Study Guide
Penguin Books

The Jungle

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
It's a jungle out there! Teachers gain information to guide learners through reading The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. Instructors give an overview of the characters in the story and a summary of each chapter. The resource includes questions...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

Addressing Text Complexity - Making Independent Reading Meaningful

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Many English teachers dream of a classroom full of readers silently enjoying their books. A useful guide helps make that dream become a reality by providing book recommendations for a range of readers. Each suggestion includes the...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator’s Guide to Ruta Sepetys

For Teachers 7th - 10th Standards
Historical fiction novels give readers a chance to step into someone else's shoes. An educator's guide from Penguin Common Core Lesson Plans provides resources to accompany three historical fiction novels written by Ruta Sepetys: Between...
Handout
Penguin Books

Up Close: Ella Fitzgerald

For Students 5th - 7th Standards
A reading of Tanya Lee Stones' biography of Ella Fitzgerald lets middle schoolers get up close and personal with the First Lady of Jazz. Stone recounts details of Fitzgerald's life from her early days through her experiences as a teenage...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator’s Guide to the Works of John Green

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The novels of John Green cover the gamut of teenager emotions. A guide to his works provides classroom lesson plans for the novels Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, The Fault in Our Stars, and Paper Towns. Each lesson...
Activity
Penguin Books

Using Thirteen Reasons Why in the Classroom

For Teachers 7th - 10th Standards
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher helps bring difficult, but important, topics such as suicide and bullying into the classroom. An educator's guide for the novel provides activities and discussion questions to help teens explore the...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educators' Guide to Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

For Teachers 7th - 10th Standards
Books can help teens understand complex global issues. A helpful educator's guide introduces readers to what it's like to be a refugee. Lesson components for the novel Shades of Gray include an anticipation guide and writing and...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to Matched by Ally Condie

For Teachers 7th - 10th Standards
Even supposed Utopian societies have their flaws. Using an educator's guide, individuals explore the society Ally Condie creates in Matched. Reflective writing prompts double as discussion questions and cover key themes in the novel, as...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Young Readers Edition

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
As the saying goes, you are what you eat. A useful set of lesson plans encourage young readers to take a second look at their eating habits. Pre- and post-reading questions bring in reflective writing and discussion while extension...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt - Teacher's Guide

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Children in foster care face a lot of uncertainty in their lives. A guide for the novel One for the Murphys introduces a main character, Carley, who is thrust into the foster care system. Chapter-by-chapter questions cover key...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

Core Curriculum Lesson Plans for The Lions of Little Rock

For Teachers 5th - 7th Standards
Schools in the 1950s and 60s looked very different from the schools we know today. An educator's guide explores the civil rights movement and, specifically, the process of integrating schools. Questions cover key themes in the novel and...
Unit Plan
Penguin Books

The Curriculum Guide for The Secret Hum of a Daisy by Tracy Holczer

For Teachers 5th - 10th Standards
The death of a parent can turn a child's world upside down. A curriculum guide for The Secret Hum of a Daisy explores defining moments in the main character's life, including the loss of her mother. Chapter-by-chapter discussion...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages

For Teachers 5th - 6th Standards
A lot of secrecy shrouded the creation of the atomic bomb. Readers uncover some of that secrecy using an educator's guide for the novel The Green Glass Sea. Three weeks of lesson plans feature discussion questions and reading...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to Counting by 7s

For Teachers 4th - 7th Standards
Everyone takes a different journey through grief. A series of lesson plans for the novel Counting by 7s introduces readers to the main character who loses her parents in a car crash. Discussion questions and writing prompts combine...
Unit Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to Al Capone Does My Shirts

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
It's hard to imagine that life on Alcatraz could be dull. A series of intriguing lessons take readers through the novel Al Capone Does my Shirts. Pre-reading questions introduce the text and a range of suggestions, from comic strips to...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator’s Guide to Savvy by Ingrid Law

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
Literature circles give learners a chance to explore a novel in a unique way. An educator's guide for the book Savvy uses literature circles as part of the novel study. Additional activities cover elements of figurative language and...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

Folklore and Fairytales: A Guide to Using Traditional Tales and Reimagined Classics

For Teachers K - 8th Standards
Every culture has its own stories to tell. An interesting educator's guide shares a large collection of fairytales and folktales, some from different cultures and some re-creations of classics. A summary and brief teaching ideas...
Unit Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to the Works of Lynda Mullaly Hunt

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Middle school years can be tough. An educator's guide for the works of Lynda Mullaly Hunt introduces readers to two texts that discuss the struggles pre-teens face during middle school. Chapter-by-chapter questions and activities for two...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator’s Guide to Chraisma by Jeanne Ryan

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Often, science fiction makes a lot of connections to real life. An educator's guide for the novel Charisma by Jeanne Ryan, has readers discuss many of the real-life issues that come in the text. A brief summary helps garner interest...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Jack the Ripper terrorized London in the late 1800s. An educator's guide for the novel The Name of the Star places the historical figure in a modern context. Readers complete a pre-reading activity before answering a series of discussion...
Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

An Educator's Guide to Matilda

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Chances are, you've got some precocious Matilda fans in your class! Use a thorough set of lesson plans to address Roald Dahl's classic novel about a bright girl who just wants to be understood. Vocabulary exercises,...
Study Guide
Penguin Books

A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classics Edition of Jack London's The Call of the Wild

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
The Yukon provides plenty of opportunity for adventure. A study guide for The Call of the Wild by Jack London, also the author of White Fang, helps readers navigate the novel which is set in Yukon, Canada. Chapter summaries give a...
Study Guide
Penguin Books

A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classics Edition of Mary Shelley ’s Frankenstein

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
Contrary to popular belief, the monster's name in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is not Frankenstein. A teacher's guide for the novel helps readers make sense of key details in the text, define vocabulary words, and discuss prominent...
Study Guide
Penguin Books

A Teacher’s Guide to the Penguin Edition of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
The dry Oklahoma landscape in America's Dust Bowl sent many farmers in search of the promised land. A teacher's guide to John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath discusses the characters' desire for a better home along with other themes...