional activity, students listen to an urban legend and discuss it. Students then research urban legends online and write their own...

Seventh graders experience the satisfaction of writing for a purpose; their self-selected piece be published for an audience. They write using techniques appropriate to the selected genre.

Students complete a literary analysis lesson for House on Mango Streetby Sandra Cisneros. For this literary analysis lesson, students read and discuss the assigned chapters and complete an open mind diagram. Students write a letter from...

Students complete literary analysis and writing activities using The Witch of Goingsnake. In this literary analysis lesson, students interpret a proverb, read poems, complete a quaker reading, and complete research for the lesson....

Students view a classic movie in class while taking notes. They write a summary/ review of the movie which includes the name of the movie, who wrote it, the characters and a retelling of the story. They include their opinion and how the...

Students study paintings and use their knowledge of story elements to analyze the art. In this art analysis instructional activity, students review a novel for its elements. Students study the image At the Moulin Rouge: The Dance and...

Students complete novel analysis activities for the The Outsiders. In this novel analysis lesson, students complete three weeks of lessons that help them analyze the text and character education lessons within the novel.

In this reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 4 short answer and essay questions based on George Orwell's Animal Farm.

In this reading comprehension activity, students respond to 5 short answer and essay questions based on the poem "Kubla Khan."

In this reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 5 short answer and essay questions based on the poem "Ode on a Grecian Urn."

Students explore The Hound of the Baskerville's by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In this literature instructional activity, students read the book and write down the main facts about the settings. Students write an essay about realistic...

Middle schoolers explore their experiences and reflect on how one person can make a difference in our world. In this service learning lesson, students analyze themes in music related to encouragement. Middle schoolers perform a service...