Individual Reading Units

Word choice can drastically alter the tone of a piece of writing. Ninth graders read Karen Russell's short story "St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves" and use textual evidence to help them analyze the way that word choice affects...

How does Shakespeare use dialogue to develop the idea that the star-crossed lovers are more concerned with their relationship as individuals than they are with their roles as children of warring families? That is the question facing...

Karen Russell's short story "St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves" has a unique structure that adds value to the story itself. Analyze the way Russell has organized elements of the plot and characterization with the fourteenth...

Prepare for the end-of-unit assessment in a unit focused on Karen Russell's "St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves." As your class continues gathering evidence to support or argue against the success of Claudette's adaptation into...

Who says that reading has to involve text? Use non-print texts, including videos, TED talks, and podcasts in your classroom to teach skills associated with nonfiction reading, including evaluating claims, finding main ideas, and...

How does a society influence and shape individuals? Class members ponder this essential question as they read Lord of the Flies, as well as primary source materials about the historical background of the novel. As a final assessment,...

Ninth graders demonstrate their understanding of a central idea in Oedipus the King with a mid-unit writing assessment. Writers formulate a claim about the connection between prophecy and Oedipus's actions, and using evidence gathered...

Clear up the misconceptions about autism and individuals on the autism spectrum with an inquiry-based lesson. As ninth graders read the first four pages of Temple Grandin's Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode...

All animals are comrades in a thorough unit plan for George Orwell's Animal Farm. With reading comprehension questions, research project ideas, resources for building prior knowledge about the Russian Revolution, and many ways to extend...

The rules for capitalization are strict and inflexible—until you experience the fluid beauty of an Emily Dickinson poem. Ninth graders test their existing knowledge of language arts conventions with the many bent grammar rules in "I Felt...