Which scenario is the better deal? Class members examine nine scenarios to determine which choice offers a better deal. Pupils decide whether they need to find unit costs or total prices to compare the two options.

Show your classes the importance of mathematics in something as simple as bicycle design. The final lesson in the six-part STEM series has each group research a different aspect of the bicycle. Learners use mathematical formulas, linear...

Are the means the same or not? Groups create samples from a bag of numbers and calculate the sample means. Using the sample means as an estimate for the population mean, scholars try to determine whether the difference is real or not.

Alice Walker's poem "Women" provides ninth graders the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to identify how a writer's choice of syntax and diction contribute to the development of the theme of the work.

An effective lesson plan truly can make all the difference. Seventh graders read, analyze, and annotate Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" before writing an essay about what they believe to be the theme of the iconic poem.

The Lord of the Flies and The Kite Runner are the core texts in a unit that asks learners to examine various texts that show how fear can be a destructive force or it can be an agent of change. Individuals they design a project that...

Focus on poetry this summer to enhance those comprehension, fluency, and language skills with a set of resources intended to explore different types of poetry, specifically lyric poetry. The daily activities contain differentiation ideas...

Good books are accessible through a variety of literary lenses. To consider how the same story can be seen in different lights, groups develop a storyboard for a movie teaser that would focus on one of six concepts found in Suzanne...

To prepare for crafting their own memoir, class members examine poetry by Margaret Atwood, Billy Collins, Robert Hayden, and Claude McKay, stories by Richard Rodriquez and Willa Cather, and Barry Levinson's film Avalon. They examine...

Turning 11 comes with a range of emotions. Explore those emotions by reading the short story "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros. Readers analyze the main character's reactions to the events of her day. Then, they write an essay describing what...

A picture's worth a thousand words—and even more inspiration! A visual activity uses photographs to inspire writers. The process teaches aspects of narrative writing, such as point of view and characterization.

Those in positions of authority don't always have the best interest of their people in mind. As part of a sample assessment question, readers must consider how works of literature they read apply to a quote from Edmund Burke—"The greater...

Poetry and prose often have more in common than it initially appears. A sample comprehensive English exam has test-takers compare and contrast two passages to answer short response questions. The exam, which is part of a larger set of...

Did he die for a cause, or was he crazy? Although the resource discusses John Brown and West Virginia history, many historical figures have the same reputation. Teach learners about different perspectives and highlight the importance of...

An English Language Arts Reading Comprehension Practice Test for Grade 10 asks scholars to read a poem and answer two multiple-choice questions about the poem. They finish the task by responding to an open-response essay question. 

Just like with any skill, test-taking aptitude improves with practice. Learners complete the handout, answering reading comprehension questions and engaging in timed writing exercises. The test includes multiple-choice and constructed...

Learners take their first step toward mastering test-taking by answering questions based on listening and reading comprehension. In addition to multiple choice questions, the examination includes two short-answer items and one essay. 

What better way to prepare learners for academic success than to administer practice tests? With the Comprehensive Examination in English, scholars read informational and literary texts and answer listening and reading comprehension...

A revolutionary work of literature requires a revolutionary assessment project. A series of activities on Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings includes discussion questions, a plot synopsis, and a selection of both short...

Scholars write letters as if they were someone who heard the story of John Brown's raid. The resource, a standalone, covers information from primary sources that is important to West Virginian history: the Harpers Ferry Letters.

World War II left the British desperate for help in any form—including in the form of a magician! High schooler conduct research on Jasper Maskelyne, a stage magician who used his talents to deceive the Germans on the war front, before...

Teach the class about the predecessor to Declaration of Independence—the Virginia Declaration of Rights. Using the foundational documents, scholars examine the two writings to consider how they are similar and how they are different. A...

A study of Alfred Noyes's poem "The Highwayman" opens a lesson about narrative poetry. Scholars read the poem and compare it to the animated video version using a worksheet. Learners look at models and use a template to craft an "I Am"...

Students research what experts and viewers thought about the commercials shown during Super Bowl XXXVII, paying special attention to the reason ads very popular or not. Students prepare a notebook or a PowerPoint presentation on the Best...